I think i may have a problem with food.

[FairChild]

I do think you are having some food related issuses. I am a bit concerned about how you are using food. I think you need some help concerning food, the nutrition aspect as well as the emotional portion.

[Guest TheLutheran]

. . . Now its gotten worse, i have a eating routine where, monday to friday i dont eat big meals so im always so weak, tired and hungry...but i resist the hunger and it goes away. And then it gets to saturday and literally i will wake up early, go on long walks, while eating HEAVILY, like this saturday i ate in the space of 5 hours:-

5 snickers bars

8 chocolate bread rolls

2 chocolate twists

1 bacon sandwich

a plate full of chips

6 crumpets

But after it i get really guilty and walk for hours and hours, usually 5-7 hours that day.

This also happens on sundays but i find it easier to resist because i know we are not to go to the shops on the sabbath day.

Please could someone give me help and advice on this . . .

Shaun~~

The eating/exercise pattern you described above is clearly eating disorder behavior. Don't be embarrassed or ashamed . . . boys, girls, men and women all over the world struggle with these issues.

Here in the States, we have the National Eating Disorder Association. Their website is National Eating Disorders Association. (I hope the link works.)

This is not something to take lightly but help is available. You're in my prayers.

[livy111us]

This is exactly what doctors will tell you NOT to do. This is dangerous and could cost you your life.

You won't lose any weight on this diet because of the Hcg...you'll lose weight because you are only consuming 500 calories per day (the average person requires about 2,000). This is essentially starving yourself. The problem is, your body will literally eat your muscle to feed itself when you do this, and not just your fat. This is a stupid stupid stupid thing to do. I don't think I stressed that enough. This is a STUPID thing to do.

Do not do this to yourself. This is extremely unhealthy and no credible doctor would ever recommend this. The best way to lose weight is what physicians have been recommending for years: increase your activity and reduce your intake of calories. Healthy weight loss consists of 2-3 pounds per week. Any more and you risk doing damage to your digestive, muscular, skeletal, and endocrine systems.

Miracle diets and fad diets are almost never what they are made out to be. Eat a balanced diet (balanced can mean over 3-4 days, not necessarily every day) and get plenty of exercise and you'll find yourself losing weight and improving your health.

Never, ever, ever take a diet pill or medicinal treatment without the supervision of your physician.

I recommend you talk to your physician, and you may also want to check out an LDS Addiction Recovery Program in your area.

Thank you for your concern MOE. The HCG diet was created by a physician and is prescribed by physicians (I went the cheap route though). The 500 calorie a day IS starving yourself and will be the hardest part of the diet, but you do not go into "starvation mode". That is where the HCG comes in. It doesn't let you go into starvation mode, so your body is forced to get it's energy from stored fats. That is why you have such a significant weight loss.

As for the extra pills, they are FDA approved and only bind to the fat in your food. They are not energy pills, or contain any dangerous drug. They to can be prescribed by your Doctor.

Edited June 15, 2009 by livy111us

[livy111us]

The product has been around for around 40 years I believe, but am not sure on how long it's been used as a diet product. So far, there have been no side effects, but who knows, Ephedra was "safe" for a while as well.

[Heavenguard]

Even if you would prefer not to see a doctor, you can get instead a trainer (at a/the gym) who will help you maximize your diet for your goals, or a nutritionist, a lifestyle counselor, or a sports medicine specialist, or naturopath.

It's not just about your weight. Your entire body needs to be well-balanced. You can't just cut calories and think you're doing your body a favour. You may be (probably) robbing yourself of important nutrients needed for your body to function as it should. And there's much more that you need than just what is on Nutrition Information labels. If your body isn't getting what it needs, even your metabolism will slow and be further detrimental to your weight loss/gain.

Eat small, balanced meals often - that is the BEST way to maintain your body. The best part is that healthy doesn't have to mean boring or gross. I had a barbecue with my friends last week, and it was probably the most delicious, yet healthiest barbecue I ever had. (Ie, not all heavy red meats.)

Chicken (havarti) cheese burgers with vegetable toppings

Spinach dip with flat bread

Grilled mussels topped with chopped tomatoes, cilantro, garlic, olive oil (this was so delicious)

Skewered shrimp with zucchini, peppers and mushrooms

Foil-wrapped baked potatoes

Try topping a salad with raspberry vinaigrette and real raspberries. That is so good.

