HCG diet??

mjgregg12

DIET. That's the key word. Weight loss and healthy living is a lifestyle change, not a diet.
And I agree, what kind of energy do you get when you only consume 500 calories a day?

H_Factor

Also, again, if you KNEW the diet. The pill releases about 1400 calories into your body. it goes after your stored fat and breaks it down into fuel for your body. didnt know that did you?! maybe some people should read up on the diet before they put it down. You get plenty of food...its just LOW calorie food. And its not like you're eating these low calories for life. Isnt these boards for POSITIVE influence. IF you dont like the HCG diet then why write on the posting. Go write on your board with the diet your doing and let us HCG people talk about the diet without you people being negative. OBVIOUSLY those of us on the diet have done WAY more research on the product then you have.

I love how HCG fanatics continue to reinforce the point I made earlier...

I'm not a fan of the HCG diet and I don't ever plan to try it. HOWEVER, I really don't get all of the bashing that this diet receives from folks on MFP. I have read enough posts to see that the HCG diet is working for more than a handful of people. I have also read from folks on the HCG diet about experiences they have had eating very low calorie with and without HCG to suggest that HCG does what it says it does.

While, intuitively, for those of us on a healthy lifestyle plan, eating 500 calories/day doesn't seem like the best way to lose weight or get healthy....those who haven't tried HCG shouldn't really be bashing it as much as I see it being bashed. For some folks, HCG might be the only thing they can mentally/physically succeed at. While I certainly hope they learn to eat healthy without HCG, I'm not going to bash folks for making an effort to improve their health.

Sooooo....for those of you currently enjoying success on HCG, congrats. please make sure you research ways to transition from HCG to a healthy nutrition plan for whenever you are ready to transition.

annnnnnddddd...for those of us not doing HCG and those of you who believe it is the devil's plan, please cut some folks some slack.

tjnahm

My wife and I did a 38 (IIRC) day cycle of Rx HCG shots to jumpstart our weight loss. I lost 41 pounds in 38 days, my wife lost 25-26. At the time I thought it was a great plan and we both planned on continuing a second or even third round for future losses once the needed waiting time between rounds was met.

Then I started getting more irritated then ever before, on a daily basis...

Then I started feeling mentally fatigued every day...

Then I read more about it and educated myself...

Then I found Primal / Paleo lifestyles...

Then my wife started experiencing hair loss as a known result of HCG...

Then we resolved never to touch it again and we now lose weight the good old fashioned way. Lifestyle change involving new foods and exercises.

mjgregg12

I just thought of something. Any fad diet has been proven not to work. Look at Tommy Lasorda and Slimfast, or even Oprah with her shakes. She is a huge advocate of healthy eating and activity. I guess I don't get the fad diet thing, but like I said, 500 calories sounds dangerous to me.

Elizabeth_C34

For those of you who are interested, here's a selection of articles on HCG:

http://www.dietscam.org/reports/hcg.shtml
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1365103/?tool=pmcentrez
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6340811
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/321723
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/792477

Just FYI, in January 2011, the FDA issued a statement declaring that not only was HCG ineffective as a weight loss supplement but it is no longer considered a homeopathic drug and was illegal in all but injectible forms. Oral forms of HCG have been proven to be completely ineffective as HCG is broken down nearly immediately after reaching the gut. Furthermore, the FDA has still not authorized injectible HCG as a weight loss protocol.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/49921/
http://www.ajcn.org/content/29/9/940.full.pdf

CaptainGordo

For those of you who are interested, here's a selection of articles on HCG:

http://www.dietscam.org/reports/hcg.shtml
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1365103/?tool=pmcentrez
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6340811
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/321723
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/792477

Just FYI, in January 2011, the FDA issued a statement declaring that not only was HCG ineffective as a weight loss supplement but it is no longer considered a homeopathic drug and was illegal in all but injectible forms. Oral forms of HCG have been proven to be completely ineffective as HCG is broken down nearly immediately after reaching the gut. Furthermore, the FDA has still not authorized injectible HCG as a weight loss protocol.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/49921/
http://www.ajcn.org/content/29/9/940.full.pdf

Sadly, I don't think that scientific evidence will be the nail in this debate's coffin.

(cue the "doctors and the gov't are out to kill you" crowd)

Elizabeth_C34

For those of you who are interested, here's a selection of articles on HCG:

http://www.dietscam.org/reports/hcg.shtml
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1365103/?tool=pmcentrez
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6340811
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/321723
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/792477

Just FYI, in January 2011, the FDA issued a statement declaring that not only was HCG ineffective as a weight loss supplement but it is no longer considered a homeopathic drug and was illegal in all but injectible forms. Oral forms of HCG have been proven to be completely ineffective as HCG is broken down nearly immediately after reaching the gut. Furthermore, the FDA has still not authorized injectible HCG as a weight loss protocol.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/49921/
http://www.ajcn.org/content/29/9/940.full.pdf

Sadly, I don't think that scientific evidence will be the nail in this debate's coffin.

