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If you’re not familiar with hoodia I’ll give a quick primer before I provide some tips that will help you when you’re looking for an effective hoodia diet pill. It is a cactus-like plant that is technically classified as a succulent. There are thirteen varieties, but the hoodia gordonii variety is what put hoodia on the map. It is the only variety that has been shown to be an effective natural appetite suppressant. Hoodia diet pills that don’t contain authentic hoodia gordonii are worthless and won’t do anything but empty your wallet.

It is found only in the Kalahari Desert of South Africa. It is there where the San tribe, or Bushmen, have used it for centuries to curb their appetite before enduring long hunting trips. Eating a small piece of the hoodia gordonii plant suppresses their appetite for hours.

The BBC and 60 minutes featured the wonders of this plant in the early 2000′s and ever since, hoodia diet pills have become one of the most popular weight loss supplements. The demand for hoodia gordonii went through the roof and supply hasn’t been able to keep up. Since it only grows well in the soils of South Africa and takes 2-3 years before it can be harvested, it has never been able to keep up pace with demand.

Today, the hoodia gordonii plant is now classified as an endangered species and as a result, there are very tight controls on the exportation of it from South Africa. This leads to my first tip that will help you when you’re looking for an effective hoodia diet pill. Companies must obtain a CITES certificate before they can export hoodia gordonii from South Africa. Companies that are selling real hoodia gordonii diet pills will clearly display their CITES certificate on their websites.

Another thing to watch for is independent lab testing. Companies that claim they have “in-house” lab testing isn’t enough. You want to look for those companies who have their products randomly and anonymously tested by an independent lab. This ensures the most accurate results. Some companies will have their products tested by an independent lab, but they’ll send their own sample. Reputable companies will allow the lab themselves to randomly and anonymously select a sample for testing.

The way you can tell if a company allows random testing is to look closely at the lab analysis sheet which is also found on most websites. You’ll see a section on the sheet that describes how the sample was obtained. It will say, “sample randomly obtained,” or something similar. If you don’t see the word “random” or a variation of it, then chances are the company selected their own sample and then submitted it for testing.

When you are looking for an effective hoodia diet pill you also want to pay close attention to the labels. Does the product you are considering contain other unnecessary fillers and additives? Does it contain stimulants or other potentially dangerous ingredients? The most effective hoodia diet pills will contain only authentic hoodia gordonii – and nothing else.

Finally, look for the amount of hoodia gordonii that is in the product. Experts and doctors alike say that it can take as much as 3,000mg per day to effectively suppress appetite. I’ve seen some products that contain as little as 25mg of hoodia gordonii! At these minimal levels, you’d be popping pills all day long. When you are looking for an effective hoodia diet pill, look for those that contain at least 400mg of hoodia gordonii.

Hoodia shake products are convenient, but they have their drawbacks. For one, there aren’t that many products available so your choices are very limited. The few that do exist are very expensive and there aren’t many flavors to choose from. Furthermore, the amount of hoodia gordonii per scoop isn’t that much so you pay premium prices for what amounts to be a basic protein powder with a little hoodia thrown in.

Most of the hoodia shake products available today have 500mg or less of hoodia gordonii per scoop. That’s a decent amount of hoodia gordonii, but the hoodia shake I’m going to show you how to make will contain 750mg or more of hoodia gordonii per scoop and will cost much less than any product you’ll find on the market today.

One of the great things about making your own hoodia shake is that you can choose what type of protein to use. You can use soy protein or whey protein. You can also choose what flavors you want. There are many popular brands of protein powders available and they come in so many flavors beyond the usual chocolate and vanilla. One popular brand of protein powder has such flavors as banana cream, strawberry, tropical punch, and cookies and cream!

To make your own hoodia shake you first need to pick your favorite protein powder. A high quality protein powder product shouldn’t cost anymore than $14 for a two pound tub and should have around 30 servings. Then you need to buy a quality hoodia diet pill that contains 100% authentic hoodia gordonii. These types of hoodia supplements will contain anywhere between 400-750mg of hoodia gordonii per capsule.

