This HCG weight loss post is a continuation of the HCG Diet Manifesto: What is the HCG Diet. If you are looking for an introduction into the history and structure of the HCG diet be sure to visit that page.
Our HCG Diet Reviews
We breakdown 11 different online HCG sources in our HCG diet reviews post to find out who the best suppliers are.
HCG is Not an Approved Weight Loss Treatment
You read that correctly. HCG is NOT FDA approved as a weight loss aid.
How can doctors prescribe HCG for weight loss if HCG is not approved as a weight loss aid? Off label use. Off label use simply means that a doctor may prescribe medicine for something other than it is approved for by the FDA.
It is not entirely rare either. It is estimated that up to 20% of prescriptions written are for off label use. This doesn’t mean it works but it also doesn’t mean it doesn’t work. We will dive in to more on actual studies in a bit, but first…
Over the Counter HCG Without a Prescription
If we haven’t learned anything else from the rise of social media, we learned how quickly misinformation can spread. We also learned that it is darn near impossible to convince someone they are incorrect no matter how much evidence they are presented.
I am stubborn though so I am still going to give it a try.
Over the counter HCG is not real HCG. It doesn’t contain HCG, it won’t contain HCG and it never will contain HCG.
It’s really just that simple but let me expand some more.
Homeopathic HCG has no HCG. HCG without a prescription has no HCG either.
In fact, if you are not consulting with a doctor or at the very least have a doctor look over your medical history, then you are not getting a prescription. If you are not getting a prescription, then you are not getting real HCG. You are getting a counterfeit product with who knows what is in it.
HCG requires a prescription, it’s the law. I hope that was plain enough because I am not sure how much clearer I can be.
But Does HCG Really Work for Weight Loss?
Short answer, you have to refer to scientific studies and apply a little common sense as well.
Long answer, scientific studies have shown that people on a low-calorie diet, with or without HCG, both lost a similar amount of weight during the program.
Nearly all of the studies that I have read over the years say something similar. But do you remember when I wrote this in Part I?
“One point I would like to make before we move on. It is the diet that causes the loss of weight but it is the HCG that causes your body to change and helps fight off hunger.”
Filed under the “What is the HCG Diet?” section
I have problems with many of these studies. First of all, they are relatively old at this point with most of them being at least 20 years old. The second problem I have is that all of the studies I have read only mention weight loss but do not mention body composition changes.
A weight loss study that excludes body fat % and lean muscle mass % is a poorly conducted study.
I want to reflect back to something Dr. Simeons wrote in Pounds and Inches. This quote was in relation to the boys he was treating for delayed puberty conditions:
“Thirdly, and that is the observation that concerns us here, when such
ATW Simeons “Pounds and Inches: A New Approach to Obesity”
patients were given small daily doses they seemed to lose their ravenous appetite though they
neither gained nor lost weight. Strangely enough however, their shape did change. Though they
were not restricted in diet, there was a distinct decrease in the circumference of their hips.”
Changing body composition vs just losing weight: HCG is not just about Weight Loss
Dr. Simeons was very clear that the boys did not gain or lose weight as they were not on a diet anyway. They were being treated for a separate condition. He did specifically mention however, that the shape of those same boys did change.
In my opinion he made it clear that the diet caused the weight loss but the HCG caused the body shape to change. Let’s be honest for a moment, we either are, have been or probably know the obese person who lost a bunch of weight but their body looks pretty much the same. They just turned into a smaller, lighter version of the person they were 30 pounds ago. The idea of weight loss is not just to be lighter, but to also be fitter and healthier.
To stay healthy and not ruin your metabolism requires muscle. Losing as much muscle as fat during weight loss is not necessarily healthy and it also means that your body will burn fewer calories at rest. More muscle means your body uses more of the calories that you consume.
Weight loss goals should focus on fat loss.
But if the Studies Did Not Measure Muscle Mass, how Do we Know they Retained Muscle?
