HOODIA GORDONII EXPLAINED.

Hoodia is a succulent plant that is frequently mistaken as a member of the cactus family. Though hoodia resembles a cactus, growing up to six feet tall, that is really as far as the similarity goes.  It is actually a member of the Asclepiadaceae family of plants. The Asclepiadaceae is a former plant family now treated as a subfamily (a subfamily of Asclepiadoideae) in the Apocynaceae.

They form a group of perennial herbs, twining shrubs, or in rare instances, trees, but they also contain a significant number of leafless stem succulents, all belonging to the order Gentianales. The name comes from the type genus Asclepias (milkweeds). There are many different varieties of Hoodia plants, with Hoodia Gordonii being the one which has been singled out as having the molecule that acts as an appetite suppressant.

WHERE EXACTLY DOES HOODIA COME FROM?

Hoodia has been used by the indigenous san bushmen of South Africa for centuries.  They appear to be the first to discover the appetite suppressing qualities of this plant. The bushmen would go on long hunting trips and chew on the Hoodia plant to reduce hunger and increase energy.

It wasn’t until the mid 1960’s that the first research was performed on hoodia gordonii as an appetite suppressant.  Even then it took another thirty years for the South African
laboratories to isolate the specific appetite suppressing ingredient.  This ingredient was called P57.  It was one thought that the major pharmaceutical companies could
make a synthetic version of P57 so it could be patented and controlled.  This turned out to be cost prohibitive so Big Pharma went in newer, more profitable directions.

WHAT OTHER EVIDENCE IS THERE THAT HOODIA TRULY WORKS AS AN
APPETITE SUPPRESSANT?

While the san bushmen didn’t do formal clinical studies in the bush, there are literally centuries of real world evidence that consuming hoodia really works as an appetite suppressant.  There is also a growing sector of the media who can support the effectiveness of hoodia.  

Below is a portion of the transcript from 60 Minutes that aired in November of 2004:

"So how did it work?  Stahl says she had no after effects – no funny taste in her mouth, no queasy stomach, and no racing heart.  She also wasn’t hungry all day, even when she would normally have a pang around mealtime and she also had no desire to eat or drink the entire day.  “I’d have to say it did work,” says Stahl."
 

Leslie Stahl reporting on television news show 60 Minutes

Hoodia Gordonii Explained--Continued...