Does HCG diet work?
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Many people ask this question Does HCG diet work? Before we go into this question let's first find out more about this diet and how it can help you.
HCG diet
HCG or human chorionic gonadotropin is a hormone which is seen at high levels in early pregnancy. It is a marker which is used in home pregnancy tests. It is also used in treating fertility issues in both women and men. It was considered as a weight loss tool by a British doctor named Alberto Simeons in 1954. The diet he prescribed consisted of two main components:
- An ultra-low-calorie diet of around 500 calories per day
- The HCG hormone administered via injections
Today if you want to use HCG, you will find it in different product forms including pellets, oral drops and sprays.
How could it work?
HCG diet works on the principle of reduction of the calories. You need to create a major calorie deficit by reducing total calorie consumption to 500 calories. You need to cut down calories when you have higher levels of HCG in the body. It is to ensure that your body is not using muscles to get the necessary energy which will erode the muscles present in your body. The HCG will make your body to use the fat stored in your body for energy. So, your body will use the fat storage to get the necessary energy for running bodily functions and thereby will help you to reduce fat and that will eventually help you to lose weight. HCG works because pregnant women can get all the necessary nutrients and energy they need without sometimes being barely able to eat anything.
To make this diet work, you will need to take HCG in one form or other so that you get the extra hormone in your body. It is all is important to use those HCG products which are authorized because otherwise you are putting yourself in serious risk.
When you take HCG, you may not feel the need to eat as much as before and in that case 500 calories every day may be good enough for you. It will suppress your appetite and will help you to eat less while managing to use the stored fat for energy. The HCG diet will help you to lose 10-20 pounds within a few weeks. Since you are consuming less calories and your body is finding the calories necessary from stored fat sources, within a few weeks you will start losing bodyweight which will continue throughout the duration of the diet.
A HCG diet foods list
If you are going for a HCG diet, it will limit calories substantially and you may consume only 500 to 1500 calories every day. That is why HCG diet limits fat substantially. Some of the approved foods that can be included in this diet are:
- Some fruits like oranges, strawberries, apples and red grapefruit
- Non-starchy vegetables-lettuce, celery, cucumber, cabbage, onions and tomatoes
- Lean meat like chicken breast, lean ground beef, shrimp, lobster and whitefish
Foods that you need to avoid
You will need to avoid some foods which include the following:
- Fatty foods like fatty fish, nuts or foods full of oil
- Starchy vegetables like potatoes
- Added sugar in any form.
References
1. Australian HCG Diet Recipe Cookbook
2. Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) in the Treatment of Obesity
3. Effect of the human chorionic gonadotropin diet on patient outcomes