hCG - Love it or hate it?

Court7898

I've got my own opinins on this diet, but I wanted to hear other opinions.

SO let me hear it

loriefolk

Loved it Just used it to jumpstart my weight loss and had amazing results.

Veggie_Eloise

I have noticed that this is an extremely touchy subject but I personally don't believe in it.
Kudos to those that do.
I think it's more starvation than anything else.
But again, that's just my opinion.
Don't hate

NightOwl1

Any diet where you shoot yourself up with hormones to make your body think it's pregnant to burn weight is a terrible idea. Period. Whether it works or not (and most people who lose weight with it end up gaining it back once they go off it) is irrelevant. Steroids will make your body ripped, but there still a terrible idea.

I don't see how HCG is any better than steroids.

xarrium

If it's closely (and medically) supervised, I think it's feasible as a "kick-start" program, but for long-term weight loss I'm not sold on it...

Christie81

Hate it...lose weight naturally. You'll be more successful at keeping the weight off.

prayforsantana

My Neurological Chiropractor says STAY AWAY... it screws up your brain chemistry and hormones. Can't say I don't want to try it... but just like everything else... there will be a big thing on why they have to pull it off the shelves. Besides. I could lose a ton of weight eating 500 calories too without a hormone. That is just nuts, and Unnatural. It really trips me out that guys do it. Those that do it... I gotta say I am jealous... Wish I was brave enough to let the weight melt off like that.

Court7898

I'm trying it for the next three weeks or so. No problems thus far, just tremendous weight loss.

Loveitloveitloveit!

MeghanAM

I personally am going to stay away from it, because I don't think that it is a healthy thing to put your body through.

However, when other adults decide to do it, and get their doctor's approval and guidance, I don't think it's my place to judge them or tell them that they're wrong. It does concern me when someone opts to start the diet without consulting their doctor, though.

live2smyle

Im going to chime in here :happy: My thoughts would be save yourself the $$ on the HCG drops and eat 500 calories a day....I will bet that you will get the same results. I am coming from 20+ years of that exact same weight loss mentality. Sure you will drop a ton of weight and fast...However you will gain it all back once you start eating and you will be lucky not to gain that and more.

This time I am going a different route...Trying healthy food (still learning) and excersise. It seems to have worked for so many people I am willing to give that a shot :flowerforyou: With that said I would never bash anyone for the methods they choose to lose the weight. It is your body and your decision. Good Luck to you

feeny

i did the oral drops for 6 days and it was terrible, i was STARVING the whole time. On the 6th day I threw the drops in the garbage and ate a granola bar, i could not take feeling that hungry all the time anymore. On the plus side i think it did shrink my stomach a lot, because i get full much easier now.

Grokette

Any diet where you shoot yourself up with hormones to make your body think it's pregnant to burn weight is a terrible idea. Period. Whether it works or not (and most people who lose weight with it end up gaining it back once they go off it) is irrelevant. Steroids will make your body ripped, but there still a terrible idea.

I don't see how HCG is any better than steroids.

Well, most people that do Weight Watchers, count calories or anything else also end up gaining it back......

I have kept off 38 pounds for almost 6 months now and I am at the point where I am allowing my body to start losing weight again and it is coming off.

Grokette

i did the oral drops for 6 days and it was terrible, i was STARVING the whole time. On the 6th day I threw the drops in the garbage and ate a granola bar, i could not take feeling that hungry all the time anymore. On the plus side i think it did shrink my stomach a lot, because i get full much easier now.

The drops you purchased were probably fakes. There are a lot of those on the market.

That is why I chose the injections prescribed by my doctor.

Grokette

Im going to chime in here :happy: My thoughts would be save yourself the $$ on the HCG drops and eat 500 calories a day....I will bet that you will get the same results. I am coming from 20+ years of that exact same weight loss mentality. Sure you will drop a ton of weight and fast...However you will gain it all back once you start eating and you will be lucky not to gain that and more.

