HCG, which is derived from the urine of pregnant women, tricks the body into a hormonal state that simulates actual pregnancy. The purpose of this is to increase fat burn, as it occurs naturally during pregnancy when the expecting mother passes calories on to the fetus.
The concept is by no means new. As far back as in the 1950s, a doctor in Rome, Italy, reported to have treated more than 500 patients with the hCG hormone. Others followed suit. A major study, which was conducted in 1995 by a Dutch team of researchers and published in The British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, was inconclusive. So far, there is still no definite consensus among the experts over the effectiveness of hCG as a weight loss drug.
What is commonly acknowledged, however, is that the hormonal manipulation by itself does not cause weight loss. In fact, the daily injections only work in combination with a near-starvation 500 calorie a day diet. The truly amazing part of the diet is not the actual weight loss but that the women who undergo the regimen typically don’t feel anywhere near as hungry or tired as they should.
And there seem to be even more advantages. Being able to reduce one’s calorie intake to such low levels does not only result in fast weight loss but also helps to eliminate old and often persistent fat stores, like around the belly, hips and thighs – something a lot of women find very desirable.
The Food and Drug Administration (F.D.A.) has recently issued warnings about using hCG for the purpose of weight loss, especially the varieties sold on the Internet from obscure sources. But the injectable form that can only be obtained by prescription for infertility treatment is F.D.A. approved and this loophole is obviously being widely exploited.
The treatment is not cheap. According to The New York Times (3/8/2011), doctors charge well over $1000 for an initial set up of an hCG program, which includes a physical exam, injection training and a month’s supply of hormones and syringes.
The potential health risks are not all clear at this point. Some experts have raised concerns over cardiovascular health effects. The nutritional impact of a 500 calorie diet is obviously worrisome as well. This diet basically takes its cues from anorexia.
Especially in times of intentional weight loss due to dieting, it is absolutely critical that the body receives enough essential nutrients to make up for the loss of food intake. With a diet that provides only a third to a quarter of a normal daily calorie supply, healthy eating habits can be hard to maintain.
I strongly agree with critics like Brittany Glassett, RD, who wrote in her article “The HCG Diet, Worst I’ve Ever Seen”:
“This is a semi-starvation diet and doesn’t provide adequate calories to support normal brain functions or muscle stores of glucose. Such calorie restrictions can trigger the body to significantly slow the metabolism in an effort to conserve calories to survive. The body will very quickly begin breaking down muscle as a source of energy. Semi-starvation also affects hormones and electrolytes in the body, […] which can have serious side effects, including heart arrhythmias and sudden death.”
It is obvious that people, especially women, will continue to look for quick weight loss solutions. Many traditional approaches to dieting seem no longer to work, at least not fast enough. The rapidly increasing demand for weight loss surgery speaks for itself. Still, I cannot think of a situation where manipulating hormones for the single purpose of speedy weight reduction would be justified. Those who seek hormonal treatments need to be aware that they are running the risk of interfering with multiple important body functions. As long as there are more traditional options to induce weight loss, they should be given preference.
Timi Gustafson R.D. is a clinical dietitian and author of the book “The Healthy Diner – How to Eat Right and Still Have Fun”.
