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With the onset of the obesity epidemic, Americans are spending millions of dollars each year on diet supplements hoping to gain an edge in the battle of bulge. Many people have heard the hype but may still be unsure what hoodia is. Hoodia is a natural appetite suppressant that has been around for years but is just recently gaining popularity for its ability to curb cravings.

Hoodia is an African plant that resembles a cactus and can be found growing wild in the Kalahari Desert. It has been said that nearby tribes have used it to aid in digestion, minor skin problems and to suppress hunger and thirst during long hunts. Hoodia is considered a succulent plant, meaning it retains water and today it’s sold in the U.S. as a natural alternative to diet pills that can have harmful side effects.

Is Hoodia Effective?
This ancient plant contains an ingredient that has been proven to curb hunger pains by targeting the hypothalamus gland. This gland lets the body know when it is hungry or full. According to an unpublished study done by Phytopharm, a medical research company in London, nine volunteers who took pills containing P57, the active ingredient in hoodia, consumed fewer calories and lost more fat than those taking a placebo.



That being said, the effectiveness of the supplement remains undetermined. While some advocates state that it is necessary to consume at least three grams of hoodia per day to notice its effectiveness others believe that the effectiveness of the plant can only be felt by consuming it fresh and that P57 cannot simply be extracted and manufactured in pill form.

Are Herbal Diet Supplements Safe?
From green tea to the acai berry, hoodia has a lot of competition in the herbal diet supplement market but little is known about the safety of herbal supplements. According to the article Unilever, Phytopharm May Scrap Hoodia Partnership (Update2) written by Celeste Perri in 2008, Trevor Gorin, a spokesperson for the SlimFast diet drink company Unilever, stated that the research conducted on hoodia as an appetite suppressant did not meet the safety and efficacy standards for a Unilever product. He did not further elaborate but the company has abandoned hope of manufacturing a diet drink containing the plant.

While herbal diet supplements are the safer alternative to many prescription and over-the-counter diet pills caution should be exercised when considering taking herbs for weight loss. It is necessary to read labels and research products to make sure that the ingredients do not interfere with medications and to avoid allergic reactions. Many products claiming to contain hoodia extract may have very little to no hoodia at all. People looking to curb their hunger without supplementation should increase fiber intake, drink plenty of pure water and eat small portions of healthy foods every two or three hours.