HCG-- What's all the hype?

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mrssavvysteve
mrssavvysteve Posts: 239 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Has anyone heard of this? I'm sure that there is a catch as always with anything that sounds too good to be true! :) BUT I wanted to see if anyone knew of anyone personally that has tried it?

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  • NightOwl1
    NightOwl1 Posts: 881 Member
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    Everything I've heard about it from the other threads here is that it leads to major rapid weight loss, but almost everyone who uses it immediately puts back on all the weight after they stop. That and It causes people some pretty serious health problems.

    At the end of the day, watching what you eat and counting calories are the only true way to lose weight healthily and keep it off.
  • watkinsc
    watkinsc Posts: 177 Member
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    I've read about it a bit, and to be honest, it seems scarey has hell to mess with hormones like that. Not sure if there are long term studies on it or not yet. Most of the literature I have read includes the follow up, that once the treatment had stopped, the weight came back. Probably because the people did not have to change their lifestyles or eating habits.
  • sunset19
    sunset19 Posts: 22 Member
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    The fine print.... you have to only consume 500 calories per day for it to "work". Therefore, it doesn't work! You lose weight because you're starving yourself. It's dangerous, creepy and all hype.
  • dsmaddox
    dsmaddox Posts: 12
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    Ive used it. Started in August 2010 and stayed on it for 6 weeks. It gave me a large jump start to dieting. I lost 56 lbs in 6 weeks. I have since lost 109 lbs total. FWIW, my family Doctor put me on the HCG diet and monitored my health and blood work.
  • StephieAmber
    StephieAmber Posts: 83
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    HCG? As in human chorionic gonadotropin? It's a diet??? I thought it was how you could tell if someone was preggers or not.
  • ouryear002
    ouryear002 Posts: 325 Member
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    HCG? As in human chorionic gonadotropin? It's a diet??? I thought it was how you could tell if someone was preggers or not.

    It's the same hormone. I wonder if you test positive on a pregger test while you are on it?
  • carl1738
    carl1738 Posts: 444 Member
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    It's a scam. You go on a 500 calorie a day diet while getting injections of a hormone derived from pregnant womens' urine. You do lose weight (because you're on such a calorie restricted diet) but the weight piles back on when you actually start eating like a human being again because your body has become used to eating so little. Google it. I'm sure you'll find people that will tell you it works, but the weight won't stay off. Oh, and the hormone that you get injected with was proven to be ineffective for weight loss back in the '70's.
  • ivyjbres
    ivyjbres Posts: 612 Member
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    As far as I've read, heard from others, what I figure is its like chemically induced pregorexia. They inject you with pregnancy hormones, which changes when, where and how your body uses the nutrients it gets. Then they drastically reduce calories. When you are pregnant, and not eating very much, your body will tear itself down to conserve energy to feed the growing baby. The hormones "fool" your body into behaving the same way.

    The biggest problems, it doesn't teach you to change your eating habits, it doesn't necessarily include working out, and most dangerously, if you've ever had pregnancy complications (or complications with BC, or if you have PCOD, or endometriosis, or any other litany of "female" issues, or if anyone in your immidiate family does) hormones that mimic pregnancy could be very, very bad for you.
  • narrowdoor
    narrowdoor Posts: 28 Member
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    From what I can gather, Basically you ingest a hormone that is similar to one a woman produces while pregnant...This hormone helps your body burn fat as opposed to muscle in starvation mode. You cut your calories way down, to like 500 per day, and end result is weight loss with the focus on fat loss....Problem being that your body should only have this hormone going through it if you are pregnant. I am no doctor, but it is never a good thing to put hormones in your body unless they belong there and are missing and even then under strict supervision.....Even medicine has had a failry bad track record with hormones.

    My cousin (50) was on this diet for about 3 weeks (medically supervised) and went straight into full blown menopause, with constant bleeding and had to have a hysterectomy because of it. I know of other, younger women who have done it and had success. But as with any "medication" we don't know the long term effects for well, a long time.

    I would agree with the prior posting, cut back, exercise more and reach for a healthy lifestyle. Quick fixes generally are not very good because we don't develop good habits that we can live with.

