It seems that everywhere I look, I am reading something about the HCG Diet. OK, so what is it? Well, HCG stands for human chorionic gonadotrophin, a hormone produced during pregnancy. Its purpose is to promote the secretion of progesterone, which will make the uterus thick with blood vessels and capillaries, which are needed to support the growing fetus. That’s all well and good, but what the hell does it have to do with diet?
Back in the 1950′s a British doctor by the name of Albert Simeons was studying pregnant women in India that were on a calorie deficient diet, as well as overweight boys with pituitary problems. Simeons proposes that this hormone he found in the pregnant women’s urine, along with being put on a strict 500 calorie per day diet, would help people to lose fat and curb their appetite.
The claims I read on all the web sites selling HCG say that it keeps you from feeling hungry, mobilizes fat, and redistributes the fat from the stomach and butt. Oh, and exercise is not needed. In fact, it is discouraged. That’s really not much of a surprise. You’re only eating 500 calories per day, how much energy could you have. The cost for these “treatments” is a mere $500-$1000 per month, but it’s OK because, they claim it is really free when you figure in how much money you wont be spending on food(Yes, I read that. I’m not being sarcastic).
HCG has been approved by the FDA as a fertility drug, and nothing else. The way around this is an MD can write a prescription for whatever they want. For those that do take it, here is a list of possible side effects you may want to consider:
- Ovarian Hyper-Stimulation Syndrome (OHSS)
- Birth Defects (if taken during pregnancy)
- Prostate cancer
- Severe pelvic pain
- Swelling in the hands and legs
- Stomach pain and swelling
- Shortness of breath
- Weight gain **
- Diarrhea
- Constipation
- Nausea and vomiting
- Headaches
- Depression
- Breast tenderness and swelling
- Edema
- Reduced penis size**
- Blood clots
- Restlessness
- Thinning of the hair
- Male breast enlargement
That’s quit a list. I wonder how many other drugs you will need to go on to feel better after going on HCG “treatments”. There is also the Homeopathic versions of the drug, but these are nothing more than water that may or may not have even a trace amounts of the hormone in it after it is diluted(That’s some real expensive water).
There are NO clinical tests that show HCG has any better rate of weight lose than placebo, at least that is what the Peer-Reviewed studies show. All of the other crap out there is a joke. One of the biggest promoters of the HCG diet was Kevin Trudeau. In fact, his book, The Weight Loss Cure “They” Don’t want You to Know About, is considered required reading on many HCG sites on the net. If you are not familiar with Trudeau, just do a simple Google search and see just how slimy he is. From his early arrests for larceny and credit card fraud, when he impersonated a doctor to deposit $80,000 in fraudulent checks, charging hundreds of thousands of dollars on peoples credit cards after stealing their name and Social Security numbers, and his involvement in Multi-Level Marketing schemes(AKA pyramid schemes). How anyone can take ANY advice from this guy is beyond me.
Here is my take on it(and again, this is my take. I hope you do your own research and form your own opinion). People are looking for the Magic Pill that will solve all there problems for them. People don’t want to address what is going on in their lives, even when it is killing them. Here’s some advice. Look at what is wrong, find out what you need to do to fix it, AND DO IT! Yes, sometimes it requires changing your entire lifestyle. But in my experience, this can be a good thing. I know because I have been there. I have been in these peoples shoes. Not too long ago I was obese. I was over 250 lbs, and only 5′ 9″ that is pretty damn big. I knew I needed a change. It would have been real easy to look for the magic pill, but I knew that would never work. I changed not only how I eat, but how I move and how I think. I am now at 175 lbs, and have added quite a bit of muscle, so who knows how much fat I have lost. I have achieved the goal that people going on the HGC diet are looking for by following a Primal/Paleo lifestyle and adopting functional fitness and natural movement. The best part is it is sustainable over the long haul. I’m a year and a half in, and I’m still improving, and it’s still easy and ENJOYABLE. I can’t imagine starving myself on 500 calories a day as being a fun way to live.
Let’s face it, at 500 calories a day you will lose weight. It’s called starvation. You will not be able to sustain this without doing damage to your body(or having Sally Struthers trying to raise money to feed you). You will not have the energy to enjoy life. I also worry about putting a hormone in your system that is not meant to be there. What could this do to your endocrine system? That I don’t know.
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