diet-Dietary Supplement

What is the definition of diet?

A diet comprises those foods that one lives on from day to day. Generally, humans are either omnivores or vegetarians. Omnivores are people whose diets consist of plant and animal food sources; whereas, vegetarians live on vegetables and fruits only.

The New Webster’s Dictionary of English Language defines diet as; the food and drink normally taken by an individual or a group or a prescribed course of what is to be eaten and what is not. This definition takes into account the fact that what you drink e.g. Milk, water, beer, whisky etc is part of your diet.

There is a saying that, you are what you eat, meaning that your diet can go a long way to predict what you will become in future considering that some diets confers longevity and some kill you fast.

Imagine a diet of ice creams and chocolates, or beer, whisky and beef etc.

Problems of Dieting

Diets come with some problems especially bad diets. When a person becomes addicted to a particular unhealthy diet, there is predisposition to several diseases simply because of the diet. The subject of healthy dieting is now a very popular one across the globe and more and more people are realizing the need to develop a well thought out diet deemed fit for themselves. High fat diet may cause stroke, hypertension, coronary heart disease, diabetes, obesity and low self esteem.

Low Protein diet results in malnourishment and depressed immune system, anemia (this is common in vegetarians), and in children kwashikor, a form of protein energy malnutrition.

Dietary Supplement

It is becoming more difficult for one to actually consume all the nutrients needed for proper functioning of the body from food alone and as such it is common to see people who eat less because of their diet but try to supplement with pills.

Some of the pills are to induce anorexia and help you reduce the number of times you eat as well as the amount of food per day. In selecting these supplements, a thorough research is necessary as they are too many dietary pills and fat binders out there that fail to achieve what they promise.

Dieting is an important aspect of healthy living and everyone needs to be on one form of diet or the other. Yours may have been prompted by an illness, or maybe you want to loss weight, you are trying to maintain weight loss or you do not just want to grow fat. Before any decision is taken on what kind of diet you should be on, your doctors advice must be sort-only he is in the position to advice you appropriately.

Dieting will only make sense when we decide on it and stick to it as well. It is very important that people have control over the things they eat. Diet is the biggest single determinant of whether or not we will have good health. It affects health more than any other thing one can thing of.

Hoodia Gordonii Diet Pills

It is difficult to trace out exactly since when the tribes of the Kalahari Desert in South Africa have been using the stem of the Hoodia Gordonii plant to ward off their hunger. Hoodia grows wild in Africa. A Dutch anthropologist was the first European to describe the plant. In 1937, he was studying the habits of nomadic hunters and noted that they often ate the plant when food and water were scarce. He mentioned that the Hoodia Gordonii plant was not particularly tasty, but it had the desirable effect of reducing appetite and thirst and thereby can be produced an effective drug to reduce weight.

The Secret Is Unfolded!

It was not until 1963 that an organized study of Hoodia Gordonii was performed. Scientists at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in South Africa reported that laboratory animals which were fed on the Hoodia plant lost weight. Sometime in the 1990’s the scientists in South Africa were able to attract the interest of a British pharmaceutical company, Phytopharm. Eventually, through a joint effort, they were able to isolate and identify the active molecule in Hoodia Gordonii and named it ‘p57’. In 1995, Phytopharm licensed and patented ‘p57’. Phytopharm reportedly spent more than $20 million dollars researching the effects of the ‘p57’ molecule found in the Hoodia Gordonii plant before they sub-licensed the rights to Pfizer in 1998. One of the major production problems is the limited availability of Hoodia Gordonii. The Gordonii plant requires extremely high temperatures to flourish and it takes four to five years to mature. Phytopharm is now working with Uni-lever and has established Hoodia Gordonii plantations in South Africa.

Experts make the following recommendations for overweight people interested in trying Gordonii supplements. The length of time to experience the appetite suppressing effects may occur quickly, even following the first dose, but some people do not notice a significant difference until after taking the supplement for several weeks. In addition, the recommended dosage may need to be adjusted up or down depending on the individual. There are no adverse side effects associated with Hoodia Gordonii.