There are a couple of things we know about HCG that can be backed by scientific evidence.
HCG stimulates other hormones and is an FDA approved drug for certain conditions in both women and men.
First, there is a hormone called leptin. This hormone is present in both men and women and helps control your appetite and feelings of hunger.
In women HCG stimulates estrogen production, progesterone production and is used in infertility treatments among other things.
In males HCG stimulates testosterone production and is also used for infertility issues in men and it is used to treat boys who have delayed puberty issues.
These are not the only conditions that HCG is approved for but for now they are the only ones that matter.
In the following sections we will try to connect the dots to determine if it is POSSIBLE that HCG may be able to help improve body composition while on a diet.
Why Do These Hormones Matter?
Most of the hormones that are stimulated by HCG are reproductive hormones. It is no coincidence that we are typically at our healthiest when we are in our prime reproductive age.
Generally speaking, the same people that have the higher levels of reproductive hormones are also the healthiest and most physically fit. You can see that today in sports as an example. It is pretty rare for an athlete in their 40’s to be as explosive and athletic as they were in their 20’s and 30’s unless they are on performance enhancing drugs. Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t mean that all older athletes are on hormones but usually those athletes are playing sports that are less physical such as golf or they are playing positions that can be managed with less physicality, such as kicker or quarterback in pro football.
To get us back on topic, the same age range that you should be in your best possible shape happens to be the same age range that your reproductive hormones are at their peak.
There is also a strong correlation between obesity and hormone deficiency or resistance.
Low levels of certain hormones are associated with obesity.
HCG Weight Loss and the Hunger Hormone Leptin
Leptin is a hormone that stimulates the feeling of hunger. In skinny people there is less leptin present, which increases the urge to eat more often. In overweight people, more leptin is present which decreases their urge to eat more often. Obese people also have a lot of leptin present but it has been found that obese individuals have developed a resistance to the hormone.
So back to our game of connect the dots.
If HCG stimulates the production of leptin and leptin helps control hunger pangs wouldn’t more leptin in an obese individual help them feel less hungry when they eat less? I did mention that there was a resistance to leptin in these individuals but a resistance is not the same as immunity. Therefore, if additional leptin is produced isn’t it logical to assume that the extra leptin is providing some benefit?
“Moreover, hCG treatment enhanced leptin promoter activity up to 12.9 times, evaluated by transient transfection with a plasmid construction containing different promoter regions and the reporter gene luciferase.”
National Institute of Health
I also mentioned that thinner people had less leptin than heavier people which makes them hungrier more often. If that is the case, wouldn’t the extra leptin you are producing as you are losing weight on a low-calorie diet buffer this feeling of hunger?
Estrogen Progesterone HCG and Women
I have to admit that during my time working with the HCG company I did far less research on hormone levels and obesity in women than I did for men. Looking back, I realize that I was trying to attract new customers for the company and since 60-70% of our clients were already women. Early on, I focused on the product and how it effects men more often.
That does not mean I did no research however.
There is strong evidence that decreased production of estrogen and progesterone not only leads to weight gain but it has a negative effect on body composition by redistributing fat in and around your abdominal area. Women who are entering menopause have declining levels of these hormones. There is also a strong correlation between obesity and low progesterone and estrogen levels.
“Weight gain is a common concern among aging women. Nearly two-thirds of women ages 40 to 59 years and about three-fourths of women older than 60 years are overweight (body mass index greater than 25 kg/m2) in the United States. Menopause does result in body fat distribution changes, with a preferential deposition of body fat centrally, and an increase in abdominal obesity.”
In addition, women with lower levels of estrogen and progesterone lose muscle mass and increase fat mass even if their weight is actually the same.
My question is if HCG stimulates estrogen and progesterone production and we know that low levels of both of those hormones causes muscle loss, fat gain and fat redistribution to the belly, why wouldn’t HCG help to reverse or at least minimize those effects?