You take yourself as a lover of food, but you're probably more actually a lover of eating. I used to enjoy eating the greasy and fattening foods with lots of heavy red meat when my metabolism could still keep up with it. But it slowed after I entered the 20s, and made me really disappointed that I couldn't eat like I used to. (My stomach just couldn't fit it all anymore.) And so, since then, I been eating lighter fare I find I enjoy much more delicious foods now, and no longer crave the unhealthy stuff. Change your menu a little, and you will find you will actually enjoy the food itself instead of just the act of eating. It's like doubling the enjoyment!

[Wingnut]

So when you make mistakes like candy bars and such, just pop a few extra.

As for the WoW, I would disagree it is against it. It definatly is not habit forming in any way.

I agree, but it would be quite a stretch to say that HCG is against the WoW.

Modern revelation (more modern than the initial Word of Wisdom revelation) tells us that the Word of Wisdom helps us avoid harmful habit-forming substances. While the hCG itself may not be addictive, the behavior you discuss is habit-forming. "...just pop a few extra..."? That is not a healthy lifestyle.

Thank you for your concern MOE. The HCG diet was created by a physician and is prescribed by physicians (I went the cheap route though). The 500 calorie a day IS starving yourself and will be the hardest part of the diet, but you do not go into "starvation mode". That is where the HCG comes in. It doesn't let you go into starvation mode, so your body is forced to get it's energy from stored fats. That is why you have such a significant weight loss.

As for the extra pills, they are FDA approved and only bind to the fat in your food. They are not energy pills, or contain any dangerous drug. They to can be prescribed by your Doctor.

The hCG diet was developed to treat adult obesity, not to be used as a dietary aid for everyone. Both the Journal of the American Medical Association and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition have warned that hCG is not safe and that it is ineffective as a weight-loss aid on its own.

[livy111us]

I feel a little bad that this thread is becoming about me, and not the original poster. I obvious hold different views than several of you here. I believe that science has made it possible for us to be healthier. It does not replace diet and excercise as noted before. I do not eat fast food, drink pop, eat beef, desserts, etc....and generally eat healthy. I run about 20 miles a week, do P90X several times a week, as well as lift weights on top of other active recreational sports. I am not using anything in place of the basics. I haven't read the Journals wingnut provided, but am curious as to the context. HCG would be ineffective on it's own because it is only a couple of weeks. If you do not implement a healthy lifestyle, you'll gain all your weight back. That is something I don't plan to do. Wingnut, I'd love to see the references to the articles and see what they have to say.

I also do not see ANY behavior that I've discussed as habit forming. Alli, the pills, are supposed to be taken with meals to bind to the fat. If you eat badly one day, you will need more Alli to stay on top of your fat content. I did not say that it is a free ticket to eat what you want because Alli will save you. That *may* be considered habit forming by some, but I don't see it that way. Do you think it would be healthier to take an FDA approved drug, or let your body absorb fat? To me, it seems obvious. Perhaps I'm a bit more liberal than others, but I think several people are making a big stink about nothing.

[MarginOfError]

I feel a little bad that this thread is becoming about me, and not the original poster. I obvious hold different views than several of you here. I believe that science has made it possible for us to be healthier. It does not replace diet and excercise as noted before. I do not eat fast food, drink pop, eat beef, desserts, etc....and generally eat healthy. I run about 20 miles a week, do P90X several times a week, as well as lift weights on top of other active recreational sports. I am not using anything in place of the basics. I haven't read the Journals wingnut provided, but am curious as to the context. HCG would be ineffective on it's own because it is only a couple of weeks. If you do not implement a healthy lifestyle, you'll gain all your weight back. That is something I don't plan to do. Wingnut, I'd love to see the references to the articles and see what they have to say.

I also do not see ANY behavior that I've discussed as habit forming. Alli, the pills, are supposed to be taken with meals to bind to the fat. If you eat badly one day, you will need more Alli to stay on top of your fat content. I did not say that it is a free ticket to eat what you want because Alli will save you. That *may* be considered habit forming by some, but I don't see it that way. Do you think it would be healthier to take an FDA approved drug, or let your body absorb fat? To me, it seems obvious. Perhaps I'm a bit more liberal than others, but I think several people are making a big stink about nothing.

Wingnut forwarded the references she found to me. She figured that, since I am the resident biostatistician, I might me the best suited to look at the merits of the research. Here is what I’ve come up with for the HCG diet.

First Source: Thomas Wadden, et al. "The Cambridge Diet: More Mayhem?" Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 250 (1983), 2833.

I have this coming on Interlibrary Loan. The abstract indicates that it discusses side effects to the HCG diet. While you may be correct about there being marginal muscle loss on this diet, research found that there were significant and damaging effects to proteins in the internal organs.