For more information visit: http://www.hoodiagordoniiplus.com/?aid=184265

Hoodia appetite suppressant

In this article we will look more specifically at the science behind hoodia and how it has been studied as an appetite suppressant. We will also examine some theories on how hoodia is able to suppress your appetite.

What evidence is there that Hoodia works as an appetite suppressant?

For thousands of years the Bushmen of South Africa having been eating Hoodia Gordonii to fight off hunger during their week long hunting trips. For the Bushmen there is no question as to the appetite suppressant power of Hoodia Gordonii - it is a simple fact of life - if you are going on a long journey you chew on hoodia to avoid hunger.

While the Bushmen did not do formal clinical studies, there is thousands of years of real world evidence that eating Hoodia works as an appetite suppressant. To the Bushmen eating hoodia to suppress appetite is as clear as drinking water to quench thirst.

There is also a growing body of journalist who can attest to the powers of hoodia. Here is a piece of the transcript from 60 Minutes (aired in Nov 2004):

So how did it work? Stahl says she had no after effects - no funny taste in her mouth, no queasy stomach, and no racing heart. She also wasn't hungry all day, even when she would normally have a pang around mealtime. And, she also had no desire to eat or drink the entire day. "I'd have to say it did work," says Stahl. - Leslie Stahl reporting on CBS News 60 Minutes

Tom Mangold, a correspondent from the BBC News reporting the following after eating Hoodia from the Kalahari Desert...

At about 1800hrs I ate about half a banana size (piece of hoodia gordonii) - and later so did my cameraman. Soon after, we began the four hour drive back to Capetown.

The plant is said to have a feel-good almost aphrodisiac quality, and I have to say, we felt good. But more significantly, we did not even think about food. Our brains really were telling us we were full. It was a magnificent deception.

Dinner time came and went. We reached our hotel at about midnight and went to bed without food. And the next day, neither of us wanted nor ate breakfast.

I ate lunch but without appetite and very little pleasure. Partial then full appetite returned slowly after 24 hours.

- Tom Mangold, BBC News reporting on 5/30/03

It is very rare for such established journalist to be so positive on a food supplement. Normally, the media is quick to find fault with any new dietary supplement and point out potential problems. Not only is Hoodia is being positively "field tested" by journalists, they are some of the most respected journalist in their field.

Were any clinical studies done with P57?

Yes. In 2001 Phytopharm completed a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study in overweight, but otherwise healthy volunteers using the P57 extract from Hoodia gordonii. The participants were split into two groups, one group received the P57 and the other received a placebo. Both groups were told to continue their normal diet and exercise. The results were as follows:

When comparing the P57 group to the Placebo group:

The P57 group had a statistically significant reduction in body fat The P57 group had a statistically significant reduction in caloric intake The P57 had no adverse side effects On average the P57 group ate about 1,000 calories a day less than those in the control group. To put that in perspective, the average American man consumes about 2,600 calories a day; a woman about 1,900 Were there any side effects from taking Hoodia or P-57?

There have not been any side effects reported from eating Hoodia or from taking the P-57 molecule. Remember, for thousands of years that Bushmen have eaten hoodia gordonii plants with no ill side effects.

How can P57 (and Hoodia Gordonii) really suppress appetite to such a great extent?

It is believed that Hoodia (and more specifically the p-57 in the hoodia) imitates the effect glucose has on nerve cells in the brain.

Basically, hoodia fools the brain into thinking it's full when it's not. So, your brain sends the signal that it is full and this cuts your urge to snack on unhealthy food. In fact, hoodia is more powerful than glucose in telling the brain that you are full. Here is how Phytopharm's Dr Richard Dixey explained how P-57 actually works:

"There is a part of your brain, the hypothalamus. Within that mid-brain there are nerve cells that sense glucose sugar.When you eat, blood sugar goes up because of the food, these cells start firing and now you are full. What the Hoodia seems to contain is a molecule that is about 10,000 times as active as glucose. It goes to the mid-brain and actually makes those nerve cells fire as if you were full. But you have not eaten. Nor do you want to."

-As reported by BBC News Correspondent - Tom Mangold - 5/30/2003

So I will never be hungry if I eat a hoodia plant supplement?

