by Philip McDonald

You have most likely heard the buzz about “Hoodia cactus plant extract”. It has now been broadcasted by a number of major media outlets. For instance, the BBC, “The Today Show, CBS and many more have reported on this extraordinary plant extract.

As a result of the media coverage, products containing Hoodia Gordonii have quickly become extremely popular diet supplements.

There are, however, some things you should be mindful of when you are selecting which Hoodia product to buy. Although there are several varieties of Hoodia plants, the Hoodia Gordonii alone is known for the ability to suppress a person’s appetite.

The effects of Hoodia have been known for centuries by the’Sans Bushmen’, a primitive tribe. A study of the native plants that this tribe consumes was conducted by the C.S.I.R. (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) during the mid-1990’s.

The purpose of this study was to see that foods they were taking that protected the toxic compounds. They found that Hoodia Gordonii was not only non-toxic, but also helped suppress the appetitive of the animals tested.

The ingredient responsible for appetite suppression was isolated and dubbed ‘P57′ or the ‘Hoodia cactus extract’. The C.S.I.R. then sold the rights of ‘P57′ to Phytopharm, a British pharmaceutical company.

Now, you may wonder why there are such a variety of Hoodia products available on the market if the rights of ‘P57′ were sold to Phytopharm. To find the answer, we must look to the patent laws. Phytopharm is the only entity that is permitted to extract ‘P57′ from Hoodia Gordonii and utilize it in their products. But the whole Hoodia Gordonii plant itself is not something that can be patented. Therefore, other companies may legally make and sell supplements using the Hoodia Gordonii plant.

Anyone who is thinking of giving Hoodia a try should be sure that any product they purchase contains genuine South African Hoodia Gordonii.

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