What Is HCG? The Story of a Great Weight Loss Program Rediscovered
Great discoveries are often made by mistake. The microwave oven, vulcanized rubber, super glue and post-it notes are just a few popular inventions that were created strictly by accident. You might be surprised to learn that many medicines are also discovered by chance. This happens when researchers are using, or testing, a particular treatment for one ailment only to discover that it helps an entirely different one. This is how human chorionic gonadotropin (shortened to HCG) became a widely known as a treatment for obesity. Wondering, What Is HCG? Put simply, it is a hormone that is produced naturally by pregnant women. Doctors have been using HCG for more than 70 years to treat certain hormonal disorders. In the 1950s, famed British endocrinologist A.T.W. Simeons noticed that boys who were being treated with HCG for this reason also lost their abnormal body fat. Based on this observation, Dr. Simeons went on to develop a comprehensive weight loss program for adult men and women that combined small, daily doses of HCG, injected just under the skin, with a very low calorie diet. A clinic was started in Europe where Dr Simons HCG diet was put to the test and undertaken by scores of individuals from regular people to well known celebrities. He later went on to write a book about his experiences titled “Pounds and Inches.” This book describes his remarkable discovery of HCG as a weight loss tool and his theories for how HCG works in the body to mobilize stored fat. In recent years, the diet program has been rediscovered, thanks in large part to the Internet and to an ever-growing number of dieters who swear by the protocol. People ask: Does HCG diet work? One of the best measures of success is demand, and there has certainly been a high demand for Dr. Simeons original diet program for several decades. This is why, today, doctors across the globe now use HCG not only to safely treat a number of hormonal conditions unrelated to obesity, but also to help individuals who are overweight and looking for a different approach. When people ask us, “What Is HCG all about?” we tell them it is a great way to lose weight—provided that it is given by injection, on a daily basis, as part of our comprehensive doctor supervised diet program.
What Is The HCG Diet? Everything You Need to Know
When people first hear about using human chorionic gonadotropin shots to lose weight, they have lots of questions. What Is the HCG Diet? What do you have to do? What makes it work? Who does it benefit? It’s easy to understand why there are so many questions. First of all, this program is just coming on the scene after years in the “vault.” Second of all, there are many different companies promoting many different kinds of HCG diet kits and supplies that the term “HCG diet” has come to mean vastly different things to different people, depending on who you ask. So, just to be clear, let’s give a quick rundown about What Is the HCG Diet from our perspective.
- Our HCG program is a time-limited course of doctor prescribed HCG shots that you give to yourself, in the comfort of your own home. At the same time, you follow a very specific low calorie diet. We have the best doctors and great products and for your convenience, once one of our doctors approves you to being this program, it gets shipped right to you. No waiting in doctor’s offices required!
- Does HCG make you lose weight? Taking HCG in and of itself does not make you lose weight. What it does do is enable you to stick to our very low calorie diet without being hungry. HCG also tells your body to burn your stored fat. HCG is the hormone that apparently enables pregnant women, around the globe, who are underfed to mobilize their fat stores so they can nourish their growing babies without feeling hungry and without pulling calories from their vital organs. When HCG is taken by women who are not pregnant, or by men, it has the same fat mobilizing and appetite curbing properties.
- The question of What Is the HCG Diet cannot be fully answered without discussing one of the key components of this program: motivation. The strong desire to lose weight is essential to individual success on this program. For this reason, our doctors only accept clients who are ready, willing and able to stick to the program. We want you to be 100% successful in achieving your weight loss goals—whatever they may be. Why? Because your success means we have fulfilled our mission which is to help you live life vibrantly, and you will be telling all of your friends, family and co-workers about What Is the HCG Diet.
Now that you know about the essential components of our program, we turn to what makes our diet different than other diets (and other so-called HCG diets) being widely sold and promoted. Please read on!
