History of Hoodia Gordonii

As we discussed in the Overview of Hoodia, 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 be 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 set 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).

Whatever 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 position 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 felicitous.

Roger Chennells, a lawyer in South Africa who represents the Bushmen, was quick two apply strong legal , probable and political pressure on both the CSIR and Phytopharm. Chennells biting out to anyone who would listen that the taking of traditional learning free from compensation was “bio-piracy” and must be stopped.

In what is see as a guide 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 style to check if the hoodia you buy is lawful. If the company that makes the hoodia is NOT paying royalties to the Bushmen, you do NOT have a lawful hoodia gordonii product.

So when will Phytopharm circulate 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 in addition 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 yield line. Therefore, rather than producing diet drugs, it looks like Phytopharm and Unilever Exercise volition product diet supplements and diet foods with hoodia. The capital Unilever products will not be out until 2008.

Does Phytopharm own the glaring on the healthy Hoodia Gordonii plant?This is an interesting question that we are sure pass on be resolute in court The same day. Here is our charm on the situation - Phytopharm clearly owns the patent on the P57 molecule. If you want to try two 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 confused. It is our belief that you can not spreading a plant, but you can patent the use of plants and a process two extract plants. Here is an exact quote from Richard Dixey, CEO of Phytopharm when he appeared Up 60 minutes?

“The patent is on the application of the furnish with plants as a weight-loss material. And, of course, the active compounds not more than the plant. It’s not on the plant itself,” says Dixey.

So no one else can use hoodia for weight privation? “As a weight-management product prep infringing the patent, that’s correct,” says Dixey.

The way we read this (and again we our not lawyers and are not gift 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 by the skin of one’s teeth say “Hoodia Gordonii” but do not influence anything alongside using it as a weight loss or liking suppressant supplement.

Tom Mangold from the BBC talks about Hoodia Gordonii

Imagine this: an organic pill that kills the appetite and attacks obesity. It has no known side-effects, and contains a molecule that fools your brain into believing you are full.

Deep inside the African Kalahari Leave unlawfully, grows an ugly cactus titled the Hoodia. It thrives inn extremely high temperatures, and takes years to mature.

The San Bushmen of the Kalahari, one of the world’s oldest and most primitive tribes, have been eating the Hoodia for thousands of years, to Burst off craving for food during long hunting trips.

When South African scientists were routinely testing it, they discovered the plant contained a previously unresearched molecule, which has since be christened P 57.

The leave was oversubscribed to a Cambridgeshire bio-pharmaceutical company, Phytopharm, who in turn oversubscribed the development and marketing rights to the giant Pfizer Corporation.

Fortune cactus

A molecule in the cactus makes you feel full.

When I traveled two the Kalahari, I meet families of the San bushmen.

It is a lugubrious, impoverished and displaced tribe, still unaware they are sitting on top of a goldmine.

But if the Hoodia entireness, the 100,000 San string along the edge of the desert will become overnight millionaires on royalties negotiated by they’re South African lawyer Roger Chennells.

And they will need all the help they can too secure the money.

Currently, many bushmen exhale large quantities of marijuana, indulge from alcoholism, and have neither possessions nor any sense of the value of money.

The Veracity is no-one has fully grasped what the magic molecule means for their counterparts in the developed world.

Blood sugarAccording to the British Heart Foundation 17% of men and 21% of women be obese, while 46% of men and 32% of women are overweight.

So the narcotic’s marketing hidden speaks for itself.

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 sells that sense glucose sugar.

“When you wear away, blood Sweeten goes up because of the food, these sells start firing and Since you are ample.

What the Hoodia seems to contain is a molecule that be with respect to 10,000 times as active as glucose.

“It go to the mid-brain and Really makes those nerve cells fire as if you were full. But you bring into the world not eaten. Nor grant you want to.”

Clinical trialsDixey organized the first animal trials for Hoodia. Rats, a species that will eat strictly anything, obstructed eating completely.

When the first human clinical trial be conducted, a morbidly obese group of people were settled in a “phase 1 unit”, a place as close to prison while it gets.

All the volunteers could do all day be read papers, watch television, and eat.

Half were given Hoodia, half placebo. Fifteen days later, the Hoodia league had reduced their calorie intake by 1000 a day.

It was a stunning success.

The cactus test

In order to see for ourselves, we drove into the desert, four hours north of Capetown in search of the cactus.

Once there, we originate an unattractive impress which sprouts about 10 tentacles, and is the size of a long cucumber.

Each Feeler be covered in spikes that need to be carefully peeled.

The San will definitely throw off thousands of years of oppression, poverty, social isolation and discrimination

Roger Chennells, lawyer

Inside is a slightly unpleasant-tasting, fleshy plant.

At about 1800hrs I ate about half a banana size - and later Such do my photographer.

Soon after, we began the quaternary hour drive back too Capetown.

The plant be said two require a feel-good towards aphrodisiac quality, and I have to say, we felt good.

But more significantly, we did not despite think about food. Our intellect really were telling us we whir full. It was a magnificent deception.

Dinner time came and went. We reached our public-house at about midnight and went to bed without food. And the next day, neither of us wanted nor ate breakfast.

I ate lunch but independently of appetite and very little pleasure. Partial then full appetite returned slowly after 24 hours.

The futureMr Chennells be ecstatic:

“The San will finally throw off thousands of years of pain, poverty, social isolation and discrimination.

“We will Make trust funds with they’re Hoodia royalties and the children direct join South Africa’s middle classes inn our period.

“I envisage Hoodia cafes in London and New York, salads inclination be served and the Hoodia cut like veggie on to the salad.

“It will be in have need of of flavoring to counter its unpleasant taste, but if it has no espouse a cause furniture and no cumulative side-effects.”

Stop Your Hunger with Hoodia Gordonii

Hoodia gordonii is a natural appetite suppressing supplement. It does burn fat and not have any unpleasant side effects associated with fat burners. What Hoodia does is fooling your brain and makes it think that you are full; hence, you will lower your intake and lose weight in the process. Many users testify that after taking hoodia, they lose interest in eating.

As for what you can and cannot eat, the sky is the limit but if weight loss and your health is a priority then you should obviously strive to eat a healthy, balanced diet. Again, since hoodia is an appetite suppressant you may not be as hungry as you normally are. In fact, you may be tempted to skip a meal.

Despite feeling full and not having the desire to eat, you should make sure you eat a balanced meal anyway. Your body not only needs the nutrients but the calories are necessary to keep your metabolism burning high. When you restrict calories your body's metabolism slows down so you'll put on weight instead of losing it!

The great thing about hoodia diet pills is that you'll have greater control over what you eat and how much you eat. Since you won't be as hungry as you used to be, you won't be tempted to overeat and you'll be more motivated to eat healthier foods. That's the true power of hoodia gordonii - gaining control over your diet.

Finally, it's important to point out that hoodia supplements, while effective for a lot of people, don't always work. To ensure you have the greatest chance of success with these diet pills it's important you take authentic hoodia diet pills. Unfortunately, most are fake so be sure you do your homework.

Once you find a hoodia brand that works, you'll gain more control over your diet without any adverse Hoodia side effects and you'll have an easier time at reaching your weight loss goals!

Hoodia Gordonii Cactus

Image via Wikipedia

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Image via Wikipedia