(cue the "doctors and the gov't are out to kill you" crowd)

Ah well. I gave it my best shot!

H_Factor

I just thought of something. Any fad diet has been proven not to work. Look at Tommy Lasorda and Slimfast, or even Oprah with her shakes. She is a huge advocate of healthy eating and activity. I guess I don't get the fad diet thing, but like I said, 500 calories sounds dangerous to me.

this isn't really true. fad diets work for as long as people follow them. the reason people on fad diets fail is because the diets are difficult to follow and people fall off the wagon.

and, really, its almost just as difficult to follow a healthy lifestyle plan. there are tons of people who unfortunately fail at that as well. does that make the healthy lifestyle plan a failure? I don't think so.

again, I think its best to try to learn how to eat correctly and begin some form of exercise. however, I'm not going to that other diets don't work. any nutrition plan (call it a diet or a lifestyle) is going to fail if the person doing it isn't mentally strong enough...doesn't have sufficient motivations and things in place to overcome mental obstacles.

Schwiggs

I just thought of something. Any fad diet has been proven not to work. Look at Tommy Lasorda and Slimfast, or even Oprah with her shakes. She is a huge advocate of healthy eating and activity. I guess I don't get the fad diet thing, but like I said, 500 calories sounds dangerous to me.

this isn't really true. fad diets work for as long as people follow them. the reason people on fad diets fail is because the diets are difficult to follow and people fall off the wagon.

and, really, its almost just as difficult to follow a healthy lifestyle plan. there are tons of people who unfortunately fail at that as well. does that make the healthy lifestyle plan a failure? I don't think so.

again, I think its best to try to learn how to eat correctly and begin some form of exercise. however, I'm not going to that other diets don't work. any nutrition plan (call it a diet or a lifestyle) is going to fail if the person doing it isn't mentally strong enough...doesn't have sufficient motivations and things in place to overcome mental obstacles.

The point is that most fad diets are impossible to follow in the long term, and also make people way more obsessive than hey really should be about trying to get healthy and lose weight. Not to mention the price of them is ridiculous.

Also, a diet (such as HCG) that puts you on a VLCD with no doctor supervision and also tries to tout a homeopathic method (homeopathy is bull****. If you think otherwise, then please go back to the dark ages) isn't effective.

Contrarian

Roadhouse!

psuLemon

Also, again, if you KNEW the diet. The pill releases about 1400 calories into your body. it goes after your stored fat and breaks it down into fuel for your body. didnt know that did you?! maybe some people should read up on the diet before they put it down. You get plenty of food...its just LOW calorie food. And its not like you're eating these low calories for life. Isnt these boards for POSITIVE influence. IF you dont like the HCG diet then why write on the posting. Go write on your board with the diet your doing and let us HCG people talk about the diet without you people being negative. OBVIOUSLY those of us on the diet have done WAY more research on the product then you have.

I completely understand how hcg works, i understand the means on how it accomplishes "sucess". Maybe if you want to educate yourself thrn you should research how much protein it takes to increase muscle mass or even maintain lbm. Its. 5 - 1 g per lean body mass. So @ 200 lbs and 20% body fat that means a person needs 80-160g of protein. How you gonna get that with 500 calories? Also your magic pill doesnt give you 1400 calories and if you say it does provide proof.

Next if you really think it works measure your body fat before and after. See how it depletes muslce mass which kills your metabolism and reduces protection to vital organs.

ChristinaK42

I would have to agree. Do it the old fashioned way and the safe way. I'll stick to what I'm doing instead. really haven't heard much good about the HCG diet.

radradradradrad

NO! BAD!

radradradradrad

i have a friend that did it. she lost 10 lb doing it.. however when she stopped taking the supplement, she gained it all back, and 5 pounds extra.

Same thing happened to a girl at my work. You could see in her face daily how miserable she was. Headaches and extreme lethargy. I was sad for her. And then, like you said your friend did, I'm pretty sure she gained the 15 lbs she lost back and then 5 more.
Quick fixes are NEVER the answer!

tigersword

peer reviewed? I'm on the diet...i have more energy then i have in years! that says something!! I feel better about myself, i'm NOT hungry! I think thats all i need. I don't feel sick or pains as some people have mentioned. People just dont know how to follow directions. Theres so much more to the diet then you or any of the critics on here even know. its ok tho...i'll be the one losing the weight!

Funny, I've lost a ton of weight, have more energy than I've had in years, and more strength than I've ever had. And I've accomplished this in 5 months and eating 1800-2500 calories a day. I get to go out to eat, I can run a 5k, help my family move, chase my daughter around, and do anything I want and eat anything I want.

I'm sorry the only way that you'll "be the one losing weight," is to be suckered into a scam diet that has been shown over and over again to be no more effective than following the same strict diet without ingesting some disgusting hormone.