Mar 12, 2008
CBS 60 Minutes
(CBS) Each year, people spend more than $40 billion on products designed to help them slim down. None of them seem to be working very well. Now along comes hoodia. Never heard of it? Soon it'll be tripping off your tongue, because hoodia is a natural substance that literally takes your appetite away. It's very different from diet stimulants like Ephedra and Phenfen that are now banned because of dangerous side effects. Hoodia doesn't stimulate at all. Scientists say it fools the brain by making you think you’re full, even if you've eaten just a morsel. Correspondent Lesley Stahl reports. Hoodia is a bitter-tasting cactus-like plant. 60 Minutes was told that if it wanted to try hoodia, it would have to go to Africa. Why? Because the only place in the world where hoodia grows wild is in the Kalahari Desert of South Africa. Nigel Crawhall, a linguist and interpreter, hired an experienced tracker named Toppies Kruiper, a local aboriginal Bushman, to help find it. The Bushmen were featured in the movie “The Gods Must Be Crazy.” Kruiper led 60 Minutes crews out into the desert. Stahl asked him if he ate hoodia. "I really like to eat them when the new rains have come," says Kruiper, speaking through the interpreter. "Then they're really quite delicious." When we located the plant, Kruiper cut off a stalk that looked like a small spiky pickle, and removed the sharp spines. In the interest of science, Stahl ate it. She described the taste as "a little cucumbery in texture, but not bad." 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. Although the West is just discovering hoodia, the Bushmen of the Kalahari have been eating it for a very long time. After all, they have been living off the land in southern Africa for more than 100,000 years. Some of the Bushmen, like Anna Swartz, still live in old traditional huts, and cook so-called Bush food gathered from the desert the old-fashioned way. The first scientific investigation of the plant was conducted at South Africa’s national laboratory. Because Bushmen were known to eat hoodia, it was included in a study of indigenous foods. "What they found was when they fed it to animals, the animals ate it and lost weight," says Dr. Richard Dixey, who heads an English pharmaceutical company called Phytopharm that is trying to develop weight-loss products based on hoodia. Was hoodia's potential application as an appetite suppressant immediately obvious? "No, it took them a long time. In fact, the original research was done in the mid 1960s," says Dixey. (CBS) It took the South African national laboratory 30 years to isolate and identify the specific appetite-suppressing ingredient in hoodia. When they found it, they applied for a patent and licensed it to Phytopharm. Phytopharm has spent more than $20 million so far on research, including clinical trials with obese volunteers that have yielded promising results. Subjects given hoodia ended up eating about 1,000 calories a day less than those in the control group. To put that in perspective, the average American man consumes about 2,600 calories a day; a woman about 1,900. "If you take this compound every day, your wish to eat goes down. And we've seen that very, very dramatically," says Dixey. But why do you need a patent for a plant? "The patent is on the application of the plant as a weight-loss material. And, of course, the active compounds within the plant. It’s not on the plant itself," says Dixey. So no one else can use hoodia for weight loss? "As a weight-management product without infringing the patent, that’s correct," says Dixey. But what does that say about all these weight-loss products that claim to have hoodia in it? Trimspa says its X32 pills contain 75 mg of hoodia. The company is pushing its product with an ad campaign featuring Anna Nicole Smith, even though the FDA has notified Trimspa that it hasn’t demonstrated that the product is safe. Some companies have even used the results of Phytopharm’s clinical tests to market their products. "This is just straightforward theft. That’s what it is. People are stealing data, which they haven’t done, they’ve got no proper understanding of, and sticking on the bottle," says Dixey. "When we have assayed these materials, they contain between 0.1 and 0.01 percent of the active ingredient claimed. But they use the term hoodia on the bottle, of course, so they -- does nothing at all." But