Second Source: Stein MR, Julis RE, Peck CC, Hinshaw W, Sawicki JE, Deller JJ (September 1976). "Ineffectiveness of human chorionic gonadotropin in weight reduction: a double-blind study". Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 29 (9): 940–8 (Get the pdf at http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/reprint/29/9/940.pdf)

From the article:

We attempted to answer one question in this study-is HCG an effective adjunct to a rigidly imposed dietary regimen for weight reduction? On the basis of our results, the answer is negative.

The milieu under which this program was administered to a highly motivated group of women proved effective in achieving the desired result-rapid weight reduction. In our clinical setting, however, HCG per se offered no advantage over placebo injections in regard to weight loss, distribution of fat lost, or hunger index during weight reduction

This study and five other double blinded studies found no difference between Hcg and placebo treatment groups for weight loss. The only study in which a significant difference was identified was in the study in which patients were poorly tracked and had multiple unexplained violations of protocol. That makes five studies that found hcg is useless in weight loss, which is probably why the American Medical Association does not recommend its practice.

Third Source: Greenway FL, Bray GA: Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) in the treatment of obesity-A critical assessment of the Simeons method. West J Med 127: 461-463, Dec 1977 (get the pdf at http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1237915&blobtype=pdf)

In this trial of HCG and its diluent as a placebo, there were no significant differences in the two groups other than the greater anxiety in the HCG group before treatment. It is clear that patients lost weight quite satisfactorily indicating a high degree of adherence to the 500 kilocalorie diet. The injections of HCG, however, provided no additional effects that could not be accounted for by the diet alone. We conclude, therefore, that HCG used in the manner prescribed by Simeons does not enhance the rate of weight loss, nor does it significantly reduce hunger or change the ratings of anxiety, hostility or depression.

Although a number of other studies using HCG in the treatment of obesity have been carried out, 'there appear to be only two that found HCG may be effective in treating obesity. The recent study by Stein and co-workers4 was designed in much the same manner as the present study, except that mood ratings were not examined. However, they reached the same conclusion.

With the now overwhelming body of evidence suggesting that HCG is no more effective than placebo in the treatment of obesity, it would seem that further efforts to perpetuate the Simeons method could only be financially motivated. Therefore, we feel that the 20 year history of the use of HCG in the treatment of obesity should come to an end because injections of placebo appear to be equally effective in all respects.'

Fourth Source: HCG Worthless as Weight-Loss Aid

Since 1975, the FDA has required that HCG carry the label

HCG has not been demonstrated to be effective adjunctive therapy in the treatment of obesity. There is no substantial evidence that it increases weight loss beyond that resulting from caloric restriction, that it causes a more attractive or "normal" distribution of fat, or that it decreases the hunger and discomfort associated with calorie-restricted diets.

Although the FDA does not prohibit the use of HCG as a weight loss treatment, it does require that all patients seeking this treatment be given the following warning:

THESE WEIGHT REDUCTION TREATMENTS INCLUDE THE INJECTION OF HCG, A DRUG WHICH HAS NOT BEEN APPROVED BY THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION AS SAFE AND EFFECTIVE IN THE TREATMENT OF OBSITY OR WEIGHT CONTROL. THERE IS NO SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE THAT HCG INCEASES WEIGHT LOSS BEYOND THAT RESULTING FROM CALORIC RESTRICTION, THAT IT CAUSES A MORE ATTRACTIVE OR "NORMAL" DISTRIBUTION OF FAT, OR THAT IT DECREASES THE HUNGER AND DISCOMFORT ASSOCIATED WITH CALORIE-RESTRICTIVE DIETS

Starting in the late 70’s HCG as a weight loss treatment nearly disappeared. It found a resurgence when author Kevin Trudeau wrote his book The Miracle Weight Cure “They” Don’t Want You to Know About. In this book, Trudeau claims that the HCG treatment was suppressed so that pharmaceutical companies could market their expensive weight loss drugs. There are two problems with that claim. First, pharmaceuticals stand to make a lot more money on drugs they don’t have to develop and test, and second, the claim was entirely false.

Looking at Trudreau’s history, however, no one should be too quick to believe anything he has to say (Kevin Trudeau - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). He has more background in billiards than he does in medicine, but he writes books as a self-proclaimed expert on alternative medicine. He has been charged and convicted of multiple larcenies and felonies, and was eventually put under court order not to promote products or services, or to write any books or publications that made false claims. He was held in contempt of that order when he published The Miracle Weight Cure “They” Don’t Want You to Know About. The guy is a total fraud.