What Is the HCG Diet Plan From Our Doctors VS. Other Programs
If you are interested learning about What Is the HCG Diet Plan from our doctors, and if you have never dieted before, you are extremely fortunate—and rare! It is tantamount to trying on the perfect wedding dress the first time you walk into the bridal salon, trying it on, and having it fit like a glove. We’ve had a few clients like this and, quite frankly, they don’t appreciate how difficult it is to lose weight with other programs. The majority of people searching for the best HCG doctors and researching our program have tried many other diets with little or no success. Here’s a quick inventory of what makes our HCG diet different than traditional diets and other so-called HCG programs you may have attempted in the past:
- HCG foods to buy? Never on this program! When people ask us, What Is the HCG Diet Plan, one of the first things we like to tell them is this is a diet for real people who live in the real world. Some diets put you in a bubble, separated from the rest of society, because they require that you eat their pre-packaged meals. This has so many disadvantages! You can’t eat out at restaurants, go to dinner parties, or join family and friends for a simple home cooked meal. Instead, you have a permanent date with the microwave oven. You also cannot eat a variety of fresh, healthy foods that are cooked to your individual tastes. You are eating highly processed foods that come out of a cardboard box or plastic container and are necessarily loaded with preservatives. Above all, this just isn’t a practical way of life that you will stick with for the long term. As soon as you stop eating their prepackaged foods—and you know you will sooner or later—your diet is over. With our program, you cook your own HCG recipes during the very low calorie portion of the diet program. Once the injection phase is over, you slowly add foods back into your diet while monitoring your weight and maintaining your weight loss. Now that’s a recipe that really cooks!
- HCG pills and other oral HCG products? Never on this program! Ask some companies, What Is the HCG Diet Plan, and they will start to show you all of their so-called HCG diet pills, or oral sprays and drops. We know these products do not work, and we have never sold them. Why? Because HCG taken by mouth has not been shown to be an effective method for weight loss. What’s more, many of these products sold as homeopathic drops or sprays are illegal to sell. Our HCG comes only to you, with a prescription, from a licensed pharmacy. Our doctors know what they are giving you and you know what you are getting—so you can be assured you are getting a safe and effective product.
- Buy HCG without prescriptions? Never on this program! You’ll find lots of companies online that offer you all sorts of “HCG no prescription” products. We always warn our clients to steer clear of any company making these offers. You are making the important decision to embark on this program because you want to improve your health, as well as your appearance. When you ask, What Is the HCG Diet Plan, the answer that comes back should always be that it is a doctor prescribed weight loss program. Your health and safety depends on it.
You Asked: What is HCG Diet? Our Clients Answered!
I had never heard of the HCG diet before until one day at a mothers’ luncheon with some of the other moms from my son’s school somebody asked, what is HCG diet all about? The whole table got excited and everybody started talking at once. One of the moms said, “Oh! I know somebody who lost a ton of weight on that program!” That caused my ears to perk up because since giving birth to my daughter 22 months ago, I have managed to pack on more than a few extra pounds. From what I gathered at the table, there were many different kinds of programs out there. Some people said they took HCG drops that didn’t seem to work well for them. Others said they took HCG injections, and those ladies said it definitely worked. I went home and looked for local HCG clinics in Arlington TX and found your group. I liked that you explained all about the different kinds of HCG programs out there and what was safe and what wasn’t. I wish more people knew about this because a lot of those moms at the lunch were not very informed. I had complete success with your program, by the way and met goal weight and have kept it off.
Last Christmas, my younger brother, Greg, came to visit our family in Wichita KS (he lives in Las Vegas) and when my sister Suzie and I picked him up from the airport, we were both completely shocked by how great he looked. He had lost so much weight that we almost didn’t recognize him at first! We all spent a lot of that trip talking about what is HCG weight loss, and he told us all about how he discovered your program, what it was like doing it, and how great he was feeling. Suzie and I had lots of questions for him and I have to say he was very knowledgeable about it. Suzie and I were so excited and proud of Greg, and we were also wondering whether the program would be right for us as well. When we exchanged gifts on Christmas day, Greg gave us both envelopes with gift certificates for your program! Let me say, that was the best present I have ever gotten. I know my sister feels the same. Now the whole family knows what is HCG weight loss and we are singing its praises. Thanks a ton (less)!