Dixey isn’t the only one who’s felt ripped off. The Bushmen first heard the news about the patent when Phytopharm put out a press release. Roger Chennells, a lawyer in South Africa who represents the Bushmen, who are also called “the San,” was appalled. "The San did not even know about it," says Chennells. "They had given the information that led directly toward the patent." The taking of traditional knowledge without compensation is called “bio-piracy.” "You have said, and I'm going to quote you, 'that the San felt as if someone had stolen the family silver,'" says Stahl to Chennells. "So what did you do?" "I wouldn't want to go into some of the details as to what kind of letters were written or what kind of threats were made," says Chennells. "We engaged them. They had done something wrong, and we wanted them to acknowledge it." Chennells was determined to help the Bushmen who, he says, have been exploited for centuries. First they were pushed aside by black tribes. Then, when white colonists arrived, they were nearly annihilated. "About the turn of the century, there were still hunting parties in Namibia and in South Africa that allowed farmers to go and kill Bushmen," says Chennells. "It's well documented." The Bushmen are still stigmatized in South Africa, and plagued with high unemployment, little education, and lots of alcoholism. And now, it seemed they were about to be cut out of a potential windfall from hoodia. So Chennells threatened to sue the national lab on their behalf. "We knew that if it was successful, many, many millions of dollars would be coming towards the San," says Chennells. "Many, many millions. They've talked about the market being hundreds and hundreds of millions in America." In the end, a settlement was reached. The Bushmen will get a percentage of the profits -- if there are profits. But that’s a big if. The future of hoodia is not yet a sure thing. The project hit a major snag last year. Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, which had teamed up with Phytopharm, and funded much of the research, dropped out when making a pill out of the active ingredient seemed beyond reach. (CBS) Dixey says it can be made synthetically: "We've made milligrams of it. But it's very expensive. It's not possible to make it synthetically in what’s called a scaleable process. So we couldn’t make a metric ton of it or something that is the sort of quantity you’d need to actually start doing something about obesity in thousands of people." Phytopharm decided to market hoodia in its natural form, in diet shakes and bars. That meant it needed the hoodia plant itself. But given the obesity epidemic in the United States, it became obvious that what was needed was a lot of hoodia - much more than was growing in the wild in the Kalahari. And so they came here. 60 Minutes visited one of Phytopharm’s hoodia plantations in South Africa. They’ll need a lot of these plantations to meet the expected demand. Agronomist Simon MacWilliam has a tall order: grow a billion portions a year of hoodia, within just a couple of years. He admitted that starting up the plantation has been quite a challenge. "The problem is we’re dealing with a novel crop. It’s a plant we’ve taken out of the wild and we’re starting to grow it,' says MacWilliam. "So we have no experience. So it’s different— diseases and pests which we have to deal with." How confident are they that they will be able to grow enough? "We're very confident of that," he says. "We've got an expansion program which is going to be 100s of acres. And we'll be able – ready to meet the demand. This could be huge, given the obesity epidemic. Phytopharm says it’s about to announce marketing plans that will have meal-replacement hoodia products on supermarket shelves by 2008. MacWilliam says these products are a slightly different species from the hoodia Stahl tasted in the Kalahari Desert. "It's actually a lot more bitter than the plant that you tasted," says MacWilliam. The advantage is this species of hoodia will grow a lot faster. But more bitter? How bad could it be? Stahl decided to find out. "Not good," she says. Phytopharm says that when its product gets to market, it will be certified safe and effective. They also promise that it’ll taste good. SOURCE: CBS 60 MINUTES Labels: hoodia in the news
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
Weight-Loss Help from Two Famous "Losers"...