Estrogen and Progesterone levels decline as women age.
Testosterone and HCG in Men
A topic I did research often was the role of HCG for men and how it affects testosterone production.
We already know that there are several conditions that HCG is approved to treat by the FDA. Most if not all of these conditions are related to low testosterone levels. We also know that reversing this problem treats the condition.
Do you know who has low testosterone and effectively gets treated with HCG?
Men who suffer from infertility are prescribed HCG to increase their testosterone levels and sperm count.
Boys suffering from delayed puberty are given HCG to induce puberty by elevating testosterone levels.
In fact, sometimes infertile men are given synthetic testosterone and HCG together as a treatment. This is because synthetic testosterone will reduce or even shut down a man’s natural testosterone production. The HCG brings it back. You can also look to bodybuilding and other sports to see this is true. Bodybuilders and athletes take HCG after a steroid cycle in order to restore their testosterone production. You can find examples of professional or Olympic male athletes testing positive for HCG, which is banned as a performance enhancer in most sports.
“Treatment of hypogonadal symptoms with hCG for men who have a baseline testosterone level > 300 ng/dL appears to be safe and efficacious with no adverse events.”
National Institute of Health
This is important because I have not found studies regarding HCG and the muscle sparing effect during a low-calorie diet program.
Obese men often suffer from testosterone deficiency.
Testosterone and low-calorie diet study
What I did find were studies that looked at the effects of testosterone and even growth hormone in men eating a low-calorie diet.
“Men who adhere to a very low calorie diet lose significant weight, and they lose fat mass, which is great, but they also lose lean mass, which may not be desirable,” Mark Ng Tang Fui, MBBS, BMedSc, FRACP, an endocrinologist and PhD student in the department of medicine at the University of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, told Endocrine Today. “So if we also treat these men with testosterone, this helps these men to maintain their lean mass, and they lose more fat mass.”
“While men on placebo lost both lean and fat mass, testosterone prevented this loss of lean mass and shifted the weight loss almost exclusively to loss of fat,” Mathis Grossman, MD, PhD, FRACP, associate professor in the department of medicine at the University of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, told Endocrine Today.”
Endocrine Today
Growth Hormone and low-calorie diet study
I also found similar study with growth hormone releasing products, specifically Ibutamoren which is also known as MK-677. The purpose of the study was to determine if the drug can prevent muscle wasting in those that are prone to eat less, such as people who are very ill and do not each much. This can also apply to people who simply choose to reduce their calories. In fact, that is exactly how the study was performed. Healthy volunteers that were fed a very low-calorie diet.
“In conclusion, MK-677 reverses diet-induced nitrogen wasting, suggesting that if these short-term anabolic effects are maintained in patients who are catabolic because of certain acute or chronic disease states, it may be useful in treating catabolic conditions.”
National Library of Medicine
In a nutshell more testosterone or more growth hormone helps men preserve muscle even when they are on a calorie restricted diet. In addition, HCG is proven to be a testosterone releasing hormone for those that suffer from low testosterone levels.
Do you know who else suffers from low testosterone? Men who suffer from obesity!
“a 2008 study of 1,862 men ages 30 and above found that waist circumference was an even stronger predictor of low testosterone levels than BMI. A four-inch increase in waist size increased a man’s odds of having a low testosterone level by 75%; for comparison, 10 years of aging increased the odds by only 36%. All in all, waist circumference was the strongest single predictor of developing symptoms of testosterone deficiency.”
Harvard Medical School
So if we know that HCG stimulates the production of testosterone in men and that increased testosterone (or growth hormone) results in muscle being spared while on a low calorie diet, why wouldn’t HCG also create a muscle sparing effect in obese men on a low calorie diet?
HCG stimulates the production of estrogen and progesterone in women and testosterone in men. Low levels of these hormones are associated with obesity and abdominal fat accumulation.