People in my hometown just outside of Minneapolis MN always ask me how I lost all the weight, so I am pretty used to fielding the question What Is HCG Diet? When I tell people about it, their eyes get wide because, number one, it works so well, and number two it is enormously different from other diets out there, so there are always a lot of questions. I tell people that it is definitely different and they just have to trust the process. Eating a very low calorie diet is something most people have never done before and it’s something that some people think they would never want to do. I always tell them the VLCD (that’s very low calorie diet for short) isn’t bad at all and not to be afraid of it. The whole point of taking the HCG injections is that even on the VLCD you just aren’t hungry. You don’t need these calories stored in your fat and getting rid of them makes you feel energized, alert and basically awesome. Burning calories from fat quickly is the most motivating and rewarding thing I have ever done. So when people ask me What is HCG diet? I say, it’s the last diet I will ever need because it worked.
There are lots of misconceptions about what is HCG for weight loss. Some people think this program is about taking some sort of pill. It isn’t. You administer a very small amount of HCG just under your skin with a tiny needle during the injection phase of the program. People—this is no big deal! Really, and I am somebody who hates to go to the doctor. Does HCG work for weight loss? If you ask me, then yes, absolutely. When I was taking the HCG and vitamin B-12 shots, I had plenty of energy, felt great, and no desire to overeat. For the first few days, I even had to push myself to eat the 500 calories per day. The pounds just came right off and when that part of the diet was over I never gained back the weight I’d lost. I’ve been “maintaining” for about eight months now. Can you just go back to eating the way you did before starting the diet? No, but that isn’t what is HCG for weight loss. You have to be willing to depart from your old habit of overeating and taking in all of those carbs and fat. Here’s the thing. It is so much easier to eat right after this program. Now my body craves simple, fresh foods like lean proteins and fresh vegetables. I shop for my meals locally. I’m really glad I connected right here near home with the local HCG clinic in Oakland CA. I am proof positive to anyone who questions does the HCG diet work. I definitely recommend this program.
I was in bad shape before I discovered your HCG diet. I got laid off from my job in Tulsa OK as a graphic artist and was hanging around the house watching TV and surfing the web. My fiancée was working overtime to support us, but my energy level was so low that after a few attempts to find a job I basically gave up and became a couch potato. My weight was inching up day by day and I was feeling miserable about everything in my life. One day I was watching TV and I saw one of those doctor shows and they were talking about does HCG diet work. I decided to give it a try and found you. My fiancée just about hit the roof when I told him I was going to do it, because even though the price of your program is very reasonable, we didn’t have any extra money to kick around, if you know what I mean. Anyway, I did the diet and after the first week my energy level was through the roof. I started sending out resumes and hitting the pavement like a madwoman looking for a job. Meanwhile, I was also losing weight and feeling great about myself as a result. I would tell other people everywhere I went about what is HCG shots for weight loss and how well they work. I ended up getting another job in my field really quickly because they really liked my energy. I want to tell everyone about your program because I feel like was the thing that really gave me a much-needed boost to get my life back on track.
Popular HCG Questions and Answers
Thanks for your note from Miami FL. HCG is a hormone produced by women when they are pregnant and can also be found in trace amounts by some women who aren’t pregnant and by some men. The body makes HCG so it is a 100% natural hormone. Most people take HCG with few, if any, negative side effects. Think about it this way. If a pregnant woman’s body is naturally flooded with ever-increasing amounts of HCG while she is carrying the baby, this particular hormone has to be extremely safe and even beneficial to the mother and the developing fetus. There are few (if any) over-the-counter medications that are as safe for a pregnant woman as the natural HCG she produces during pregnancy—to give you an idea of just how safe this substance is. Hope this answers your question on what is HCG hormone. Contact our local HCG Clinic in Miami FL for more information and to get started right away.
