Hoodia Gordonii - A brief introduction
by
site editor Elias J. Derrick, last update: 5/12/2012 10:19:55 AM.
hoodia
Hoodia gordonii is the most, no, the only effective form of the appetite suppressant. Despite the fact that Hoodia is being harvested in China and North America and sold as a weight loss or slimming supplement, it cannot be Hoodia gordonii. The only place in the world where Hoodia gordonii is being grown and harvested is South Africa, where it was first discovered. The South African government is very protective of Hoodia gordonii and issues CITES certificates for all Hoodia gordonii which is exported; this is for a number of reasons. The first is that it would be very damaging to the economic monopoly of Hoodia gordonii farmers if seeds or a live Hoodia gordonii plant were to make it out of South Africa. Secondly, Hoodia gordonii is a protected species, when it comes with a CITES certificate it represents that the Hoodia gordonii was grown and harvested for the purposes of distributing and not taken from the wild. The third reason the South African government is very particular about CITES certificates is that it ensures that the Sans Bushmen receive a royalty from the sale of the Hoodia gordonii. The Sans Bushmen were the first to discover and use Hoodia gordonii and are a very impoverished people, the large amount of royalties they are receiving from Hoodia gordonii sales are helping to build schools and medical facilities, as well as invigorate the dying economy of their small area of the country.
But let's get back to the main reason that it is important to purchase Hoodia gordonii rather than another type of Hoodia. Hoodia gordonii is the only type which actually contains the active ingredient P-57 which suppresses appetite. Although there are many other plants under the Hoodia genus, none of these will help you lose weight as a result of taking them in any form. As you can imagine, the people who take these supplements in place of Hoodia gordonii are extremely disappointed. Unfortunately this has led many people to believe the entire hype around Hoodia has been one big hoax and this is very damaging to all areas of the Hoodia gordonii industry as well as those who are missing a great chance to lose weight. Any retailer of Hoodia gordonii should be able to provide you with a copy of their CITES certificate upon request.