The southern African countries of South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Angola are the abode of Hoodia gordonii. The San Bushmen who inhabits the Kalahari Desert had through generations transmitted their knowledge of the various uses of Hoodia. Of these uses, its use as an appetite suppressant was known to the outside world for some time. The San people used it to suppress their hunger during hunting expeditions that lasted a few days. The Hoodia extract was subject to scientific investigation by the South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) who patented the extract as P57 in 1997. CSIR sold the exclusive right to its use to Phytopharm, a British pharmaceutical company. Phytopharm granted the license to production to Pfizer. But Hoodia became a craze as a weight loss product much later when BBC reported on its use in 2003 and 60 Minutes in the next year.
Hoodia became a favorite weight loss product in the global market. But the fact that this knowledge was owned by San Bushmen was simply not remembered or acknowledged. The media then raked up this issue accusing Phytopharm of biopiracy. Confronted with this, Phytopharm lamely defended itself saying that the San people no longer existed when tens of thousands of them actually inhabited the southern African countries covering the Kalahari Desert. CSIR then admitted in 2003 that the San people were the source of this knowledge and that a portion of the royalty would indeed be shared with them. It is estimated that 0.003 percent of the retail sales were to be their share. This was a pittance though the point was well taken. Meanwhile, Pfizer returned Phytopharm the production rights who later transferred the rights to Unilever. Unilever were into production of diet foods such as Slim Fast. The company announced its intention to produce functional foods with Hoodia as the main ingredient.
A number of companies too launched Hoodia products in the wake of its popularity. They claimed that their products contained genuine Hoodia sourced from Africa. These products were introduced in the market in such brand names as Hoodia Pure, Dex-L10 Hoodia, HoodiThin Liquid, Hoodia Extract, H57 Hoodia, Tru Hoodia Diet, Hoodia Shake, Hoodia Gordonii Shake Mix, Hoodia SlimQuick, Hoodoba, Hoodia Supreme and Desert Burn. Hoodia though the main ingredient were combined with a few other useful items in most of these products. For instance, calcium, Green Tea and Vitamin D3 along with Hoodia of Slimquick Hoodia is targeted to women as a weight loss diet.
Phytopharm subsequently applied and was granted two more patents related to treatment of gastric disorders. Applications for patent for some more uses have been subsequently filed. These are related to its potential use in disorders related to disorders in the functioning of the saliva, prostrate and sweat glands besides sexual dysfunction.
Health is essential. Thus, everyone should always strive to prioritize their health above everything else.
Other Info: Help make tasks on yourself, click http://alldesignerperfume.com and find resources related to (a) designer perfume.