In short, the HCG diet is considered by medical organizations to be extreme and ineffective. The HCG contributes nothing to weight loss, and it is merely the extreme reduction in calories that causes the weight to be lost. But this weight loss comes with damage to internal organs and is bad for your long term health. And recall that the Greenway study found that patients’ moods were not affected by the HCG.

[pam]

Try topping a salad with raspberry vinaigrette and real raspberries. That is so good.

Wow someone else that does this. I do this too when raspberries are in season here. I absolutely LOVE it.

[livy111us]

OK, now you are speaking my language. I'll look into it. I do, however, am weary to accept studies that are 30-40 years old. I'll see if I can find anything a little more recent.

Also, I would like to see something on what weight is lost between placebo and HCG injections. HCG claims to keep you from going into starvation mode and eating away muscle. If true, then the placebo weight loss would include fat and muscle, while the HCG would be just fat.

I forgot to add, one reference is wrong on HCG being banned in the US. It is not banned, but can be purchased, or prescribed by any Doctor, and is offered is many health clinics, supplement stores, etc...

Edited June 15, 2009 by livy111us

[livy111us]

Here is a newer study I found:

Female obese volunteers participating in a double blind study, and submitted to the administration of

an oral presentation of hCG plus a VLCD, decreased specific body circumferences and skinfold

thickness from conspicuous body areas more efficiently than Placebo+VLCD -treated subjects.

Since a significant fat proportion from total body fat is subcutaneously located (50 to 65 percent,

depending on sex and fat distribution), this hCG metabolic activity would result in a reduction of the

total body fat mass, the main cause for obesity. We suggested that the combination of a VLCD and

oral hCG could not only trigger clinically significant changes in subcutaneous fat stores but

simultaneously decrease body weight and modelate body contour.

2. hCG oral administration proved to be a safe and effective procedure on obese treated volunteers.

No side effects were observed in the course of the study. There are no reports in the literature

regarding this administration route to compare our findings.

3. Compared to placebo treated subjects, volunteers managed with an oral

administration of hCG coped more efficiently with daily irritating situations, were in a better mood,

and handled home conflicts without stepping up family discussions.

This study appears to contradict former conclusions on the issue of hCG and obesity. We attribute those

differences to a different approach, including variables not assessed in former publications.

UTILITY OF AN ORAL PRESENTATION OF hCG (human Choriogonadotropin ...-

As always, there is contradicting studies in scientific papers. I'll let you know how I fare.

[Guest SisterofJared]

My best dieting success has come when I eat raw. The goal is to have 80-100% of your food in uncooked fruits & veggies. Nuts are also used... but they should be raw nuts, not roasted.

The benefit of this diet is nutrition. Enzymes are destroyed by heat, so if you eat your food uncooked, you will get all the enzymes. For instance, a raw apple pie has about 10 times as many nutrients as a baked apple pie. And the raw pies are delicious and easy to make.

When I eat raw, my energy soars and my weight drops. I can pig out, eat a dozen times a day, and it doesn't matter. The increased fiber in my diet just washes out the effect of the extra food, yet I still get the vitamins.

I have been living in Seattle, where it's cost and wet most of the year. I'm in the middle of relocating to Arizona now, and excited because when I'm in Arizona, I always feel encouraged to eat raw. In the heat, raw foods are very inviting. And I have a zillion recipes for yummy raw food!

By the way... one supplement to take which is 100% harmless and always helpful even if you don't change your diet a bit is fiber. Fiber pills can be added to your diet if you can't drop the junk food. You should try and eat 55 grams of fiber per day, while drinking LOTS of water. Not only will it take up space in your tummy, but it will cause your intestines to work correctly, dumping more calories before they are stored as fat.

SoJ

[livy111us]

I tried the fiber thing for a while and loved it. But it gives you A LOT of horrible gas. If you were away from civilization, I would recommend it. If not, you may be sleeping on the couch.

[MarginOfError]

OK, now you are speaking my language. I'll look into it. I do, however, am weary to accept studies that are 30-40 years old. I'll see if I can find anything a little more recent.

Also, I would like to see something on what weight is lost between placebo and HCG injections. HCG claims to keep you from going into starvation mode and eating away muscle. If true, then the placebo weight loss would include fat and muscle, while the HCG would be just fat.

I forgot to add, one reference is wrong on HCG being banned in the US. It is not banned, but can be purchased, or prescribed by any Doctor, and is offered is many health clinics, supplement stores, etc...