Weight-Loss Help from Two Famous "Losers"... Word has it two celebrities are going to be helping us with our weight-loss efforts soon... Janet Jackson is writing a book about weight loss after struggling with her weight for... Source: weightloss.about.comFeeling Shabby? Take My Advice... It seems everyone is either coming down with or getting over something these days. I just got over an illness that lasted about 11 days. I had a... Source: weightloss.about.comHealthy On-the-Go Snacks To keep your metabolism going strong and to prevent overeating, it's important to have a healthy snack about every three to four hours. If you are at home, it's fairly... Source: weightloss.about.comOne Powerful Protein? Interesting news: Researchers have found that a certain protein works to stimulate the formation of fat cells. This finding could mean that the protein may potentially be used... Source: weightloss.about.comTempting Treats Under 150 Calories Some days you just need to treat yourself. Here are some of my favorite picks for tempting treats with 150 calories or less each: McDonald�s vanilla cone (1) a slice of... Source: weightloss.about.comA Dress You'll Never Wear Again isn't the Worst Part... I've never been a bridesmaid myself. My friends who have been there, done that a time or two tell me that is a blessing. I didn't automatically agree.... Source: weightloss.about.comIn Case Cupid Doesn't Bring You Chocolate... If you�re anything like me, you�ll find yourself with a perpetual craving for chocolate this time of year, but I�ve got good news. You can enjoy all of these... Source: weightloss.about.comLabels: Weight Loss
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
Panel Calls For Leadership To Protect Children From Targeted Marketing, Canada
Panel Calls For Leadership To Protect Children From Targeted Marketing, Canada A panel of prominent, independently minded Canadians ranging from educators, Aboriginal, community and youth leaders, journalists, public policy researchers, academics and authors, today released a recommendation for a made in Canada plan to ensure that unhealthy food and beverages are not marketed to children. Source: www.medicalnewstoday.comLabels: Weight Loss
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
A Dress You'll Never Wear Again isn't the Worst Part...
A Dress You'll Never Wear Again isn't the Worst Part... I've never been a bridesmaid myself. My friends who have been there, done that a time or two tell me that is a blessing. I didn't automatically agree.... Source: weightloss.about.comIn Case Cupid Doesn't Bring You Chocolate... If you�re anything like me, you�ll find yourself with a perpetual craving for chocolate this time of year, but I�ve got good news. You can enjoy all of these... Source: weightloss.about.comYour Weight and Heart Disease Ready to lose weight? Get to the heart of the matter: Learn about the connection between heart disease and your weight and what you can do to reduce... Source: weightloss.about.comLabels: Weight Loss
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
FDALO Canada
Government Of Canada Announces New Food And Drugs Act Liaison Office The Government of Canada today announced the official opening of the Food and Drugs Act Liaison Office (FDALO) to deal with issues concerning the Food and Drugs Act. "The new Food and Drugs Act Liaison Office is part of a series of initiatives designed to modernize and strengthen Canada's safety system for food, health and consumer products," said Minister Clement, Minister of Health. Source: www.medicalnewstoday.comValentine's Day is Looking Pretty Busy for Me... I'm not exactly a math whiz, but I thought a little number-crunching may help me keep my Valentine's day indulgences in check. So, using About.com exercise Guide Paige's Calorie... Source: weightloss.about.comA Dress You'll Never Wear Again isn't the Worst Part... I've never been a bridesmaid myself. My friends who have been there, done that a time or two tell me that is a blessing. I didn't automatically agree.... Source: weightloss.about.comTempting Treats Under 150 Calories Some days you just need to treat yourself. Here are some of my favorite picks for tempting treats with 150 calories or less each: McDonald�s vanilla cone (1) a slice of... Source: weightloss.about.comIn Case Cupid Doesn't Bring You Chocolate... If you�re anything like me, you�ll find yourself with a perpetual craving for chocolate this time of year, but I�ve got good news. You can enjoy all of these... Source: weightloss.about.comUSANA Demonstrates That Symptoms Of Metabolic Syndrome Can Be Improved USANA Health Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: USNA) announced that a large, third-party clinical study recently completed at the University