Then what you do is add one scoop of your favorite protein powder to a glass of lowfat milk or water. Then pull apart one hoodia gordonii capsule and add the powder from it to your drink. The capsules will pull apart fairly easy. Then mix the drink well or blend it with ice if you want and enjoy! You’ve just made a tasty and highly effective appetite suppressant for much less than you’d pay for any hoodia shake available today!

The other advantage to making your own hoodia shake is that you can control the amount of protein and hoodia in each drink. You can add two scoops of protein or two hoodia gordonii capsules to your drink. It’s totally up to you. You could even add some fiber for even more appetite suppression! The possibilities are endless when you make your own hoodia shake.

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There is no such thing as a quick fix really. Obesity treatments will be prescribed to an individual based on their personal medical history, weight and lifestyle. Weight loss drugs must be taken in conjunction with a healthy diet and an active lifestyle.  Dramatic weight loss is not an approach to weight loss that is recommended by medical professionals. This rapid loss will not only affect your health and especially your heart, but it will increase your chances of putting the weight back on again. Taking these treatments as prescribed and maintaining a healthier more balanced lifestyle simultaneously will help you lose weight moderately and safely. Presently, Xenical is the only prescription medication for weight loss licensed for use in the European Union.  This particular type of treatment does not suit everyone but if you are taking Xenical, a strict diet must be followed as eating fatty foods will cause serious stomach problems and feelings of discomfort. There are other alternatives such as the herbal, Appesat. This has proven to be a useful treatment depending on the individual. Most of all however, the majority are still crying out for Reductil (Sibutramine), despite concerns raised by the European Medicines Agency on January 21st of this year. Abbott (the manufacturer) has been exercising their belief in their product by continuing to carry out rigorous trials in the hope that they will pass the test.

This may happen sooner than you think considering that Meridia (made by Abbott) and Lorcaserin (made by Arena) are both facing judgement day this September as Abbott stands before the FDA and as Arena stands before the same panel twenty four hours later.  Scott Davies, of Abbott, maintains that Meridia (Sibutramine) will be as effective as it was and only dangerous when taken by patients who have not been prescribed the medication in accordance with the original guidelines, in particular those who are already considered to have a high cardiovascular risk.

Arena’s chances look good considering that their shares have increased a massive 80% since the results of their most recent clinical trials have become known and their latest reports have not stated any cases of heart related illnesses with the administration of Lorcaserin.

It may take time before we see these drugs available to prescribe in the UK though.  There is a huge desire for the return of drugs like Reductil (Sibutramine); however, taking these drugs before they have the full support of bodies such as the European Medicines Agency, is foolish and the results could be fatal.  Ask your GP about the latest advancements and keep an eye out for online clinic websites and health news pages for news and updates on the ever changing world of weight loss pills.

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Fats loss is therefore more important than weight loss and people should focus on losing fats rather than weights. But how to tell the difference between surplus weight and surplus fats before you can embark on a fats-loss program?

When people become overweight or obese, their fat percentage increase but changes in muscles and bone mass are minimal. Change in bone mass is also unlikely to lead to a drastic increase in weight as a 10% increase in bone mass only lead to an extra 1 to 1.5kg of body weight. Muscles, on the other hand, weighs more than bone mass and fats but unless you exercise and have high muscle mass, for most people, their surplus weight is mainly due to surplus fat.

To find out how much fats you have, a waist test (waistline that goes beyond 40 inch for man and 35 inch for woman is considered unhealthy) or fats test (using calipers or electronic body fat monitors) is a reliable measure of body fat. And if the body fat turns out to be low, then there is no need to loss weight. Otherwise, its time to look at the amount of fats (especially the belly fats) you have and start to do something about it!

Back to the topic of muscles, with good exercises and nutrition, muscle weight can increase drastically. For instance, someone with high muscle mass (eg bodybuilder or sports person) can weight much more than average (ie have a high BMI) but still considered healthy as their fats level is way below what the average person has. So there is no cause of alarm if your weight shots up due to muscle increases, which you can examine easily through looking at the mirror and see if the muscles are tone or flab.

All in all, if your surplus weight is due to muscles, no cause of alarm but if it is due to fats (which is the case for most people), then it is advisable for you to start your fats-loss program for a better health in the long run.

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