Hello, Karen and thanks for your question. You cannot get HCG into your system by eating specific foods or by taking HCG supplements from your local health food store in Mesa AZ. This is because HCG isn’t found in vitamins, in supplements or in foods. Only the human body produces HCG naturally. So the real answer to what contains HCG is the urine of pregnant women, and also injectable HCG that is produced in pharmaceutical laboratories. The most efficient way to get HCG into your system for its weight loss properties is via a small, once daily dose of injectable HCG made in a laboratory and given with a tiny needle just under the skin. The gastrointestinal system is a harsh environment for oral HCG, which is delicate and easily destroyed by the gut. This is why HCG for weight loss must be given by injection.
Hello in Tucson AZ, Cindy! HCG apple day is method developed by Dr. ATW Simeons to deal with the situation of a weight plateau that sometimes occurs for about four to six days, usually during the second half of the course of HCG injections. Patients are often doing well and losing about a pound of excess fat per daily injection. Then for several days they stop losing weight despite sticking rigorously to the program. Weight plateaus do not usually last long and should be of no real concern. However, Dr. Simeons recognized that some dieters became distraught when their weight loss appeared to stop. He came up with the HCG apple day for what he called purely psychological reasons. If you are experiencing no weight loss during a few days of the injections program and would like to do HCG apple day, start it at lunch. Whenever you wish, during the day, you can eat one to six large apples. Drinking is restricted to water only and only in small amounts to quench the thirst. You will experience gratifying weight loss on the following day, largely due to loss of water, and should then resume the regular HCG diet protocol.
There are some really intriguing theories about why does HCG work for weight loss. More than 50 years ago, a British endocrinologist theorized that HCG is meant to help developing babies whose mothers aren’t getting enough calories by instructing their bodies to burn fat reserves as opposed to taking energy from their muscles and vital organs. Here is another idea: when a woman is in the early stages of pregnancy, her developing baby is especially vulnerable to environmental insults. As a result of increasing levels of HCG, pregnant women often lack appetite or are even sick to their stomachs. This means instead of taking in new food, which could potentially be contaminated or otherwise harmful to the baby, she is nourishing her baby with her own fat reserves, thus diminishing the possibility that the baby will be sickened. So there are some very interesting ideas about how HCG works in the body to decrease appetite and burn fat. Good luck with your continued research on what is HCG weight loss in Atlanta GA. You can always check with our doctors who prescribe HCG injections at our local clinic in Atlanta GA for more information and to see if you qualify for the program.
HCG drops have, in the past, been touted as an alternative method of getting the HCG hormone into the body. They are “supposedly” a liquid form of HCG. We put the word “supposedly” in quotes because many of these products sold over the counter were being found to have little or no HCG in them at all. They were just an HCG scam. Thankfully, the Food and Drug Administration stepped in and made it illegal to sell so-called homeopathic HCG drops in Raleigh NC and throughout the US. You should have a hard time finding these products on the shelves or online if the FDA has followed through on their ruling. Should you come across them please steer clear. HCG drops products are not effective and because they are coming from unregulated sources you don’t know what you are ingesting. Diets using these bogus products are often just as expensive as ours, which uses real, doctor prescribed HCG injections.
There are a lot of misconceptions about what is HCG made of. Some people even think they will be injecting the urine of pregnant women into their bodies. Rest assured this is not the case! Although pregnant women excrete HCG in their urine, the HCG you will be getting in your injections is produced in a FDA supervised laboratory under sterile conditions. Some people may be willing to buy HCG without prescription authorization because the products they are getting are “cheaper.” With our HCG and Vitamin B-12 injections, you never have to worry that you will be getting a tainted product or putting something into your body that is of questionable origin. Your HCG will come right to your location in Omaha NE. You are doing this diet because you have your health in mind.
Unfortunately, we cannot recommend products from outside companies. You are not the first person who has contacted us to ask about best HCG drops and other HCG injection alternatives. It sounds like your thinking is that these products are “quick and easy” to get because you do not need to be approved by a doctor and you do not need a prescription. However, you may find in the long run this quick-fix solution isn’t all you hoped. Our HCG doctors work within an established protocol that has demonstrated successful results for dieters from where you are in Colorado Springs CO across the country to New York City, NY. While we do require pre-approval, once your doctor has given you the go-ahead you to begin the program, we promise that we will move quickly to get it to your doorstep. Perhaps even faster than some companies selling alternative HCG products. Why don’t you give us a call to learn more about how quick and easy our protocol is to receive and follow?
