Benefits of Hoodia Gordonii
January 24, 2010 by admin
Filed under General Health
Hoodia Gordonii is a plant which has an appearance which is similar to that of the cactus. It is usually found in desert regions like South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Angola. In the recent past, the Hoodia Gordonii has become extremely popular since it has been propagated as one of the best ways of helping a person to lose weight.
Initially a herb by the name of ephedra was very popular in the field of weight loss. But later on, it was banned and diet pills became very popular among people who were on the lookout for some method of losing weight. The San Bushmen who inhabited the Kalahari Desert have claimed that the Hoodia Gordonii has helped them to keep their hunger pangs under control for very long periods of time and it has also helped them in quenching their thirst. This plant has been mainly used by hunters during their long hunting expeditions where they used to cut off the stem and consume the remaining parts of the plant.
The Hoodia Gordonii grows in the form of bunches of plants which have long green stems. Though it has an appearance which is very similar to that of a cactus, it is actually a plant which is a succulent. The Hoodia Gordonii has flowers which are purple in color and these flowers will only appear after five years. There are thirteen different kinds of plants which come under the name of Hoodia Gordonii. The main ingredient which is present inside this plant is P57 which is actually a steroidal glycoside.
The existence of Hoodia Gordonii was first discovered by a Dutch anthropologist who was conducting a study on the San Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert. A study on the Hoodia Gordonii was conducted in 1963 by the council for scientific and industrial research. According to the results of this study, a lot of animals started losing weight after consuming the Hoodia Gordonii. P57 which was the main ingredient present in the Hoodia Gordonii was isolated by a British company called Phytopharm.
Hoodia Gordonii can be marketed in the form of powders, capsules, liquids and also tea leaves and it is possible to obtain these from any store which is specializing in health food. But there have been no specific tests which can provide the logical conclusion that the Hoodia Gordonii is completely safe as well as effective for humans in the form of pills.
In September 2004, a study was conducted on rats that had been injected with Hoodia Gordonii and it was found that it altered their ATP levels which are responsible for the change in the hunger pangs. The animals that had been given these P57 injections ate much less when compared to the others. But so far no side effects have been found on consuming Hoodia Gordonii. These plants have been consumed by the San Bushmen in Africa for many centuries.
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