The reason the studies are 30-40 years ago is because we learned 30-40 years ago that this was a worthless treatment and no one has been using it since then. There’s no current research because it’s been well documented that there’s no point in pursuing the issue any further. There really isn’t much point in researching something after it has been thoroughly discredited.

The second source actually addressed where weight was being lost by measuring the mean percentage decrease at the hips and weight. The difference between the placebo and treatment groups was pretty much negligible.

I’m not sure where you’re getting the idea that anything said HCG is banned in the US. What was said was that the FDA doesn’t approve the use of HCG for weight loss. Being “banned” and being “not approved” are very different terms. A banned substance is not permitted for use. During drug trials, companies or physicians may notice peripheral benefits of a drug in a patient. After the new drug is approved by the FDA, the drug companies or physicians may then pursue approval for “off-label” use of the drug. Weight control would be considered an off-label use of HCG. It is this use that the FDA does not approve.

Here is a newer study I found:

Female obese volunteers participating in a double blind study, and submitted to the administration of

an oral presentation of hCG plus a VLCD, decreased specific body circumferences and skinfold

thickness from conspicuous body areas more efficiently than Placebo+VLCD -treated subjects.

Since a significant fat proportion from total body fat is subcutaneously located (50 to 65 percent,

depending on sex and fat distribution), this hCG metabolic activity would result in a reduction of the

total body fat mass, the main cause for obesity. We suggested that the combination of a VLCD and

oral hCG could not only trigger clinically significant changes in subcutaneous fat stores but

simultaneously decrease body weight and modelate body contour.

2. hCG oral administration proved to be a safe and effective procedure on obese treated volunteers.

No side effects were observed in the course of the study. There are no reports in the literature

regarding this administration route to compare our findings.

3. Compared to placebo treated subjects, volunteers managed with an oral

administration of hCG coped more efficiently with daily irritating situations, were in a better mood,

and handled home conflicts without stepping up family discussions.

This study appears to contradict former conclusions on the issue of hCG and obesity. We attribute those

differences to a different approach, including variables not assessed in former publications.

UTILITY OF AN ORAL PRESENTATION OF hCG (human Choriogonadotropin ...-

As always, there is contradicting studies in scientific papers. I'll let you know how I fare.

Wow, a more recent reference written for and by the guy behind The oral hCG (Human Choriogonadotropin) and obesity website! That can’t possibly be biased at all can it?

The author of that study has a vested interest in promoting hcg diets because that’s how he makes his living. To top it off, the guy couldn’t get a license to operate in the United States. If he tried, he’d get exposed as a fraud.

On top of that, his methods are lousy and misleading. If he were to present that paper to my department, he’d get laughed out of the room. His “statistically significant” comparisons are all within group. He didn’t demonstrate any differences between treatment and placebo groups. Well, that isn’t entirely true…he showed some differences between skin fold measurements, but there were no significant differences between weight measurements. That means that, at best, weight was redistributing and not being lost. This is a classic case of someone who knows very little about statistics trying to use them to say what he wants and not what is true.

[StrawberryFields]

Here is a newer study I found:

Female obese volunteers participating in a double blind study, and submitted to the administration of

an oral presentation of hCG plus a VLCD, decreased specific body circumferences and skinfold

thickness from conspicuous body areas more efficiently than Placebo+VLCD -treated subjects.

Since a significant fat proportion from total body fat is subcutaneously located (50 to 65 percent,

depending on sex and fat distribution), this hCG metabolic activity would result in a reduction of the

total body fat mass, the main cause for obesity. We suggested that the combination of a VLCD and

oral hCG could not only trigger clinically significant changes in subcutaneous fat stores but

simultaneously decrease body weight and modelate body contour.

2. hCG oral administration proved to be a safe and effective procedure on obese treated volunteers.

No side effects were observed in the course of the study. There are no reports in the literature

regarding this administration route to compare our findings.

3. Compared to placebo treated subjects, volunteers managed with an oral

administration of hCG coped more efficiently with daily irritating situations, were in a better mood,

and handled home conflicts without stepping up family discussions.

This study appears to contradict former conclusions on the issue of hCG and obesity. We attribute those

differences to a different approach, including variables not assessed in former publications.

UTILITY OF AN ORAL PRESENTATION OF hCG (human Choriogonadotropin ...-

As always, there is contradicting studies in scientific papers. I'll let you know how I fare.

Hello,

You don't know me and I don't know you, but I can tell you first hand that this program works. If you want support in doing this join one of the HCG diet groups on yahoo. Look this program up on youtube and you will find success there as well.

Good Luck.