Pharmacy and Wellness Review
Abstract
Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG) has recently experienced a resurgence in popular media. Late night television commercials and Internet advertisements have suggested that it is an essential, unequivocal means to losing weight fast. ls hCG really a miracle cure to help patients shed unwanted pounds? In 1954, A.T.W. Simeons claimed that hCG impacts weight loss by decreasing hunger, increasing fat redistribution, and increasing overall mood. Knowing that weight loss cannot be directly attributed to hCG use, Simeons developed a very low calorie diet (VLCD) to which the success of the therapy can be attributed. He saw hCG as a means to an end. Following a VLCD is nearly impossible without a little push, and according to Simeons, this push could be hCG. This increase in mood is an essential reagent to following a low calorie, thus low-energy diet, and therefore is necessary for the product of weight loss. Combination therapy of hCG and diet has been studied using multiple dosage forms, but no definitive answer has been found.
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Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Commons, Medical Pharmacology Commons, Other Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Commons