HCG DIET IS DANGEROUS!!!

megsta21

Obtained from: http://spikediet.blogspot.com/2010/08/hcg-diet-is-dangerous.html

The HCG Diet is all over the web and I am starting to see it in stores now too, but what is it?



The HCG Diet is a diet based on extremely low calories, how low? 500 calories!!! Let me start with that; Only 500 calories a day of course you are going to lose weight, the average person will burn over 2,000 calories a day which means by diet alone there is a daily 1,500 calorie deficit which equals 3lb lost per week. The problem is you are starving yourself, and one meal away from flat out fasting. You will slip into "starvation mode" and your metabolism will slow down.

Good luck maintaining a 500 calorie a day diet for the rest of your life, because once you go back to "normal" you will indeed gain the weight back too.. In my opinion this is the definition of a crash diet that is impossible to maintain as a lifestyle.

HCG is short for human chorionic gonadotropin, it's a hormone produced during pregnancy, and the reason why people thinks this is good for weight loss is because of Dr. A.T.W Simeons HCG Weight Loss Protocol, or the Original 500 Calorie a Day Diet. Apparently this hormone keeps the hunger away but according to numerous studies there is no difference in weight-loss through placebo or HCG and there is no difference in hunger either. Source LA Times

HCG is expensive, shots can run hundreds of dollars a month, and since the FDA ruled that is not safe for weight loss you need a prescription for another issue, like what it's really used for, fertility.

Sure you can buy it online from what may be a real source, but without a prescription you are breaking the law, and paying lots of money for nothing that really helps you lose weight.

I am normally not one to knock another person's diet because there are a lot different plans that work, but this plan is flat out dangerous! I hope by getting the word out, I can stop someone from going down this unsafe path. You need to find a safe plan that works for you and your lifestyle, I have learned that if you want to lose weight and keep it off, you need to find something you can follow the rest of your life. Otherwise once you go back to "normal" the weight will come back too.

To summarize, stay far away from anything related to HCG for weight-loss, here's why.

- Extremely low calories, only 500 a day.
- Injecting your body with a non-FDA approved drug for weight-loss
- It's expensive
- It's illegal without a prescription, which Doctor's are not supposed to prescribe for weight loss.
- You do not need to starve yourself to lose weight, nor pump your body full of illegal drugs.

Please share this with your friends and family, if they are trying to lose weight they will undoubtedly come across HCG. The marketers behind it are very smart and have websites everywhere keeping the real information about the dangers of HCG buried behind hundreds of Pro-HCG websites.

DeeDeeLHF

I agree with you...but now brace yourself ...there are a few on this website who love the hCG diet.

D

AuntMimi2010

I would love to hear thoughts from both sides of this diet. Sounds scary to me, but maybe I just don't know enough about it. I am certainly no doctor or health/fitness expert.

wiseg2

I agree with you...but now brace yourself ...there are a few on this website who love the hCG diet.

D

I agree. MFP sets 1200 as a limit for a reason.

sgssmile

Congrats on your weight loss, keep it up, you are so VERY close.
Susan:flowerforyou:

justdoingit

My sister went on this diet in conjunction with the b12 shots and she dropped 75 lbs in 6 months (she couldn't stick to the 500 daily calories deal.) Expensive weekly doctor visits, etc. It has been one year and she has gained it all back and then some...One of the co-workers that went on the diet with her just passed away. She was 32 (had a 5 year old son) and was so obsessed with gaining her weight back, that she was starving herself! She died of an anurism that was most likely caused in part by her rapid weight loss and extremely low caloric intake.

megsta21

Wow! Its scary isnt it... ... The reason I saw this was I had seen quite a few posts about the HCG diet, but I had no idea what it was!!

I dont claim to know much about it still, just thought that this article may be beneficial to someone...

Donnarama

I lost 23 lbs on the 43 day protocol, but I ate a bit more than 500 cals, maybe 600 or 700 in the later weeks. I think it is a great kick start. You don't need injections. There are some homeopathic drops that you can take under your tongue. You can find them on the internet. See www.HCG1234.com. When it comes time to add back some calories you add them back a little at a time (after 6 weeks). You don't feel any different like you would with drugs. You can also do a 23 day plan on drops and a few weeks off the drops and can go back on again.

animatedbecca

My sister went on this diet in conjunction with the b12 shots and she dropped 75 lbs in 6 months (she couldn't stick to the 500 daily calories deal.) Expensive weekly doctor visits, etc. It has been one year and she has gained it all back and then some...One of the co-workers that went on the diet with her just passed away. She was 32 (had a 5 year old son) and was so obsessed with gaining her weight back, that she was starving herself! She died of an anurism that was most likely caused in part by her rapid weight loss and extremely low caloric intake.