    Blessings & best wishes on your weight loss journey!!
  • dsmaddox
    dsmaddox Posts: 12
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    HCG? As in human chorionic gonadotropin? It's a diet??? I thought it was how you could tell if someone was preggers or not.

    Same thing. The hormone tells the body to feed the fetus by any means necessary (i.e. break down fat stores to feed baby).

    It works, but some people don't like the idea of it or the calorie count. My wife and some friends thought I was crazy until they saw me loosing weight like crazy. Then they told me I would gain it all back. So far Ive lost 50 lbs while OFF the HCG diet. The diet works but if you don't change your lifestyle after you come off the diet you will gain the weight back - but thats true with all diets.
  • ObviousIndigo
    ObviousIndigo Posts: 382 Member
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    I have a friend who is on it. She started in October and has lost just over 50lbs. I know this sounds like a fantastic weight loss but it is in no way shape or form something that you can keep up for the rest of your life. She is eating 500 calories a day and now when I see her she does not look healthy! Her skin has a greyish tone to it and it just hangs but in a weird way. Her face has no glow to it and she looks very pale! She has been trying to get me to go on it but it goes against everything that I believe in ( as I am studying to become a nutritionist) I am glad that I haven't gone on it for 3 reasons
    1) messing with hormones is NEVER a good idea... worries me for the future
    2) I have since heard that people are putting all the weight back on plus some...in fact she said over christmas she ate a couple things she shouldn't have and gained 4lbs
    3) I want a lifestyle change not a quick fix.

    Plus as an added thought... I want more variety than 11 specific foods to eat.
  • julevasquez
    julevasquez Posts: 12 Member
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    The fine print.... you have to only consume 500 calories per day for it to "work". Therefore, it doesn't work! You lose weight because you're starving yourself. It's dangerous, creepy and all hype.

    I agree. I worked with a woman that was using it. She was on edge and lashed out at people while she was on it. I wouldn't take it.
  • watkinsc
    watkinsc Posts: 177 Member
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    I have a friend who is on it. She started in October and has lost just over 50lbs. I know this sounds like a fantastic weight loss but it is in no way shape or form something that you can keep up for the rest of your life. She is eating 500 calories a day and now when I see her she does not look healthy! Her skin has a greyish tone to it and it just hangs but in a weird way. Her face has no glow to it and she looks very pale! She has been trying to get me to go on it but it goes against everything that I believe in ( as I am studying to become a nutritionist) I am glad that I haven't gone on it for 3 reasons
    1) messing with hormones is NEVER a good idea... worries me for the future
    2) I have since heard that people are putting all the weight back on plus some...in fact she said over christmas she ate a couple things she shouldn't have and gained 4lbs
    3) I want a lifestyle change not a quick fix.

    Plus as an added thought... I want more variety than 11 specific foods to eat.

    Wow, 11 specfic foods! And 500 cals.. This is definately not for the average dieter. Why bother with the hormones, that method of starvation would be enough on it's own to drop a large amount of weight. Sounds so scarey to me.
  • brandygburke
    brandygburke Posts: 48 Member
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    Used it - lost weight - gained it all back, the whole time i was on it I felt dizzy and sick, made everything awful. You burn like you're pregnant but eat like a bird - Missed two periods - hormones all jacked up - nasty stuff. I have friends who have done great things to their body sizes with it, but I'd never touch it again, best $100 I ever spent to learn what NOT to do to myself - I was just a mess. If you can do it - hey, good job, but for many bodies (mine included) it literally feels like death!
  • mfkfoster
    mfkfoster Posts: 331 Member
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    I've been on many crazy diets. I've been overweight it feels like my entire life. I did the grapefruit diet, the cabbage soup diet, the vinegar and garlic tea diet, you name it I've done it, even weight watchers and nutisystem. What have I learned? I've learned that fad diets don't work. Period. End of story. You have to change your life style and eat right. I started doing this in November of last year and I'm continueing to do it. I'm not starving myself or depriving myself of anything. It's not healthy. So what if the weight comes off slowly, at least it's coming off. I've also learned to move my body and the weight comes off faster naturally.
    Don't go crazy over fad diets, in the end they never work for the long term and you hurting yourself.

    Good luck!

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