The HCG diet has become enormously popular in Virginia Beach VA and elsewhere since being rediscovered several years ago and then being embraced by thousands—if not millions—of dieters and their physicians. With the great success of the original HCG diet, many copycat HCG products have entered the marketplace, all making the claim that they are just as good as the original HCG injections protocol. We take it as a compliment that so many people are seeking alternative HCG products because we realize our success with the real HCG diet is why we are now getting so many questions about what is HCG drops vs. injections, etc. You could consider HCG injections being an alternative to drops—but we prefer to think of it the other way around. The most important point is that these drops are a very poor alternative, possibly unsafe to consume, and best to avoid.
Thanks for your question on what is HCG good for. In fact, HCG does have a number of uses beyond weight loss. It can induce ovulation in women who are having trouble conceiving children and thus has a role in fertility medicine. Some athletes also use HCG off-label as a adjunct to anabolic steroids. We don’t offer HCG for any reason other than weight loss, and then only with a doctor’s prescription. If you feel you may be experiencing abnormally low testosterone for someone your age, we suggest you get tested and if necessary begin testosterone supplementation, as this is often the best way to address this issue. Our doctors can help you get tested and, if necessary, begin you on a program of testosterone replacement therapy sent right to you in Kansas City MO.
When people ask, what is the HCG diet, one of the first things we point out is that it is a self-directed program. Unlike programs like Weight Watchers, where there are meetings and support groups for dieters, you do this program on your own. This appeals to people who like to do things independently and without a lot of hassle and travel. While there are no formal HCG groups or HCG meetings in the Long Beach CA area, this doesn’t mean you are alone. Our experienced clinical associates are never more than a phone call away to answer questions you have, as they come to mind. Many have done the program themselves in the past or are doing it currently, to these individuals are a wonderful resource to turn to on your HCG journey. We also think doing the HCG program with a friend or relative can be very motivating. Perhaps there is someone else in your community who would like to do our program with you? If so, we can coordinate from our end so that your HCG diet kits arrive at the same time. Start by contacting our local HCG Clinic in Long Beach CA for all the details.
Hello Sarah and please read the above questions and answers on the topic of what are HCG drops and do they work, because it is really important for you to know where we stand on these drops. As to what are HCG drops made of, the fact is we do not know. Every company uses their own active and inactive ingredients, so unless we brought each of these products to independent laboratories for testing there is simply no way for us—or you—to know what is inside. The benefit of the medical grade HCG injections that our doctors prescribe is that you know exactly what you are getting. Every batch is marked and monitored, and is produced in a laboratory that is overseen by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. I think we can all agree that this is the very safest and best, if not the only, way to take HCG as part of a diet protocol when prescribed by our doctors at the local HCG clinic in Sacramento CA.
People think of the HCG diet as being about injections, but it is really about breaking old eating habits in favor of choosing fresh, healthy foods in the right proportions. During the injections phase of the diet, you will be eating simple, fresh foods that you prepare yourself to your own tastes. One really nice thing is that while your calories are restricted on this program, you are welcome to season and spice your food as you choose. The best HCG recipes involve combining lean proteins with a rainbow of flavors from seasonings, as well as the fresh vegetables that are allowed on the diet. Once you get your list of approved foods, you will immediately be inspired to “mix and match” them to your tastes. Everything you need is available from your local grocery store in Fresno CA. You can find HCG recipe ideas online but many of our clients enjoy experimenting on their own. The beauty of HCG recipes is their simplicity so you need not be a wizard in the kitchen to create something tasty for yourself each day.
HCG B12 is a combination of HCG and vitamin B-12 shots that work together to maximize your weight loss and keep you feeling energized. The addition of vitamin B-12 to the protocol is an upgrade to Dr. Simeons’ original program. We feel vitamin B-12 is an added bonus and have seen it significantly increase the success of the HCG program on its own. Our HCG doctors at the local clinics in Las Vegas NV (and throughout the US) began implementing this protocol because they have found added B-12 increases their dieters’ energy and serves to boost their metabolism and improve the immune system. We like to call our B-12 shots a truly necessary, added “bonus.”