WOW!! I knew it didnt sound safe or healthy and I would never choose that route but this is really sad!

Jamie_V

I don't disagree with you, anything that requires you to be on a 500 calorie a day diet cannot possibly be good for you. However, just to be clear, it is not illegal for a doctor to prescribe something to treat a condition other than what it is intended for, physicians are permitted to prescribe "off-label". Pharmaceutical companies cannot market their products to doctors for any other use than whatever FDA approved it for...but whatever the doc decides to prescribe the drug for once it's out there on the market is pretty much his call. For example, my son's neurologist prescribed a beta-blocker (a blood pressure medication) for him, that he takes every day, not because he had high blood pressure, but to prevent migraines.

What I'm trying to figure out is why HCG would decrease appetite. Having been pregnant (and therefore full of that hormone) twice, I can guarantee you my appetite was not suppressed, quite the opposite in fact!! I wonder if the appetite drops off because of a slowed-down metabolism caused by eating so little...?

FabulousFifty

Nothing quick and dirty ever lasts...take it from someone who has tried everything except HCG. :grumble: I am in this for the longhaul so I am making lifestyle changes. I certainly don't intend to eat 500 calories for the rest of my life. I love myself more than that. You should too! Thanks for the warning. :flowerforyou: Hopefully anyone considering this as a quick fix will think again.

Be kind to yourself~FAB

kiki28riki

I think the HCG diet is ridiculous! I've read a lot about it, not because I was thinking of doing it, but just because I was curious as to what exactly it was (because it's all over these message boards lately). It sounds SO scary to me. How about good old-fashioned exercise and eating right? Sure, it takes a lot longer, but you're losing the weight in a healthy way and the slower you lose, the more likely it is to stay off. I really hope anyone considering the HCG diet reconsiders what is best for your body and health.

nursegirljay

Wow! Its scary isnt it... ... The reason I saw this was I had seen quite a few posts about the HCG diet, but I had no idea what it was!!

I dont claim to know much about it still, just thought that this article may be beneficial to someone...

If you do not know much about it, then why put on here it is dangerous?! You do not know that, since you do not know much about it. I would never claim that something is dangerous or wrong if I had no idea what I was talking about. This diet is recommended to be closely monitored by a physician. As with all weight loss, diet or physical activity someone is thinking about doing. There is a LOT more to this than just "eating 500 calories per day". Yes, the normal person should not consume less than 1200 calories per day. It is not safe. The main thing with this diet has to do with your hypothalamus and chemicals in your body. It is essentially trying to reset your hunger point. Most people eat a LOT more than what they should. Because it takes quite a bit for them to get "full". When you follow this diet properly, you are resetting that "full" point where you dont eat as much. You are also cleansing your body of a lot of bad chemicals. Most of which you find in refined foods. When you are on this diet you do not eat any sugars or starches in phase 2 (which can last 23 or more days). That is when you eat the 500 calories (which at first seems like it isnt enough, but I still have 27 calories left for the night, and I have ate a ton of food today. Just lots of the "good" food you should eat and not processed). Then you move to phase 3 which is where your calories are increased and you can eat any meats, veggies, fruits etc. that you want. You still have to avoid sugars and starches. That lasts 3 weeks. Then you move to phase 4 where you slowly start to add sugars and starches in your diet. IF you follow it properly, you will NOT gain the weight back. You cant just do phase 2 and lose the weight, then start in on all the sugars and starches. YOU WILL gain everything back. This is something that you do need to speak with your doctor about and decide with them if it is best for you. If anyone who is actually reading this and is wanting to learn something about it instead of just deciding it is "dangerous" without knowing what it really is I recommend you read this: http://powermaxnutrition.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/pounds_and_inches.pdf It is the pounds and inches by Dr. Simeons that all of the HCG diet is based from. It is 55 pages long, but worth reading. It tells you EVERYTHING you need to know to PROPERLY UNDERSTAND this diet. It is not for everyone. And if you are from a medical background (as I am) then you will understand the medical aspect of it. Even if you do not understand the medical part of it, it really does explain everything very well. So please, READ THIS before you want to start bashing anything. Thanks and have a wonderful day :flowerforyou:

ThompsonH

very well put nursegirljay! i currently am not on the hCG diet but i have been looking into it. My doctor said that this is a great diet if followed correctly. i am going to doing the hcg homeopatic drops. they were reasonably priced and should last around 40 days. i also have done my homework. its very important to read the pounds and inches protocol by dr. simeons. this really does break everything down and make alot of sense , but you have to read it all. like nursegirljay said this diet is not for everyone but you shoulnt be bashing it just because you dont agree with the protocols.

