CBS News Now along comes hoodia. Never heard of it? Soon it'll be tripping off your tongue, because hoodia is a natural substance that literally takes your appetite away. BBC news Imagine this: an organic pill that kills the appetite and attacks obesity. It has no known side-effects, and contains a molecule that fools your brain into believing you are full. Deep inside the African Kalahari desert, grows an ugly cactus called the Hoodia. It thrives in extremely high temperatures, and takes years to mature. The San Bushmen of the Kalahari, one of the world's oldest and most primitive tribes, had been eating the Hoodia for thousands of years, to stave off hunger during long hunting trips. When South African scientists were routinely testing it, they discovered the plant contained a previously unknown molecule, which has since been christened P 57. Cordi News The six foot plant, called Hoodia, contains an active ingredient which research has shown could reduce appetite by up to 2,000 calories a day. The remedy was originally patented by the South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and licensed by British company Phytopharm. National Geographic News The drug named P57 is based on a substance scientists found in the desert plant Hoodia gordinii. The San call the cactus !khoba and have been chewing on it for thousands of years to stave off hunger and thirst during long hunting trips in their parched Kalahari desert home. |