of Colorado Denver (UCD) has confirmed that lifestyle change, involving diet, supplementation and exercise, can improve the metabolic syndrome. The results of this study verified those from an earlier study conducted by USANA in 2005. Source: www.medicalnewstoday.comFeeling Shabby? Take My Advice... It seems everyone is either coming down with or getting over something these days. I just got over an illness that lasted about 11 days. I had a... Source: weightloss.about.comCome On, Get Happy! Feeling blue? Exercise Guide Paige has got some great advice for you. In a recent feature, she tells you how to Beat the Winter Blahs with good old-fashioned... Source: weightloss.about.comYour Weight and Heart Disease Ready to lose weight? Get to the heart of the matter: Learn about the connection between heart disease and your weight and what you can do to reduce... Source: weightloss.about.comLabels: Weight Loss
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
Side Effects
There have not been any side effects reported from eating Hoodia or from taking the P-57 molecule. Remember, for thousands of years that Bushmen have eaten Hoodia Gordonii plants with no ill side effects. How do I Know if it's Pure Hoodia? There are widespread reports of counterfeit hoodia products. Mike Adams of News Target, estimates that 80 percent of hoodia products are contaminated or counterfeit. It is impossible to know if a hoodia product contains pure hoodia and the active ingredient, unless it has been tested by an independent laboratory. We have tested the leading Hoodia Brands and have selected three products that we feel offer the safest, most effective weight loss on the market today. Labels: hoodia gordonii
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
H57
In the News
Real South Africa Hoodia
Hoodia Facts Video
What is Hoodia Gordonii
Hoodia is a genus of succulent plants in the family Apocynaceae that is widely used traditionally by the San people of southern Africa as an appetite suppressant, thirst quencher and as a cure for severe abdominal cramps, haemorrhoids, tuberculosis, indigestion, hypertension and diabetes. Various uses have been recorded among Anikhwe (Northern Botswana), Hai om (northern Namibia ), Khomani (north western South Africa ), and the !Xun and Khwe (originally from Angola ) communities. Less is known about the use of this group of plants by other indigenous people, but some records show limited use of Hoodia parts as food items, albeit not as preferred food items. Hoodias are known to be used for cultural purposes in some areas (Hargreaves and Turner, 2002). Although relatively difficult to cultivate, Hoodia ' s are attractive plants and are also used for horticultural purposes. Hoodia Gordonii CSIR The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa isolated an active compound (P57) for appetite suppression from H. gordonii . The CSIR licensed the rights for further development of P57 and the setting up of a sustainable production system to Phytopharm in the UK . Phytopharm in turn sub licensed the rights to Pfizer for the development and global commercialization. Pfizer has recently returned the clinical developmental rights. Labels: hoodia gordonii
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
Science behind Hoodia Gordonii
What evidence is there that Hoodia works as an appetite suppressant? For thousands of years the Bushmen of South Africa having been eating Hoodia Gordonii to fight off hunger during their week long hunting trips. For the Bushmen there is no question as to the appetite suppressant power of Hoodia Gordonii - it is a simple fact of life - if you are going on a long journey you chew on hoodia to avoid hunger. While the Bushmen did not do formal clinical studies, there is thousands of years of real world evidence that eating Hoodia works as an appetite suppressant. To the Bushmen eating hoodia to suppress appetite is as clear as drinking water to quench thirst. There is also a growing body of journalist who can attest to the powers of hoodia. Here is a piece of the transcript from 60 Minutes (aired in Nov 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 CBS News 60 Minutes Tom Mangold, a correspondent from the BBC News reporting the following after eating Hoodia from the Kalahari Desert... At about 1800hrs I ate about half a banana size (piece of hoodia gordonii) - and later so did my cameraman. Soon after, we began the four hour drive back to Capetown. The plant is said to have a feel-good almost aphrodisiac quality, and I have to say, we felt good. But more significantly, we did not even think about food. Our brains really were telling us we were full. It was a magnificent deception. Dinner time came and went. We reached our hotel at about