AuntMimi2010

nursegirljay,

Would you mind, for those of us that are not familiar with the diet, explaining how the hypothalamus and chemicals in your body play a part in this diet? Also, is is suggested that you work out during those periods of 500 cal days? I haven't read the article, and I am certainly not bashing the diet, although it is something that I would not do, but it seems to me if you are working out as well as eating so few calories, you essentially have nothing to provide your body with the energy needed to get through the day. Again, I am not bashing or degrading anyone using this method of weight loss, but simply curious about the details that may not make sense to a lot of people.

Thank you.

July24Lioness

I don't disagree with you, anything that requires you to be on a 500 calorie a day diet cannot possibly be good for you. However, just to be clear, it is not illegal for a doctor to prescribe something to treat a condition other than what it is intended for, physicians are permitted to prescribe "off-label". Pharmaceutical companies cannot market their products to doctors for any other use than whatever FDA approved it for...but whatever the doc decides to prescribe the drug for once it's out there on the market is pretty much his call. For example, my son's neurologist prescribed a beta-blocker (a blood pressure medication) for him, that he takes every day, not because he had high blood pressure, but to prevent migraines.

What I'm trying to figure out is why HCG would decrease appetite. Having been pregnant (and therefore full of that hormone) twice, I can guarantee you my appetite was not suppressed, quite the opposite in fact!! I wonder if the appetite drops off because of a slowed-down metabolism caused by eating so little...?

No, the appetitie tapers off due to the fat in your body being utilized as the same as calories eaten.

I am doing my plan under doctor supervision. She prescribed the HCG for the injectiions, is meeting with me every 3 weeks and tracking my progress, including my food journal.

As long as you are adhering to the plan, your body has enough fat to burn and you will NOT go into starvation mode.

July24Lioness

My sister went on this diet in conjunction with the b12 shots and she dropped 75 lbs in 6 months (she couldn't stick to the 500 daily calories deal.) Expensive weekly doctor visits, etc. It has been one year and she has gained it all back and then some...One of the co-workers that went on the diet with her just passed away. She was 32 (had a 5 year old son) and was so obsessed with gaining her weight back, that she was starving herself! She died of an anurism that was most likely caused in part by her rapid weight loss and extremely low caloric intake.

WOW!! I knew it didnt sound safe or healthy and I would never choose that route but this is really sad!

The aneurysm would not be caused due to rapid weight loss. Come on, common sense please. The aneurysm was already there for a while.

Please do not make assumptions about something you have admitted of knowing NOTHING about. That is ridiculous in itself.

I am hoping that one particular person that is a member of this site weighs in on this thread. She has already lost quite a bit of weight with it, looks fabulous and is stablizing and maintaining her weight beautifully....................

July24Lioness

Dr Simeons started researching this and put together a meticulous plan that had been thought through and thoroughly researched before it was ever implemented.

It has been around since the 1950's.

The reason why Big Pharma, The Government and some Doctors don't want to acknowledge it - is because they can't make oodles of money off the diet industry if people do this plan by the book and are no longer over weight.....................

skywalker

Nothing quick and dirty ever lasts...take it from someone who has tried everything except HCG. :grumble: I am in this for the longhaul so I am making lifestyle changes. I certainly don't intend to eat 500 calories for the rest of my life. I love myself more than that. You should too! Thanks for the warning. :flowerforyou: Hopefully anyone considering this as a quick fix will think again.

Be kind to yourself~FAB

I'm with you, Fab! And with you too Megs! :drinker: I'm running the whole marathon, not just the sprint. :happy:

skywalker

I am curious about the exercise question posed earlier. What kind of exercise is recommended while following this plan?

July24Lioness

I am curious about the exercise question posed earlier. What kind of exercise is recommended while following this plan?

Any type of exercise you are already used to doing. Or walking if your just starting out.

megsta21

Wow! Its scary isnt it... ... The reason I saw this was I had seen quite a few posts about the HCG diet, but I had no idea what it was!!

I dont claim to know much about it still, just thought that this article may be beneficial to someone...

