{"id":3144,"date":"2012-08-10T08:00:17","date_gmt":"2012-08-10T12:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/doinglifetogether\/?p=3144"},"modified":"2012-08-10T08:24:45","modified_gmt":"2012-08-10T12:24:45","slug":"the-skinny-on-the-hcg-diet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2012\/08\/the-skinny-on-the-hcg-diet.html","title":{"rendered":"The Skinny on the HCG Diet"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Today I received an email about a Fox news reporter that claimed to have tried the HCG diet and lost 25 pounds. I am familiar with the diet.\u00a0Several of my friends have tried the HCG diet and lost weight. \u00a0Interestingly, most of them gained it all back within the year. And since I have worked in the area of weight loss for the past 20 years, people ask me about all kinds of fad diets that come and go.<\/p>\n

HCG is human chorionic gonadotropin, a hormone produced during pregnancy. It is used to treat fertility problems. The diet involves taking the hormone through liquid drops and eating 500-800 calories a day.\u00a0Mayo Clinic’s registered dietitian, Jennifer Nelson, reported on the safety of the HCG diet. She notes that this diet has not been proven effective for weight loss and is illegal to sell over the counter. In addition, low calorie diets like this one can cause medical complications–e.,g., gallstone formation, irregular heartbeat,\u00a0electrolyte imbalance, deterioration of muscle mass, to name a few. The hormone should be avoided by pregnant women because of possible birth defects.<\/p>\n

So there are risks involved that you must consider.<\/p>\n

Most people who restrict their daily calories to 500-800 calories a day will lose weight. That is a ridiculously low calorie count, very similar to the liquid diet fads of the 1990s. The problem is that even though you lose weight on very low calorie diets, you can’t sustain that type of eating and weight gain usually results.<\/p>\n

And what about the science behind this popular fad?\u00a0Here is a quote from a meta review of \u00a024 studies published in the\u00a0British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology (1995):<\/p>\n

“We conclude\u00a0that there\u00a0is\u00a0no scientific evidence\u00a0that\u00a0HCG\u00a0causes weight loss,\u00a0a redistribution of\u00a0fat,\u00a0staves\u00a0off\u00a0hunger\u00a0or\u00a0induces\u00a0a\u00a0feeling\u00a0of\u00a0well being.\u00a0Therefore,\u00a0the\u00a0use\u00a0of\u00a0HCG\u00a0should be\u00a0regarded\u00a0as an\u00a0inappropriate\u00a0therapy\u00a0for\u00a0weight reduction,\u00a0particularly\u00a0because\u00a0HCG\u00a0is\u00a0obtained\u00a0from the urine of pregnant\u00a0women\u00a0who\u00a0donate their urine\u00a0idealistically\u00a0in the belief\u00a0that\u00a0it will be used\u00a0to treat an\u00a0entirely\u00a0different\u00a0condition,\u00a0namely\u00a0infertility.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Other double-blind clinically controlled studies (e.g., University of Stellenbosch in South Africa)\u00a0have shown the diet to be ineffective as well. But there is controversy as to the effectiveness of this approach.<\/p>\n

So bottom line, you will drop weight on any diet with very low calories, there are medical risks involved, and most likely, you will gain the weight back because you can’t sustain the low calorie diet. Because of possible side effects, you should always check in with your physician when going on any type of weight loss program.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today I received an email about a Fox news reporter that claimed to have tried the HCG diet and lost 25 pounds. I am familiar with the diet.\u00a0Several of my friends have tried the HCG diet and lost weight. \u00a0Interestingly, most of them gained it all back within the year. And since I have worked…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":419,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[918],"tags":[214,1588,32,1589,82,30],"class_list":["post-3144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-relationship-to-food","tag-diet","tag-hcg","tag-lose-weight","tag-low-calorie-diets","tag-weight","tag-weight-loss"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Skinny on the HCG Diet<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2012\/08\/the-skinny-on-the-hcg-diet.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Skinny on the HCG Diet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Today I received an email about a Fox news reporter that claimed to have tried the HCG diet and lost 25 pounds. 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Her media experience includes seven years as the resident expert for ABC Family\u2019s Living the Life television show and regular appearances on network television and radio. It is often said that being with Dr. Linda is like having coffee with a friend. She makes the complicated issues of relationships and mental health easy to understand and applicable to everyday living. The ease she has with people, coupled with her clinical training and experience makes her a sought-after speaker on college campuses, conferences and special events. Whether she is doing a TV skit with Tim Conway or discussing teen violence with Queen Latifa, Dr. Linda will entertain, educate and integrate faith and mental health in everyday living. 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