midnight and went to bed without food. And the next day, neither of us wanted nor ate breakfast. I ate lunch but without appetite and very little pleasure. Partial then full appetite returned slowly after 24 hours. - Tom Mangold, BBC News reporting on 5/30/03 It is very rare for such established journalist to be so positive on a food supplement. Normally, the media is quick to find fault with any new dietary supplement and point out potential problems. Not only is Hoodia is being positively "field tested" by journalists, they are some of the most respected journalist in their field. Were any clinical studies done with P57? Yes. In 2001 Phytopharm completed a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study in overweight, but otherwise healthy volunteers using the P57 extract from Hoodia gordonii. The participants were split into two groups, one group received the P57 and the other received a placebo. Both groups were told to continue their normal diet and exercise. The results were as follows: When comparing the P57 group to the Placebo group: The P57 group had a statistically significant reduction in body fat The P57 group had a statistically significant reduction in caloric intake The P57 had no adverse side effects On average the P57 group ate about 1,000 calories a day less than those in the control group. To put that in perspective, the average American man consumes about 2,600 calories a day; a woman about 1,900 Were there any side effects from taking Hoodia or P-57? There have not been any side effects reported from eating Hoodia or from taking the P-57 molecule. Remember, for thousands of years that Bushmen have eaten hoodia gordonii plants with no ill side effects. How can P57 (and Hoodia Gordonii) really suppress appetite to such a great extent? It is believed that Hoodia (and more specifically the p-57 in the hoodia) imitates the effect glucose has on nerve cells in the brain. Basically, hoodia fools the brain into thinking it's full when it's not. So, your brain sends the signal that it is full and this cuts your urge to snack on unhealthy food. In fact, hoodia is more powerful than glucose in telling the brain that you are full. Here is how Phytopharm's Dr Richard Dixey explained how P-57 actually works: "There is a part of your brain, the hypothalamus. Within that mid-brain there are nerve cells that sense glucose sugar. When you eat, blood sugar goes up because of the food, these cells start firing and now you are full. What the Hoodia seems to contain is a molecule that is about 10,000 times as active as glucose. It goes to the mid-brain and actually makes those nerve cells fire as if you were full. But you have not eaten. Nor do you want to." -As reported by BBC News Correspondent - Tom Mangold - 5/30/2003 So I will never be hungry if I eat a hoodia plant supplement? Not exactly. We all need food to survive, when we feel hungry because we do not have enough food for the body to function this is called real hunger. You can not completely starve your body no matter how much Hoodia you eat. At some point your brain will figure out you do need food to function. However, when you feel hungry because your insulin levels are bouncing all over the place, this is called hormonal hunger. It is this hormonal hunger which does in most people's diets. When our blood sugar levels spike and fall, we crave more sweets and carbohydrates. This is why you might crave ice cream at 3am. The idea of Hoodia gordonii is to use it to stop snacking because of hormonal hunger. You want to continue to eat meals when you have real hunger, but you want to eliminate all the snacking due to hormonal hunger. While hoodia can help eliminate both types of hunger, we feel it is unhealthy skip meals. The real advantage we see to hoodia is to eliminate cravings and snacks when you do not need to eat food. I hear about diet pills all the time - what make Hoodia different? Most diet pills and supplements work by trying to increase the rate at which our body burns fat. If you think about our body as a machine, calories provide the fuel. If you run the machine (body) hotter, faster and harder - you burn more fuel (calories). I think you can see the problem here - run any machine too hot and hard for long and you can have problems. This was the problem with ephedra. Many people who took ephedra supplements lost weight, but there were serious health risks. Things like strokes and heart attacks were too real a possibility when using ephedra. What makes Hoodia supplements so different is they really work to prevent weight gain. As much as everyone argues about which is better low carb or low fat - in the end losing weight is a simple equation. Take in less calories than you burn and you will lose weight. It is really simple math, you can not gain weight if you consume less calories than you burn. Hoodia gives you a powerful weapon to fight hunger and therefore take in less calories. No need to run the body hotter or faster or harder, simply you consume less calories and therefore lose weight. Labels: hoodia gordonii