If you do not know much about it, then why put on here it is dangerous?! You do not know that, since you do not know much about it. I would never claim that something is dangerous or wrong if I had no idea what I was talking about. This diet is recommended to be closely monitored by a physician. As with all weight loss, diet or physical activity someone is thinking about doing. There is a LOT more to this than just "eating 500 calories per day". Yes, the normal person should not consume less than 1200 calories per day. It is not safe. The main thing with this diet has to do with your hypothalamus and chemicals in your body. It is essentially trying to reset your hunger point. Most people eat a LOT more than what they should. Because it takes quite a bit for them to get "full". When you follow this diet properly, you are resetting that "full" point where you dont eat as much. You are also cleansing your body of a lot of bad chemicals. Most of which you find in refined foods. When you are on this diet you do not eat any sugars or starches in phase 2 (which can last 23 or more days). That is when you eat the 500 calories (which at first seems like it isnt enough, but I still have 27 calories left for the night, and I have ate a ton of food today. Just lots of the "good" food you should eat and not processed). Then you move to phase 3 which is where your calories are increased and you can eat any meats, veggies, fruits etc. that you want. You still have to avoid sugars and starches. That lasts 3 weeks. Then you move to phase 4 where you slowly start to add sugars and starches in your diet. IF you follow it properly, you will NOT gain the weight back. You cant just do phase 2 and lose the weight, then start in on all the sugars and starches. YOU WILL gain everything back. This is something that you do need to speak with your doctor about and decide with them if it is best for you. If anyone who is actually reading this and is wanting to learn something about it instead of just deciding it is "dangerous" without knowing what it really is I recommend you read this: http://powermaxnutrition.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/pounds_and_inches.pdf It is the pounds and inches by Dr. Simeons that all of the HCG diet is based from. It is 55 pages long, but worth reading. It tells you EVERYTHING you need to know to PROPERLY UNDERSTAND this diet. It is not for everyone. And if you are from a medical background (as I am) then you will understand the medical aspect of it. Even if you do not understand the medical part of it, it really does explain everything very well. So please, READ THIS before you want to start bashing anything. Thanks and have a wonderful day :flowerforyou:

Just to let you know I was not "Bashing it" simply posting an exact copy of an article I read for peoples information. If you read my post properly, the very first thing i say is: Obtained from: http://spikediet.blogspot.com/2010/08/hcg-diet-is-dangerous.html ...

in otherwords I did NOT write this article, however I thought it may be beneficial. If you dont agree, thats ok, if you do, thats ok too.

I said what you quoted me on because im not here to discuss and argue, was putting info I found up.

DMK710

That is so very sad. Rapid/quick fix weight loss is definately not the answer. We really need to deal with the foods we are exposed to and learn to eat correctly and pass certain things up. It's a lifetime learning process. I feel so bad for her 5 year old.

skywalker

I am curious about the exercise question posed earlier. What kind of exercise is recommended while following this plan?

Any type of exercise you are already used to doing. Or walking if your just starting out.

I don't think this calorie consumption could possibly be enough for the amount of biking I do. I average over 100miles a week, usually with one 40+mile ride on the weekend.
Plus I'm about to begin Ironman training. I need lots of calories.

July24Lioness

Wow! Its scary isnt it... ... The reason I saw this was I had seen quite a few posts about the HCG diet, but I had no idea what it was!!

I dont claim to know much about it still, just thought that this article may be beneficial to someone...

If you do not know much about it, then why put on here it is dangerous?! You do not know that, since you do not know much about it. I would never claim that something is dangerous or wrong if I had no idea what I was talking about. This diet is recommended to be closely monitored by a physician. As with all weight loss, diet or physical activity someone is thinking about doing. There is a LOT more to this than just "eating 500 calories per day". Yes, the normal person should not consume less than 1200 calories per day. It is not safe. The main thing with this diet has to do with your hypothalamus and chemicals in your body. It is essentially trying to reset your hunger point. Most people eat a LOT more than what they should. Because it takes quite a bit for them to get "full". When you follow this diet properly, you are resetting that "full" point where you dont eat as much. You are also cleansing your body of a lot of bad chemicals. Most of which you find in refined foods. When you are on this diet you do not eat any sugars or starches in phase 2 (which can last 23 or more days). That is when you eat the 500 calories (which at first seems like it isnt enough, but I still have 27 calories left for the night, and I have ate a ton of food today. Just lots of the "good" food you should eat and not processed). Then you move to phase 3 which is where your calories are increased and you can eat any meats, veggies, fruits etc. that you want. You still have to avoid sugars and starches. That lasts 3 weeks. Then you move to phase 4 where you slowly start to add sugars and starches in your diet. IF you follow it properly, you will NOT gain the weight back. You cant just do phase 2 and lose the weight, then start in on all the sugars and starches. YOU WILL gain everything back. This is something that you do need to speak with your doctor about and decide with them if it is best for you. If anyone who is actually reading this and is wanting to learn something about it instead of just deciding it is "dangerous" without knowing what it really is I recommend you read this: http://powermaxnutrition.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/pounds_and_inches.pdf It is the pounds and inches by Dr. Simeons that all of the HCG diet is based from. It is 55 pages long, but worth reading. It tells you EVERYTHING you need to know to PROPERLY UNDERSTAND this diet. It is not for everyone. And if you are from a medical background (as I am) then you will understand the medical aspect of it. Even if you do not understand the medical part of it, it really does explain everything very well. So please, READ THIS before you want to start bashing anything. Thanks and have a wonderful day :flowerforyou:

Just to let you know I was not "Bashing it" simply posting an exact copy of an article I read for peoples information. If you read my post properly, the very first thing i say is: Obtained from: http://spikediet.blogspot.com/2010/08/hcg-diet-is-dangerous.html ...

in otherwords I did NOT write this article, however I thought it may be beneficial. If you dont agree, thats ok, if you do, thats ok too.

I said what you quoted me on because im not here to discuss and argue, was putting info I found up.

The title of the thread is an attack and bashing in itself..............That is not a slick tactic.

megsta21

That was the title of the article.... =(

July24Lioness

That is so very sad. Rapid/quick fix weight loss is definately not the answer. We really need to deal with the foods we are exposed to and learn to eat correctly and pass certain things up. It's a lifetime learning process. I feel so bad for her 5 year old.

I can only speak for myself.............

I know how to eat properly. I was raised with proper eating habits.

I have a plethora of hormonal and Endocrine issues, which is allowing me to lose weight and reset my hormones and the glands of my Endocrine system.

And it is a semi quick weight loss, everyone looses differently............

And most doctors agree that if you have quite a bit to lose, your health is at a bigger risk by being fat and obese.

xarrium

The issue I have with diets like this is that so many people are susceptible to jumping on the bandwagon without doing any research or consulting a physician to prescribe pills/shots/etc. Personally, the idea of injecting a hormone for the sole purpose of losing weight freaks me out, especially when it's paired with calorie restriction. I don't doubt that the original diet may have been okay (under a doctor's close supervision), but in a world where french fries are counted as vegetables and you can buy "diagnostic" at-home tests for colon cancer, promotion of the hCG diet worries me.

CelticDragon

Isn't this the "urine shot" diet? If so, my brother in law did it to lose his baby fat after my niece was born. It worked, but he was just losing a few pounds off of his beefy, muscular frame before heading into Navy Seals training, he has very little body fat. But he didn't follow the diet/calorie plan either, just had the shots.

He sent me all the info, and I just couldn't imagine injecting that stuff into myself. Granted that's not what it is, but that's from whence it was derived.

Call me squeemish, I'll take the old fashioned route!

July24Lioness

The issue I have with diets like this is that so many people are susceptible to jumping on the bandwagon without doing any research or consulting a physician to prescribe pills/shots/etc. Personally, the idea of injecting a hormone for the sole purpose of losing weight freaks me out, especially when it's paired with calorie restriction. I don't doubt that the original diet may have been okay (under a doctor's close supervision), but in a world where french fries are counted as vegetables and you can buy "diagnostic" at-home tests for colon cancer, promotion of the hCG diet worries me.

Well I will tell you that the Simeon's protocol takes a lot of work and dedication. It is not a good idea to embark on this journey without first reading the Simeon's protocol several times. My doctor told me to read it, read it and read it again. Then when I think I understand it, read it again.............

I can't speak about anyone else, but I am doing this under strict doctor supervision and according to the book...........

I am doing what is best for me because I have issues with my pituitary and hypothalamus already.

AuntMimi2010

I honestly don't think the title of this post means that it is bashing the program. After reading all of these posts, I do think that this diet can be dangerous to some. I also think being unhealthy and obese can be dangerous to some. This is a program for people that can really follow the guidelines strictly and under close doctor supervision so that any heath dangers can be addressed. That being said, I am still confused as to how any individual can consume merely 500 calories a day and continue to exercise. Burning 500 calories a day during exercise is not entirely difficult. So, for those of you on the diet....Do you have to restrict your exercise to compensate for the calories that you are not consuming? I still cannot understand how it may be ok to consume 500 calories in a day and burn more than 500 calories in that day working out. This means, for a non-professional like myself, that you are burning ALL And MORE of the calories you consume in a day... So, where does your energy come from?