HCG cream is yet another method of administering HCG to avoid injections. Some HCG creams are available with a prescription and can be created at specialized compounding pharmacies. In time, technology and efficacy of HCG cream may improve such that it becomes a viable alternative. However, at this time, our doctors have not seen the degree of success they would like to with this preparation and thus they do not prescribe HCG cream as part of our diet protocol. Only pure HCG injections, with the added boost of vitamin B-12 shots, are currently part of our doctor prescribed program. Hope this answers your question about what is HCG cream from Portland OR.
What is HCG diet protocol differs depending on whom you ask. For example, different HCG providers in Jefferson KY might have a different answers on this same question. The protocol that we offer closely follows the program that was first designed by endocrinologist ATW Simeons and outlined in his book “Pounds and Inches.” However, in working with this program our doctors have made some notable improvement to the original program that we pleased to pass along to you, the dieter. For example, the addition of vitamin B-12 shots is a change in protocol for the better brought to you courtesy of our doctors.
Homeopathy is an alternative form of medicine created by Dr. Samuel Hahnemann in the 1700s based on his idea that “like cures like.” In homeopathy, miniscule amounts of substances are used to treat a range of conditions. The smaller the amount of the treating substance, the supposedly more powerful the treatment. HCG homeopathic is an umbrella term to describe a number of products that contain little or no amounts of HCG but are said to be effective based on homeopathic principles. While some people in the US and abroad have embraced homeopathy, conventional Western medicine does not recognize homeopathy as an effective method of treatment. Recently the FDA has outlawed the sale of homeopathic HCG marketed to customers as a weight loss aid. Our doctors do not use or endorse homeopathic HCG. It is against the law to sell homeopathic HCG in Denver CO and elsewhere throughout the US. For all the details on real HCG Injections, contact our local weight loss clinic in Denver CO – we’ll be happy to help.
The question of what is HCG loading is a good one. HCG loading is the first phase of our HCG diet program where you are taking both HCG injections and vitamin B-12 injections and are also eating foods that are high in fat. The loading phase may seem counter-intuitive to those who are not familiar with the HCG diet, but it is an integral part of the program and not to be skipped. The theory behind the HCG loading phase is that you want to get fat circulating in your bloodstream because it takes about three days for the HCG to kick in and begin mobilizing your stored fat. The idea is that you being the 500-calorie diet program once fat is already mobilized in your bloodstream, therefore preventing excessive hunger. Hope this answers your question from Davidson TN.
HCG maintenance is the last phase of the HCG protocol—the forever phase—where dieters are carefully monitoring their weight by weighing themselves in the mornings on an accurate bathroom scale. During this time, dieters resume a eating a normal diet. Should weight increase, there are specific techniques to address this. One technique is called “steak day.” What is HCG steak day? If the scale in the morning registers more than two pounds over the stabilization weight (weight achieved after the injections phase) the dieter is to skip breakfast and lunch, drinking plenty of water and then have one large, lean steak with an apple or raw tomato in the evening. This gets dieters back on track. Most dieters however will never require a steak day, as this diet is so effective. Contact our local HCG clinic and good luck in Washington DC on your HCG program.
Our HCG diet has distinct phases, and whether you are doing this diet in Boston MA or elsewhere with our doctors, these phases will apply to you. The loading phases is where you are consuming a high fat diet deliberately during your first HCG injections so the HCG has some time to kick in before you embark on the very low calorie (500-calorie per day diet). After the loading phase, is the injections phase where you are doing the vitamin B-12 injections and also the HCG injections and sticking to the specialized diet. Once the injection phase ends, there is a stabilization phase where your weight is leveling off. After this, you progress to the maintenance phase where you monitor your weight and take steps to correct overages if need be.
It all starts with the Contact Form on this page. When you complete this short form, one of our medical advisors will contact you right away with all the details and answers for any other questions you might have. In a hurry to get started? Simply pick up the phone and call our toll-free number at the top of this page. We look forward to hearing from you soon.