By Anita Cherry for Buzzle.com

Hoodia is a herb that contains is a molecule that tricks your brain into thinking that your stomach is full even though it isn’t. No side effects have been reported so far even though it has been used for thousands of years...

Hoodia gordonii is a plant which is used as an appetite suppressant. It is considered a Herbal Diet Pill because it has a molecule which makes your brain feel that you are not hungry. It looks like cactus but it is a succulent. It is shaped like a cucumber, has many tentacles which has spikes and is fleshy inside. The texture of hoodia is almost like cucumber. When eaten raw it is not very tasty.

The San tribesman who has a history of 40,000 years living in the Kalahari Desert in South Africa used to eat the bitter-tasting stem of the plant. Hoodia gordonii has kept them from feeling hungry on long hunting trips when they have little other food or water. Hoodia grows at very high temperatures and takes at least 7 years to grow. There are many variations of the hoodia plant. Only Hoodia gordonii has the appetite suppressant molecule. Hoodia doesn’t have stimulant properties and is not a drug. It took the South African national laboratory 30 years to isolate and identify the specific appetite-suppressing ingredient in hoodia. The plant contained a previously unknown molecule, which has since been christened P 57. When they found it they applied for a patent and licensed it to Phytopharm who in turn sold the development and marketing rights to the giant Pfizer Corporation. This molecule behaves almost like glucose and makes the brain think that the stomach is full. Hoodia effectively helps to reduce the appetite by 100 to 1000calories a day.

The main effects of hoodia are that you will feel hungry only after your usual time of eating, a general feeling of well being and feeling your stomach is full as soon as you have eaten only little.

The San bushman used to eat it raw after removing the spikes and skin. The san people used it only sparingly. Even though there's nothing in the research that shows hoodia to be dangerous everyone should also be aware that nobody can claim it to be free of side effects 100%.At the same time it is advisable that people who are underweight or have eating disorders or are having anorexia nervosa with or without bulimia should not be taking hoodia. Some people can be allergic to some plants and so be on the lookout for some allergies as well. When you eat refined carbohydrates blood sugar drops and hoodia does not counteract it so people with diabetes mellitus should be cautious as well.

Hoodia is sold in capsule, liquid, or tea form in health food stores and on the Internet. Prescription drugs containing hoodia or its synthetic P57 derivatives may take up to 3 more years from being on the market. Natural hoodia supplements are currently available.