So what is Hoodia Gordonii anyways?

Hoodia Gordoni is a cactus of the "succulent" cactus family, which has grown for thousands of years in the Kalahari Desert region of South Africa.

Hoodia Gordonii has been widely used traditionally by the San people of southern Africa as a natural appetite suppressant and thirst quencher during their long hunting trips for generations.  (Besides being used for curbing hunger and thirst, it has also been used to calm abdominal cramps, help haemorrhoids, tuberculosis, indigestion, hypertension and diabetes, sooth indigestions, improve energy and mood.)

Several years back, when the North American market discovered the natural appetite suppressing effects of Hoodia, it became a huge market, virtually overnight.  It is probably the #1 natural appetite suppressant sold on the market today.

Because of the huge commercial demand for Hoodia Gordonii, the cactus is also now commercially farmed on a limited number of farms in South Africa.  Products abound on the market and you can now find Hoodia in capsules, patches, liquid and even teas.

There are actually 20 types of Hoodia but only Hoodia Gordonii contains the appetite suppressant that is important in weight loss. This active ingredient is called p57.

It is thought that p57 mimics the effect that eating glucose has on your brain, telling your hypothalamus (the part of your brain that regulates hunger/fullness) that you feel full. Consequently you don't feel the desire to eat.

If you've looked at Hoodia Gordoni products, you've no doubt seen different types advertised. There are mainly 2 types of source materials:

#1) 100% Pure Hoodia - This is the Hoodia powder ground down from the Hodia plant leaves.  Many experts and even users claim that 100% pure Hoodia powder is the most effective form for weight loss.

#2) Extract - This can be either 20:1 extract or 10:1 extract.  This is made by placing the Hoodia plant in alcohol which pulls out the active ingredients into the alcohol (many herbal tinctures are also made this way). This mixture is then strained to remove the fiber and skins.  The alcohol is removed, leaving the hoodia power.

20:1 extract means that 1 g of this extract was made using 20 g of the whole plant.  It sounds more potent however many experts feel that the 20:1 extract is much less potent than 100% pure Hoodia. There are claims on both sides and the only way to know for sure is to try it yourself to see if there is a difference. 

So that's a bit of background on the Hoodia Gordonii plant and how it has been used on the commercial market for weight loss.

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Was this information helpful? This page on Hoodia Gordonii is one of several articles found on our Hoodia Information page.