This time I am going a different route...Trying healthy food (still learning) and excersise. It seems to have worked for so many people I am willing to give that a shot :flowerforyou: With that said I would never bash anyone for the methods they choose to lose the weight. It is your body and your decision. Good Luck to you

Actually NO, just eating the 500 calories won't work. With using the HCG it makes your body burn the excess fat and keeps you from starving and being hungry due to the extra fat being burned for caloric consumption.

If the actual Protocol is done by the book, you will not gain the weight back as it steps you through specific phases as to add foods back in, in a particular fashion and order.

And for most people, once you are done with the 4 phases of the Protocol you will have lost weight and will want to continue eating CLEAN because that is what your body is used to.

For many of the ladies on this site that has used to HCG and lost the weight, they are now whole and clean food eaters and keeping the weight off.

Nothing unhealthy about that.

Grokette

Personally, I like the HCG Protocol for more than losing the weight.

I was diagnosed with a pituitary tumor, adrenal gland fatigue and many female hormone issues and when I got started I hadn't had a monthly cycle in almost a year. And on top of this I am Hypo-thyroid. My endocrine system is a mess.

My doctor prescribed the HCG injections, I went to the natural pharmacy in St Louis and picked up the HCG and the mixing kit, etc...

I got started on Phase 1 and then transitiioned over to Phase 2 (the 500 calorie part). With in 10 days of this plan I got my first cycle in almost a year. I have also started getting monthly cycles ever since. My hormone levels are a lot better than they were and I am on the lowest dose of Armour Thyroid. And the best news is, the pituitary tumor has shrunk a bit on its own.......

The 38 pounds lost is just an added benefit.

So YES, for people that are morbidly obese, have multiple Endocrine issues (aka thyroid, diabetes, hormone imbalances), etc this plan helps line the body out without having to have surgery and stuff.

I don't think it is really for the person that has 30 or less pounds to lose, but that is my own opinion.

It has its place in this world and on this site and is helping people - so please respect those that are on it.

Until you walk a mile in my shoes or anyone elses - Please DON'T JUDGE.

kwardklinck

I'd like to know if people actually maintain their astounding weight loss. I don't actually think it's the HCG that causes it. These people are eating 500 calories a day while doing the injections. It would be good to hear from those about it a year after they lost all that weight.
I really don't think I could do the 500 cal per day thing. I would pass out from low blood sugar.

Grokette

I'd like to know if people actually maintain their astounding weight loss. I don't actually think it's the HCG that causes it. These people are eating 500 calories a day while doing the injections. It would be good to hear from those about it a year after they lost all that weight.
I really don't think I could do the 500 cal per day thing. I would pass out from low blood sugar.

I am almost at the 6 month mark and I have maintained the weight loss since last October.

I can rest assure you without the HCG, NO one would be able to stick to this plan with the 500 calories.

I am back on my Primal plan and starting to lose some weight this way also, so I should be way smaller by October and be almost at my goal.

PJilly

What I am most curious about is how much of the weight lost is fat? That's my concern with any significant rapid weight loss. I've read that the HCG is supposed to help burn predominantly fat. I've also read that the results from a VLCD are no different with or without HCG. Is anyone here aware of any unbiased reviews/studies that shed some light on this?

That_Girl

How does it help you lose weight?
The only times I had HCG in my system was when I was pregnant and I gained a TON of weight! LOL! :laugh:

More power to y'all, but it doesn't sound like it's for me. And who do they get this HCG hormone from, is it synthetic? Even more reason to stay away.

Grokette

How does it help you lose weight?
The only times I had HCG in my system was when I was pregnant and I gained a TON of weight! LOL! :laugh:

More power to y'all, but it doesn't sound like it's for me. And who do they get this HCG hormone from, is it synthetic? Even more reason to stay away.

The food list listed in the Protocol Manuscript along with the HCG causes your body to burn fat, therefore you will lose weight.

It is a known fact that many pregnant women that EAT nautral and whole foods often lose weight when they are first pregnant, than to gain.

The plan offers only meat, veggies and fruit and I bet you were not only eating those items when you were pregnant.

Also, it is not synthetic if you are taking the injections. It is secreted from pregnant women's urine. So, it is natural.