Incomplete HCG Weight Loss Studies are to Blame
When it comes to science and medicine, we only know what we know based on the current information we have available. Conclusions are reached when new information is available and new theories are tested.
For some reason studies on HCG were conducted regarding weight loss but they did not test body fat, muscle mass or hormone levels in these same patients.
On the other, hand you can find multiple studies on men and women undergoing hormone therapy and weight loss that does include not only the weight they lost but their hormone levels, body fat and muscle mass. In these studies, it is pretty clear that the study subjects lost weight but the type of weight they lost was different than those not being treated.
I can’t and won’t say that HCG will have the same or similar results. I am no scientist and I am not a doctor. But I can ask why wouldn’t HCG help retain muscle and improve body shape while on a low-calorie diet if we know it stimulates leptin and the hormones that I have already mentioned? But, I bought HCG shots online and lost weight as well as retained muscle. You can see my HCG results here. Keep in mind I deviated from the plan. Read on and you will see why.
What I Think Dr. Simeons Got Wrong in his HCG Diet Book
I feel that Dr. Simeons did not provide research that was thorough enough. While he wrote about changes in body shape, I did not find any measurements regarding lean muscle loss, body fat percentage or hormone levels. Subsequently the research that followed him also ignored these same measurements. I find these important when evaluating a medical weight loss program.
A perfect study, in my humble opinion, would involve multiple test groups first and foremost. The groups would be divided into HCG groups and placebo groups. The groups would be split into a 500-calorie category, a 750-calorie category and a 1000 calorie category.
At the end of 30 days, I’d measure weight, fat and muscle in addition to hormone levels in all groups.
With that type of study, we could determine how much HCG may or may not contribute to changes in body composition along with weight loss.
The only study I could find that comes somewhat close was presented on the Dr. Oz show by Dr. Sherri L Emma. Again, the study wasn’t as compete as I would have liked. I found that she started a clinical trial but I could not find the results of that clinical trial. For what it is worth she stated that the HCG group lost 2 pounds of muscle in 30 days and the placebo group lost 5 pounds of muscle in that time. This is while each group was on a 500-calorie diet.
When reviewing studies look at the information included and the information NOT included.
Another issue I have with his HCG diet protocol is the diet itself.
In his own manuscript he noted that there were body shape changes in boys treated with HCG injections. This occurred even though there were no dietary changes because he was treating a hormone deficiency problem.
I can even overlook his choice of a 500-calorie diet vs perhaps a slightly higher calorie diet. I am sure his goal was to see how much weight loss is possible in 26-40 days on HCG. Personally, I would have used calorie tiers to compare the different calorie groups but I still can understand.
What I can’t understand are some of the restrictions, which frankly come across as a bit crazy to me. In the HCG diet food list, we see chicken but we do not see turkey. Why? I do not understand that. I see several vegetables but I don’t see broccoli or cauliflower. Again, why?
I understand having a lean meat, a vegetable and a fruit at every meal. I also understand restricting simple carbs, sugar and saturated fats. After all, increasing protein intake has proven to be effective. What I do not understand is why be so restrictive if you are doing everything and staying at your daily calorie goal?
We already know that lower calorie intake results in weight loss with or without HCG. In fact, he wrote it, studies have confirmed it and I have repeated it. The diet is what causes the weight loss. The other side of the theory is that it is the HCG that causes the body shape changes but we have already covered that.
Other restrictions in the original HCG manuscript
Other even crazier restrictions include banning the use of oil-based products and cosmetics. I simply do not agree with this at all. I don’t believe a skin lotion or makeup is going to ruin results. Besides who is going to tell women that all they can use is lipstick, an eyebrow pencil and powder?
You also should not be on other medicine without special permission. What? People suffering from obesity often have serious health issues such as high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. Surely these conditions would improve after the weight loss but they have to survive the treatment first! No way in the world would I ever suggest that, let alone put it in writing.
