By: Deborah Vickery, MBA, Sella Labs
Atkins Diet, South Beach Diet, Sugar Busters will all be a thing of the past as Hoodia Gordonii weight control products take the industry by storm. It’s not a new diet shake. It’s not a new pharmaceutical drug. Hoodia is a plant eaten by primitive Bushmen of South Africa to fight hunger in a land with little food. Only recently, science suggests this plant could also be world’s best chance at a cure for obesity. Companies around the world are investing millions into research and clinical trials. Even before US Ingredient Supplier Stella Labs pioneered its introduction to the US market, there was tremendous interest in Hoodia Gordonii. “We have seen an incredible demand for this product. We suspect by the end of 2005, the current weight loss industry leaders will have to create new brands using the Hoodia Gordonii ingredient, to retain a competitive position in the market.” says Craig Payton, Managing Director of Stella Labs. (2004). Hoodia Gordonii aids in weight loss by eliminating the urge to overeat. Because of this, diets which limit the amount of food or the types of food one can eat, will be viewed as unnecessary.
Hoodia, The Bushmen’s Food.
For thousands of years, this succulent has been a native food of the San Tribesman of the Kalahari Desert. It was in a study of indigenous foods by South Africa’s national laboratory, the first evidence of the plant’s appetite suppressing ability was revealed. “What they found was when they fed it to animals, the animals ate it and lost weight," says Dr. Richard Dixey, British bio-pharmaceutical Hoodia research director. (CBS 2004).
Scientists everywhere are seeing vast potential for this product as a nutritional supplement in the world market. Hoodia supplements taken daily can reduce calorie intake by 1000 calories a day; inducing weight loss by taking away the feeling of hunger; without limiting food intake, changing the diet, or the addition of an exercise regimen.
The Science of the Succulent
Hoodia works by tricking the brain into thinking the body is full even if it is not.
When a person eats, the body produces glucose which sends a signal to the hypothalamus of the brain indicating the body has been nourished; thus the feeling of hunger subsides.
Hoodia acts on the body in the same way, only the signals are 100,000 times more potent than glucose, completely eliminating the feeling of hunger for extended periods. Even small amounts of food will make the body feel completely nourished and energized.
The first animal trial of Hoodia involved rats. Rats, a species that will eat literally anything, when given Hoodia stopped eating completely for days at a time.
The first human trials involved a morbidly obese group of people allowed only to read, watch television, and eat. Half were given Hoodia; the other half, placebo. Fifteen days later, the Hoodia group had reduced their calorie intake by 1000 calories a day. (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. (CBS 2004).
Stella Labs managing director, Craig Payton believes that within a year, Hoodia Gordonii be the number one ingredient for weight loss supplements. Scientist and nutritionists from around the world are taking an in-depth look at this product. Their clinical trial reports combined with recent news and television programs highlighting the product will continue to provide public awareness, enabling supplement manufacturers to roll out new Hoodia Gordonii products with instant success.
Hoodia Supply
There are limited numbers of South African manufacturers/cultivators approved to export Hoodia Gordonii. In order to secure a steady supply of Hoodia Gordonii into the US, Stella Labs fought for an exclusive distribution agreement with one of the largest Hoodia cultivators approved for export by the South African government. “Ingredient suppliers and distributors world-wide were scrambling to sign deals. I’d say we got lucky, but we started researching the product nearly 3 years ago, we saw it coming, we had the contacts in place to make it happen, and we did.” said Craig Payton, Managing Director for Stella Labs (2004). Now that Hoodia Gordonii is available in the US, there is nothing to stop the new diet evolution.
References
Barnett, A. In Africa the Hoodia cactus keeps men alive. Now its secret is 'stolen' to make us thin . The Observer. 2001.
CBS 60 Minutes Program: African Plant May Help Fight Fat. November 21, 2004; Available at: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/11/18/60minutes/main656458.shtml
T. Mangold. Sampling the Kalahari Cactus diet. BBC Two’s Correspondent. May 2003; Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/correspondent/2947810.stm
Payton, V.Craig. Stella Labs, Managing Director. December 2004. http://www.stellalabs.com
Phytopharm press releases: “Proof of Principle I Clinical Study of P-57 for Obesity – Successful Completion of First Stage” April 2001; Available at: http://www.phytopharm.com/press
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