Grokette

What I am most curious about is how much of the weight lost is fat? That's my concern with any significant rapid weight loss. I've read that the HCG is supposed to help burn predominantly fat. I've also read that the results from a VLCD are no different with or without HCG. Is anyone here aware of any unbiased reviews/studies that shed some light on this?

The difference in doing a VLCD with or without HCG is if you attempt a VLCD without the HCG you will lose mucle and little fat. Using the HCG, you will lose predominantly FAT!..

jknops2

Wikipedia

Weight loss A controversial usage of hCG is as an adjunct to the British endocrinologist A.T.W. Simeons' ultra-low-calorie weight-loss diet[13] (less than 500 calories).[14] Simeons, while studying pregnant women in India on a calorie-deficient diet, and “fat boys” with pituitary problems (Frölich's syndrome) treated with low-dose hCG, claimed that both lost fat rather than lean (muscle) tissue. He reasoned that hCG must be programming the hypothalamus to do this in the former cases in order to protect the developing fetus by promoting mobilization and consumption of abnormal, excessive adipose deposits. Simeons, practicing at Salvator Mundi International Hospital in Rome, Italy, recommended low-dose daily hCG injections (125 IU) in combination with a customized ultra-low-calorie (500 cal/day, high-protein, low-carbohydrate/fat) diet loss of adipose tissue without loss of lean tissue. After Simeons’ death, the diet started to spread to specialized centers and via popularization by individuals, such as the controversial author Kevin Trudeau, famous for promotion of alternative therapies and treatments.

The controversy proceeds from warnings by the Journal of the American Medical Association[15] and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition[16] that hCG is neither safe,[15] nor effective as a weight-loss aid.[17]

A meta analysis found that studies supporting hCG for weight loss were of poor methodological quality and concluded that "there is no scientific evidence that HCG is effective in the treatment of obesity; it does not bring about weight-loss or fat-redistribution, nor does it reduce hunger or induce a feeling of well-being".[18]



Not a good idea, likely useless and who knows what side effects it has, as you can read above.

Grokette

Ok, guys - Here is one person that has done both low carb and the HCG plan and is now a competing body builder.

She is proof of HCG working. I don't think it was muscle loss here..................

http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/main-lowcarb-lobby/634150-before-after-pictures.html

PJilly

Ok, guys - Here is one person that has done both low carb and the HCG plan and is now a competing body builder.

She is proof of HCG working. I don't think it was muscle loss here..................

http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/main-lowcarb-lobby/634150-before-after-pictures.html

"You are not logged in or you do not have permission to access this page." :frown:

That_Girl

How does it help you lose weight?
The only times I had HCG in my system was when I was pregnant and I gained a TON of weight! LOL! :laugh:

More power to y'all, but it doesn't sound like it's for me. And who do they get this HCG hormone from, is it synthetic? Even more reason to stay away.

The food list listed in the Protocol Manuscript along with the HCG causes your body to burn fat, therefore you will lose weight.

It is a known fact that many pregnant women that EAT nautral and whole foods often lose weight when they are first pregnant, than to gain.

The plan offers only meat, veggies and fruit and I bet you were not only eating those items when you were pregnant.

Also, it is not synthetic if you are taking the injections. It is secreted from pregnant women's urine. So, it is natural.

I was eating what I normally eat and I gained weight. Try not to presume anything about me.

It's a known fact that women in early pregnancy lose weight? Well, it's not that well known. Most of my friends' first symptom of pregnancy was gaining a little bit of weight. O_o

It's taken from women's urine? Yea. No thanks. But if it's working for others, then go for it!

Does the HCG cause any side effects? I'm only asking because the only times I've had it in my system, a baby was the side effect LOL!

Grokette

Ok, guys - Here is one person that has done both low carb and the HCG plan and is now a competing body builder.

She is proof of HCG working. I don't think it was muscle loss here..................

http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/main-lowcarb-lobby/634150-before-after-pictures.html

"You are not logged in or you do not have permission to access this page." :frown:

Let me see if I can find some pics of her that will allow you to see her, she looks AMAZING!!!


http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/blogs/afuentes/5615-before-after-pictures.html