# Experiences with Homeopathic HCG Weight Release **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 12, 2011, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434 "2011-10-12T16:50:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2011, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434/61 "2011-10-13T22:32:48Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > It’s not insane to propose a drug that can be effective at concentrations of 1 part per million; that’s a standard measurement of things at low concentrations. Off the top of my head, I know that concentrations of 10 ppm of nitrite in my fish tank are likely to kill my fish. Two minutes on Wikipedia tells me that seriously toxic gases like arsine, bromine, and diazomethane can be deadly at concentrations under 5 ppm. I don’t think the homeopathic HCG people will be quoting you in defense of their product anytime soon. 😃 Homeopathic HCG presumably starts out with a tincture/preparation having _some_ HCG in it (though who knows what that might be). Then it’s heavily diluted, to one part per million at the minimum dilution level, all the way up to 60X/30C (where finding even one molecule of HCG in the finished product would be the equivalent of hitting the multistate lottery). Given that physiologically active (non-homeopathic) levels of HCG have not been found effective for promoting weight loss, “insane” is a pretty good way to describe the mindset of people who spend $199 for this stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2011, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434/62 "2011-10-13T22:46:19Z")
Great news - you don’t have to spend gobs and gobs of money on magic water - you can be on the way to the new slimmer you for as little as $10. Plus you get other fabulous ingredients (King Bio version): “Appetite & Weight Control Ingredients: Anacard occ, Antimon.crud.,Calc.carb.,Fucus , Kali bic., Oleander, Sabadilla, Staphysag., Adrenalinum, ACTH, Cortisone, Hypothalamus, Pituitarum, Thyroidinum,HCG. Flower Essences: Agrimony, Chestnut bud, Evening primrose, Golden rod, Mariposa lily, Pink yarrow, Tansy. Each King Bio Homeopathic Appetite & Weight Control ingredient is in equal volumes of 10x, 30x, and LM1 potencies in a pure water base.” Wonder where the Hypothalamus and Pituitarum come from (cows? goats?). I get queasy just thinking about it, which is probably the optimal way to curb your appetite without wasting money on fantasy medicine and attempting to subsist on 500 calories a day. ---
**Author:** ![Zulema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/db5fbb/32.png) [@Zulema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zulema)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2011, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434/63 "2011-10-13T22:56:28Z")
Even if HCG does supress hunger and maintain a healthy metabolism why does the diet need to be so extreme? Why can’t a person use the drops on a 1200 calorie diet and have slower, more healthy weight loss? What’s their explanation for that? ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2011, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434/64 "2011-10-13T23:04:55Z")
> [@Zulema](#): > > Even if HCG does supress hunger and maintain a healthy metabolism why does the diet need to be so extreme? Why can’t a person use the drops on a 1200 calorie diet and have slower, more healthy weight loss? > > What’s their explanation for that? People want immediate results. ---
**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2011, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434/65 "2011-10-13T23:39:55Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Are they suing the doctor for malpractice? Surely one of the patients died or something. No, they are healthy and well and thrilled with how the whole thing worked. They did well on the program and have kept the weight off. I had never heard of it before then. I have a lot of common interests and a good relationship with my doctor, and we always sit and chat for a while after the medical stuff is out of the way. We were talking about staying in shape or something along those lines and that’s when she told me about what some of her other patients had been doing. I got the impression she had been a bit skeptical at first, but was fairly impressed by the lasting results she had seen. If I had known there was going to be a future thread about it, I would have asked more questions. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2011, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434/66 "2011-10-14T13:34:35Z")
> [@Soliloquy](#): > > You would lose weight eating only 500 calories a day, yes. But you would be hungry, and you would lose muscle mass, and your body would enter starvation mode. Starvation mode is the primary reason diets don’t work. Your body cannot tell the difference between dieting and starving, so it will lower your metabolism to survive on fewer calories. When people ask me how I stay so thin when I eat the way I do, I tell them it takes me 2000-2500 calories a day to keep my body out of starvation mode. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434/67 "2011-10-27T13:44:06Z")
There is an hysterical radio commercial for this plan running in my neck of the woods: FIRST they have the low talking, fast talking guy giving the disclaimer, then they try to sell you the product. Low, fast talker admits studies have shown it’s the 500 calories a day that make you lose weight, but how many people only start listening when they hear the actual commercial for the HCG plan? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/experiences-with-homeopathic-hcg-weight-release/599434.md?page=3)