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
History of Hoodia Gordonii
the Bushmen (or the San) have used Hoodia plants as a natural appetite suppressant for thousands of years. But how did the secret of the San get out? It turns out by accident. In 1996 the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa was doing a study of indigenous foods that the Bushmen ate. Part of the study was to test for toxic effects of any plants that were consumed by the Bushmen. When they came to Hoodia Gordonii, not only was it non-toxic - it helped animals lose weight! They found when they fed hoodia to animals, the animals lost weight. By 1997, the CSIR isolated the bioactive compound in Hoodia responsible for appetite suppression and obtained a patent. The patent was licensed to Phytopharm and they named the molecule - P57 (because it was the 57th product they spent money on). What did the Bushmen get for their discovery of the Hoodia Gordonii plant? At first - nothing! Turns out the CSIR told Phytopharm that the tribe which discovered the Hoodia Gordonii plant had died out and therefore no royalties were due. However, as Mark Twain might say - "tales of the Bushmen's death were greatly exaggerated". When the Bushmen got word that Phytopharm stood to make billions of dollars off their knowledge about the hoodia gordonii plant they were not happy. Roger Chennells, a lawyer in South Africa who represents the Bushmen, was quick to apply strong legal , moral and political pressure on both the CSIR and Phytopharm. Chennells pointed out to anyone who would listen that the taking of traditional knowledge without compensation was "bio-piracy" and must be stopped. In what is seen as a landmark case, Chennells was able to convince the CSIR and Phytopharm to compensate the Bushmen. Now, any company that legally harvests hoodia gordonii from the Kalahari desert must pay royalties back to the Bushmen. Not only is this fair and just, it also provides an excellent way to check if the hoodia you buy is legitimate. If the company that makes the hoodia is NOT paying royalties to the Bushmen, you do NOT have a legitimate hoodia gordonii product. So when will Phytopharm release a P57 based appetite suppressant? Probably never. As we touched on in the overview, Pfizer had originally paid Phytopharm for the rights to market a P57 based diet pill. After a few year of unsuccessful attempts to make P57 synthetically, Pfizer pulled out of the deal. If a large amount of P57 could not be created inexpensively in the lab, Pfizer was not interested. While Phytopharm was discouraged by the Pfizer decision, they knew that Hoodia Gordonii was too powerful an appetite suppressant to give up trying to bring it to the market. In December 2004, Phytopharm announced that Unilever had entered a deal to market hoodia gordonii in its diet food product line. Therefore, rather than producing diet drugs, it looks like Phytopharm and Unilever will product diet supplements and diet foods with hoodia. The first Unilever products will not be out until 2008. Does Phytopharm own the patent on the whole Hoodia Gordonii plant? This is an interesting question that we are sure will be decided in court one day. Here is our take on the situation - Phytopharm clearly owns the patent on the P57 molecule. If you want to try to make a diet drug with P57 you need to work through Phytopharm. The question of the Hoodia Gordonii plant itself being patented is much more complicated. It is our belief that you can not patent a plant, but you can patent the use of plants and a process to extract plants. Here is an exact quote from Richard Dixey, CEO of Phytopharm when he appeared on 60 minutes. "The patent is on the application of the plant as a weight-loss material. And, of course, the active compounds within the plant. It's not on the plant itself," says Dixey. So no one else can use hoodia for weight loss? "As a weight-management product without infringing the patent, that's correct," says Dixey. The way we read this (and again we are not lawyers and are not giving any legal advice) is as follows - you can sell a Hoodia Gordonii supplement, you just can NOT say it is for weight loss. This is why many of the best Hoodia supplements have very plain labels that just say "Hoodia Gordonii" but do not say anything about using it as a weight loss or appetite suppressant supplement. Labels: hoodia gordonii
HOODIA GORDONII PLUS
PURE HOODIA GORDONII
HOODIA LIQUID
|
