Although most people had never heard of Hoodia 10 years ago, there is one group of people who have been using it for many generations, the San Bushmen who live in Africa's Kalahari Desert. These people, who live in one of Earth's hottest, driest regions, learned long ago that if they ate a particular cactus plant, they could go for long periods of time without craving food or water. That cactus plant is now known as Hoodia gordonii.
Scientists who studied Hoodia concluded that it works by stimulating the part of the brain that ordinarily responds by telling a person they are full after eating a big meal. But Hoodia contains a molecule that seems to be about 10,000 times as effective as glucose in triggering the mid-brain. Therefore, it "tricks" the brain into believing the stomach is full, so people who use Hoodia do not feel so hungry.
But the benefits of Hoodia are not restricted solely to helping people lose weight. Harvesting the Hoodia gordonii plant on San land is also bringing a much-needed financial boost to these poor, oppressed native people. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) requires that the Bushmen must be paid royalties on any Hoodia harvested in the Kalahari Desert.