Not exactly. We all need food to survive, when we feel hungry because we do not have enough food for the body to function this is called real hunger. You can not completely starve your body no matter how much Hoodia you eat. At some point your brain will figure out you do need food to function.

However, when you feel hungry because your insulin levels are bouncing all over the place, this is called hormonal hunger. It is this hormonal hunger which does in most people's diets. When our blood sugar levels spike and fall, we crave more sweets and carbohydrates. This is why you might crave ice cream at 3am.

The idea of Hoodia gordonii is to use it to stop snacking because of hormonal hunger. You want to continue to eat meals when you have real hunger, but you want to eliminate all the snacking due to hormonal hunger. While hoodia can help eliminate both types of hunger, we feel it is unhealthy skip meals. The real advantage we see to hoodia is to eliminate cravings and snacks when you do not need to eat food.

I hear about diet pills all the time - what make Hoodia different?

Most diet pills and supplements work by trying to increase the rate at which our body burns fat. If you think about our body as a machine, calories provide the fuel. If you run the machine (body) hotter, faster and harder - you burn more fuel (calories). I think you can see the problem here - run any machine too hot and hard for long and you can have problems. This was the problem with ephedra. Many people who took ephedra supplements lost weight, but there were serious health risks. Things like strokes and heart attacks were too real a possibility when using ephedra.

What makes Hoodia supplements so different is they really work to prevent weight gain. As much as everyone argues about which is better low carb or low fat - in the end losing weight is a simple equation. Take in less calories than you burn and you will lose weight. It is really simple math, you can not gain weight if you consume less calories than you burn. Hoodia gives you a powerful weapon to fight hunger and therefore take in less calories. No need to run the body hotter or faster or harder, simply you consume less calories and therefore lose weight.

For more information visit: http://www.hoodiagordoniiplus.com/?aid=184265

Weight Loss with Hoodia Gordonii

Weight Loss with Hoodia Gordonii
by Nnamdi Agha

Weight loss has become a lot easier with hoodia gordonii cactus plant. The discovery of this wonder plant has opened a new vista in the weight loss products industry worldwide. Weight loss pills like Proactol and ProShape rx have been produced with hoodia gordonii as the main ingredient. Hoodia Gordonii is a cactus plant that grows in the sandy dry hot Kalahari desert of South Africa.

Introducing a plant from South Africa that has the weight-loss crowd thrilled. Is this the thing that could help millions of overweight people display bodies to die for? Maybe, just maybe, this is the magic pill we've all been waiting for.

Let's face it, the onslaught of fashion magazines and shows has drummed the perfect shape of a fit body into everybody's brains. We all know how we're supposed to look like to be attractive and to give off that "carefree success" look. What we did not know is that the next big thing in dieting comes from South Africa From the sandy expanses of the Kalahari Desert intrepid businessmen bring a cactus called Hoodia. Weight loss experts are already excited over the avenues opened by this plant that curbs hunger.

For hundreds of years the Kalahari bushmen have been eating Hoodia to keep hunger at bay during long hunting trips and in times of drought. And now millions of people living in industrialized countries are about to join them, as Hoodia-based pills are made available in the USA. However, for all the glittering promise of a better tomorrow, Hoodia is still somewhat of a problem. First, no scientific tests have been conducted on humans to check the effects of this plant. We know it works for the bushmen, but will it work for everybody just as well and without side effects?

People high and low, from Hollywood stars to high-powered entertainment staffers to the common man, everybody is willing to overlook the lack of official studies and have a go at Hoodia. Many people have been fighting excess weight all their lives and are interested in anything that promises fast and effective weight loss.

One of the latest and most effective drugs launched on the weight loss market is the ProShape rx. Does it have the amazing Hoodia among its ingredients? You bet! This new pill may well prove to be a ray of hope for overweight people looking to improve their looks and health by shedding those extra pounds. If Hoodia is really the magic plant all overweight people are waiting for, then ProShape rx weight loss pills is one of the best choices around.

Now that you know about hoodia gordonii and how it helps in weight loss, you should also know that Proactol and ProShape rx contain hoodia gordonii for effective weight loss. Eliminate obesity with Proactol™ Weight Loss Pills. Lose weight with ProShape rx. Hoodia gordonii has come to stay and help us lose weight and look trim.

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