Dr. Mercola's Comments:

The Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert have been eating the hoodia plant for centuries (not to lose weight, but to stave off hunger pains when food was scarce). It was first researched by a South African laboratory in the 1960s as part of a study about indigenous foods.

When the plant was fed to animals, the researchers realized that they lost weight. But it was another 30 years before the active ingredient was identified and its appetite-suppressing qualities realized.

Hoodia does, in fact, seem to naturally take away your desire to eat, without any after effects. It’s thought that it mimics the effects of glucose on your brain, making you feel full.

However, I would be wary of Phytopharm’s promised hoodia meal-replacement products, as they’re likely to contain an array of artificial sweeteners and other chemicals to mask the plant’s bitter flavor.

It is also a buyer beware environment when it comes to the hoodia products already sold on the Web. Many of them contain counterfeit ingredients and fillers, so you must be sure you are buying from a quality source.

Of course, you can always decide to lose weight the “old-fashioned” way, which has nothing to do with suppressing your appetite and everything to do with eating (healthy, that is).

Some tips to normalize your weight, with side effects of increased energy and vitality, include:

• Reducing, with the plan of eliminating, grains and sugars from your daily diet.
• Treating the emotional issues that contributed to your weight gain by learning a valuable, effective and non-invasive tool like the Emotional Freedom Technique.
  
• Starting an exercise plan today!
  
• Finding out your nutritional type. Nutritional typing is a MAJOR factor in understanding which foods are right for you. My book, Take Control of Your Health, is the only book out there on helping you understand this important area of nutrition, and can be an important tool to help you reach your goal weight and achieve high-level wellness.