I don't understand something about HcG diet and Medifast die

callmestephanie

I'm rather confused. A few other weight loss boards have banned talk about the HcG diet (namely 2FatChicks) yet haven't banned Medifast (again, 2fc). I don't understand the difference between the two. They both restrict calories to around 500-750cals (I don't know much about the Medifast diet, only know about the HcG since I was going to do it).

What makes Medifast better than HcG? Medifast is soooooo expensive and the food doesn't look very good. I could make the same things at home. HcG is much cheaper and allows me to make my own food. So... I don't understand. Help? Please and thanks.

LovingLisa2012

we can't talk about hcg on here either (this thread will eventually be locked)
sorry i couldn't help

mallory3411

They are both incredibly unhealthy and harmful.

HCG has been pulled from the market (the injections anyways, they still sell the drops for some unknown stupid reason)... might be a reason why.

ironanimal

HCG is illegal in a lot of places now, so perhaps that's why. Both are absolute crap and will do nothing beneficial for you in the long-term.

CindyBretta

Good luck with your weight loss goals, but the HCG diet is not a safe way to jump start the process. I know people that tried it and had horrible experiences. Yes, they lost weight fast, but they were tired and sick most of the time they were on 500 calories, and then when they started eating in a normal, healthy calorie range again, they regained rapidly -- even though they were eating healthy and exercising. So basically, it's just another yo yo fad diet, but more dangerous than most because of the extremely low calorie limitations.

The only reason people lose weight on that plan is you are only allowed to eat 500 calories a day. HCG has been scientifically proven to do NOTHING to help with weight loss or to make it safe to eat only 500 calories a day. It will not protect muscle, reset your metabolism or do anything else the snake oil salesmen that sell it claim. Dr. Simeons was a quack doctor. His "HCG protocol" has absolutely NO scientific backing and is not worth risking your health on.

The HCG diet has been studied by many scientific organizations, and they all concluded that HCG, even the "real" injectable version, is no more effective than a placebo, and eating only 500 calories a day for weeks, as recommended by that plan, can cause more health problems than it solves.

The MFP moderators have been cautioning members against attempting that diet because it is so dangerous.

Please read the articles on these websites before you try HCG. I know some people that put their faith in the HCG diet, and became very ill from malnutrition as a result. Then they regained more weight than they lost. Now they wish they never heard of HCG.

The Government is now in the process of getting all that fraudulent stuff off the market, and it's about time!

http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm281333.htm

http://www.myhealthnewsdaily.com/hcg-diet-dangerous-1428

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hcg-diet/AN02091

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/truth-about-hcg-for-weight-loss

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/weight-loss-cure-dont-want-you-to-know

http://www.dietscam.org/reports/hcg.shtml

http://www.tucsonmedical.com/pages/hcg.php

lizard053

My doctor had a few of her nurses on the HCG diet for a while. As far as I know she never recommended it to a patient because it just didn't work any better than the plan she already uses. The one I'm on is a lot like the medifast only way cheaper. The key with all these diets is having consistent doctor supervision, so they can intervene if something goes wrong. They also ensure your heart is healthy enough to do the diet. My shakes/bars/meals are about $2 a meal, which is about what I'd be paying anyway, plus a dinner. I've upped my calories from the 700-800 she wanted me on because I get too tired on that few.

CindyBretta

I don't know a lot about the Medifast plan, but besides the extremely low calories, one of the HUGE problems with the HCG diet is the fact that it is promoted on claims that scientists have proven not to be true. There is absolutely NO scientific evidence that HCG does ANYTHING for weigh loss. It does not make it safe to eat so little food, it does not spare muscle and force your body to live on only fat, it does not reset your metabolism, or anything else the snake oil salesmen (and women) that promote the HCG diet claim.

http://www.dietscam.org/reports/hcg.shtml

On top of that, if people are doing the HCG diet with injections of HCG, as opposed to the homeopathic drops, there are dangers from injecting the HCG hormone.

Any way you look at it, the HCG diet is a dangerous idea. The weight will come back once you start eating in a safe calorie range again, and you will have starved on 500 calories a week for nothing.

callmestephanie

Oh ok, I didn't know that. My aunt did it and sung praises so I was considering it.

So, how is Medifast safe then, if other low cal diets aren't? Don't talk about the HCG anymore (that's out the window), hopefully it won't get locked haha

astrampe

The key with all these diets is having consistent doctor supervision, so they can intervene if something goes wrong. They also ensure your heart is healthy enough to do the diet.

This just makes me shake my head...... Your heart should be healthy enough to do the diet???:noway: :frown: My heart is BEING KEPT HEALTHY THROUGH my diet and exercise - not having serious enough strain put on it to require full time medical supervision....:drinker:
Good luck anyways....

Steven

Dear Posters,

MyFitnessPal strongly recommends that our users follow the calorie guidelines automatically assigned by our site, unless they are under the direct supervision of a doctor. We are currently reviewing the medical literature on the HCG/500 calorie diet and reserve the right to moderate against discussions of this diet at any time in the future.

For the time being, HCG discussions remain an option for members in private Groups. Please remember that even in Groups, all site wide rules must be correctly moderated, or the Group runs the risk of deletion. Specifically, endorsement of purchasing prescription supplements or medications without a prescription is in violation of the MyFitnessPal posting guidelines, which can be reviewed here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/welcome/guidelines

Thank you all for your concern. We're definitely looking closely at this issue.