Hoodia grows wild in Africa.
A Dutch anthropologist was the first European to describe the plant. In
1937, he was studying the habits of nomadic hunters and noted that they
often ate the plant when food and water were scarce. He mentioned that
the Hoodia Gordonii plant was not particularly tasty, but it had the desirable
effect of reducing appetite and thirst and thereby can be produced an
effective drug to reduce weight.
The Secret Is Unfolded!
It was not until 1963 that an organized study of Hoodia
Gordonii was performed. Scientists at the Council for Scientific and Industrial
Research in South Africa reported that laboratory animals which were fed
on the Hoodia plant lost weight. Sometime in the 1990’s the scientists
in South Africa were able to attract the interest of a British pharmaceutical
company, Phytopharm. Eventually, through a joint effort, they were able
to isolate and identify the active molecule in Hoodia Gordonii and named
it ‘p57’. In 1995, Phytopharm licensed and patented ‘p57’.
Phytopharm reportedly spent more than $20 million dollars researching
the effects of the ‘p57’ molecule found in the Hoodia Gordonii
plant before they sub-licensed the rights to Pfizer in 1998. One of the
major production problems is the limited availability of Hoodia Gordonii.
The Gordonii plant requires extremely high temperatures to flourish and
it takes four to five years to mature.
Phytopharm is now working with
Uni-lever and has established Hoodia Gordonii plantations in South Africa.
Experts make the following recommendations for overweight
people interested in trying Gordonii supplements. The length of time to
experience the appetite suppressing effects may occur quickly, even following
the first dose, but some people do not notice a significant difference
until after taking the supplement for several weeks. In addition, the
recommended dosage may need to be adjusted up or down depending on the
individual. There are no adverse side effects associated with Hoodia Gordonii.
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