How Can Hoodia Gordonii Help The Obese?

August 10, 2010 by Vanessa Carroll  
Filed under Health Fitness

Hoodia Gordonii, known as the ‘Bushman’s Hat’ and ‘Queen of the Namib’, is a flowering plant native to Southern Africa. It belongs to the Apocynaceae family. It grows to a height of a meter and has tan or purple color flowers that have a strong smell. The natives call the plant Khoba, Ghaap and Xhooba. The plant is found in the semi-deserts of South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Angola. It is a plant that is specifically native to the Namib Desert.

Hoodia is traditionally eaten by the San Bushmen who live in the Kalahari desert. These nomadic people eat the Hoodia stem to suppress their hunger when they are out on long hunting trips. The plant was also used by them for hemorrhoids, severe abdominal cramps, indigestion, tuberculosis, diabetes and hypertension. There are some twenty varieties of Hoodia. Of them, it is only the Hoodia Gordonii variety that suppresses natural appetite. Hoodia plants flowers in about five years after which it can be harvested.

As early as 1937, a Dutch anthropologist had noted that the San Bushmen consumed Hoodia to suppress appetite. But it was only in 1963 that this was studied were carried out at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the national laboratory of South Africa. The scientists, along with Phytopharm, a British company, isolated a steroidal glycoside, the active ingredient in Hoodia. They named it as p57. Very soon Hoodia began to be sold in liquid and capsule form and marketed extensively through health food stores. It has become popular as Hoodia 57. It is promoted as an effective supplement to lose weight and control obesity. What Hoodia does is to send signals to the brain which makes you feel full and lose appetite. This in turn makes you avoid over eating.

Hoodia became instantly popular world wide. The market for the Hoodia products boomed. The result was rapid lose of Hoodia from its natural habitat. This led Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) to include Hoodia in Appendix II which meant that Hoodia will have to be declared as an endangered species if its extraction from nature was not immediately restricted. In fact, in 2008 the Botanic Gardens Conservation International listed also declared that the plant faced extinction due to indiscriminate exploitation. The government soon took to farming in government controlled farms in the Kalahari Desert. This regulation also subsequently led to the San Bushmen, the originators and holders of the knowledge, to receive a share in the royalty from the sales.

Nature gives us almost everything that we need. That is why, nature should be used up badly.

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How To Keep Yourself Distracted?

March 15, 2010 by George V. Bolte  
Filed under Weight Loss

It’s not pronounced without reason that distraction is not one of the preferable things. However, many a times, distraction becomes a necessity. It becomes far more urgent if one has to be distracted from a bad thing. Distraction is a blessing in disguise when it comes to deadly habits like smoking or maintaining distance from the destructive thought process. Many a times distraction plays a pivotal role in bearing the grief of relationship issues. Let’s have look at some of the tips which will help you distract your intellect and hence cope better with any difficult situation.

One of the simplest things that you can do to keep yourself distracted is indulge in some self cosseting. Now, this doesn’t mean taking yourself to the most pretty locales. You can get yourself a good massage or a nice haircut. Even a good pedicure or manicure works equally well to help feel good and take your mind off stressed things.

Retail therapy also works wonders to help you stay distracted. Splurging through all new clothes, accessories and picking up the best of million options is sure to keep your mind away for sometime. You can shop for everything and everything. Retail care needn’t mean only shopping for clothes or accessories. You may even go shopping for fruits and vegetables or other essential commodities that you may need at home.

Take up a pastime. Many a times, we regularly give up our fave past-times or activities that we enjoy. If you are trying to distract your intellect from something, then it is time that you take up your favorite hobbies again. You may just join a dance class again or take up the painting brush if you’re keen on painting. Luxuriating in your hobbies will not just help deviate your attention but also make you feel happy at the same time.

Go in for some spring cleaning and you are sure to meet your distraction resolve. Cleaning is no cakewalk. It has to have plenty of patience and also need you to play close attention. Try clearing up the mess in the hose. You may also consider positioning the furniture in a new and different way altogether.In addition you can always re arrange the cupboards. This could decipher your point of distraction and at the same time give you the chance to de-decorate your home, every now and then.

Watch a picture. Pictures are great ways to switch your attention. Go in for any light heated movie or any movie genre that you enjoy watching. As you get engrossed in the movie, you will forget the things that may be bothering you. And, you need not really head out to a multiplex to catch up with your favorite movie. Just order your favorite DVDs and cook in some hot popcorn and you are sure to have a good time.

With these tips, you can simply create enough distraction around you that bad thoughts will not haunt you anymore.

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