For thousands of years, this succulent has been steadily growing in the arid Kalahari Desert. Recently in 2004 Hoodia Gordonii has become a superstar by virtue of its natural appetite suppressing properties. In a world whose waistline is continually expanding, Hoodia Gordonii rates Prime Time.

The San tribe of the Kalahari have long understood the properties of Hoodia Gordonii where the internal stem is chewed to fend off hunger during their prolonged hunting trips. The active ingredient in Hoodia Gordonii is a molecule known as P57 was patented in 1996 and became the focus of study by the South African CSIR. (Council for Scientific and Industrial Affairs).

This is one of the reasons why many have come to patronize Hoodia Gordonii or the most famous "appetite suppressant" in America these days. Hoodia Gordonii comes from an extract of a plant that looks almost like a cactus and that only matures in Southern Africa. The product is known to work naturally with almost no negative side effects. Its popularity was boosted significantly after it was featured in various television shows, such as CBS60, ABS, BBC, NBC Today, CNN and other print and electronic magazines world wide.

However, along with its growing popularity is the fact that such product is expensive and difficult to find, particularly as it takes five to seven years to develop. This is what pushed others to manufacture and sell fake diluted Hoodia Gordonii products just to meet its many avid consumers' needs. Recently, many online websites have announced that there has been a spread of 50% percent of weight loss products that claim they have Hoodia when, in fact, they have the fake, diluted versions. Because of the fear that these fake products would deliver dangerous side effects and discredit the authentic Hoodia Gordonii product, Prime Life Nutriceuticals, the original maker of Hoodia Gordonii weight loss pills, have declared a certification program where consumers can test if the Hoodia Gordoni they have purchased is real.

One of the preeminent herbal testing facilities in the U.S., the Alchemist Pharmaceuticals, was contacted in order to help verify the presence of real Hoodia. Analysis showed that there are several ways to detect a fake Hoodia Gordonii.

The first and most obvious way of knowing if your Hoodia is fake is to check if the product's seal has an authenticated Lot Number, which means that it has undergone the test in the Independent Lab Report done by the Alchemist Pharmaceuticals. Besides that, also check if the premium products report date is within six months after purchase.

The San put forward a statement through a prominent lawyer they had engaged that they were not averse to assisting the Western World in developing medical treatments using their knowledge but they were not going to be the product of "Bio Piracy" for the sake of weight loss products and sit back and do nothing.

At this time so as to avoid embarrassment the CSIR worked out a deal with the San which entitled the San to a percentage of the profits from the marketing of Hoodia Gordonii. The upshot of all this is that the Hoodia Gordonii plant is a protected plant. It may only be harvested from the Kalahari by people who live there. A very small number of companies have been granted a license for harvesting.