The HCG Diet – A Closer Look at its Proposed Advantages and Potential Health Risks

The Weight Loss Plans to Try and the Fad Diets to Skip if You Want to See Results

That means that you should not be considering what is working for your friends or family members — and instead should pay attention to what works for you individually. Keep in mind that pregnancy is not a time for weight loss. Speak with your doctor before making any changes to your diet if you are pregnant or breast-feeding. And do a self-check to ensure the diet fits with your own values and preferences. Travel a lot and rely on eating out? The DASH diet may end in frustration for you.

The diet you choose needs to be safe and effective, while taking into account your lifestyle. To lessen the confusion and get on the fast track to success, we got the skinny on some of the most popular diets out there today. So read on to see which plan might be best for you — and which diets to run away from at full speed! Saying goodbye to bread and other carbs.

The concept is to eat only foods — including meat, fish, poultry, eggs , fruits, and vegetables — that would have been available to our Paleolithic ancestors. In fact, some say the keto diet is the new Atkins, though these popular low-carb plans are markedly different. Find out how here. Low-Carb Diet Many diets, including Atkins and the keto diet, fit into this umbrella. There are many ways to do intermittent fasting — ranging from fasting for a number of hours each day up to an entire hour fasting period one or two times a week.

It might be best for people with more stability in their lives. With Oprah as one of its most notable proponents, this eating plan has been around for years. The plan promotes long-lasting, sustainable changes, and undoubtedly a bounty of research backs this up. The first phase is the most restrictive, limiting carbs such as potatoes and rice. Each subsequent phase becomes more lenient, and the diet emphasizes lean protein, unsaturated fats, and low-glycemic carbs such as nonstarchy vegetables. For example, vegans consume no animal products, whereas ovo-lacto vegetarians eat both dairy and eggs.

With this approach, plant proteins, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and fruits and veggies will be staples, with the occasional meat dish thrown in. The Mediterranean diet is meant to reflect the eating pattern of people living in the Mediterranean. So think plenty of vegetables, fruits, olive oil, fish, nuts, beans, legumes — and only a moderate amount of red wine and dairy.

Cutting out added sugar and alcohol has merit, but all the restrictions prove challenging and could lead to nutrient deficiencies and disordered eating. The fact that the diet eliminates nutritious foods is a big red flag for me. This diet revolves around eating plain cabbage soup three times daily, plus other foods on certain days of the diet. But this hormone has also gained popularity as a weight-loss supplement — and using it as such can be dangerous.

There's no perfect diet for everyone. A Detailed Guide to Antioxidants: Popular Diet Plans Backed by Some Scientific Evidence Keto Diet This high-fat, adequate-protein, low-carb fad diet sends the body into a state of ketosis , in which the body uses stored fat for energy. Atkins Diet This low-carb, high-protein diet has been around for decades. Noshing on things like leafy greens, fish, and olive oil can help boost your cognition and ward off dementia.

Neither, New Research Suggests. South Beach Diet Created in by cardiologist Arthur Agatston, this low-carb diet features three phases. HCG Diet HCG, or Human Chorionic Gonadotropin, is a hormone produced during pregnancy by the placenta after implantation, and doctors sometimes prescribe it for fertility issues.

I am on day 4 of taking all of it. And today i woke up with pressure in my chest, dizziness, and i'm wondering if it's from taking all of this. Has anybody taken so many per day? Or just certain pills, liquids? Any help is appreciated. Hello, i'm currently on the Omni Hcg diet and am experiencing chest pressure, dizziness and even my left arm feels weird.

No pain just extremely dizzy. My distributor recommended the drops 3x a day 10 drops each time , the Omni 4, 2 CHARGE pills, then for lunch 2 garcinia, 2 extra enhancers then before dinner, 2 more garcinia and 2 extra enhancers, at night i take the nite lite. I'm wondering if i really need all this? I feel so dizzy and i have been on this for 3 days. Can somebody tell me if they have the same experience?

I am so sorry you have been through so much. According to the label on the Omni Drops, there is no hCG. The measurement given means there is one molecule of hCG for every billion drops of water the exact measurement is earlier in this article. They call it the memory of water but I'm not into that hocus pocus stuff. If water 'remembered' every molecule with which it had been in contact, it would no longer be h2o. That said, starving yourself and, yes, that is what is happening here takes such a drastic toll on your body.

I hope you can work on getting healthy again and I really hope you are able to conceive again. Huge hug for you. My Physicians, and I, believe the HCG diet is the main cause of three molar pregnancies IV suffered since my discontinue of the diet nearly four years ago. Weeks after ending the diet, my menstrual cycle was more like a hemorrhage that lasted weeks sometimes. A month after discontinued, the migraines begin, and I mean, the worst migraines iv ever experienced in my adult life, sent me to the hospital twice.

One year after discontinue, my once healthy childbearing body was nothing more then a wreck inside, 25 years old, my first pregnancy was the epitome of healthy, one year later before the diet, but now I'm looking at my first of many unexplained molar pregnancy, no explanation, until the second one. Spoke to my physician about the diet, he understand immediately, as I wasn't the first in his office.

My HCG levels go up and down like I'm stuck in a nightmare that takes 6 months to reach back to 0. If anyone else has gone through this, please message me, jenniemyers39 yahoo. Gil, I know this is a long article and you must have missed the section on why there is no real hCG in the drops. I invite you to go back in read it but, in a very quick nutshell, what is the amount of hCG in the ingredients on your bottle?

Is there an X? Let's just say there is a 60x, shall we? That means that for every 1,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, molecules of water in your bottle, there is one molecule of hCG. I don't know how big your bottle is but mine was not bathtub or pool size: There is no real hCG in those bottles. So either you are unaware of the contents or are intentionally misleading readers. Of course there is a third course, less likely, that you are unable to verify because you cannot find the information on the label?

There is no hCG in the drops so this was likely from the hunger which would make sense or whatever hidden ingredients are in that bottle. I suspect the bottles just contain water though. The burning feeling sounds awful. Were you taking something with niacin? We get enough niacin in our diets and studies are showing how harmful supplementing with it can be.

My experience with HCG is a little different. It affected my emotions and made me depressed and at night I would wake up and my skin would be burning from the inside. I recently saw a liposuction doctor to get a consultation on my mid section. As I get older it holds more fat. He immediately launched into HGC diet and didn't even evaluate my body or areas of concern. Then his nurse came in room and basically rushed him to next patient. She then informed me that the diet injections cost How strange I thought.

Didn't come here for a speed diet. I've tried those once and thought I was going to die of heart panic. So sceptic that I am I went researching this diet.

Atkins Diet: What's behind the claims?

Thank you for your frank sharing. I will steer clear. And shame on these "doctors" for leading people down this path. Kept it off for 8 years. Once I introduced carbs back in my life, I gained. I was , went down to , then stabilized to My side effects after the diet were extreme stomach pains from time to time, which would last up to an hour, dropping me to my knees each time. After years of pain, I went to my doctor who said I had created gall stones.

They recommend removing my gall bladder. I also experienced palpitations and irregular heartbeats which have subsided. I only did the diet once and wanted to try it again but after reading about the side effects way too late, I will continue eating healthy and exercising. I eat about per day and drink a half to a gallon of water per day. The diet is a quick fix and it did stay off for a while but the side effects are definitely not worth it. At age 45, my doctor also states that yo-yo dieting is bad for your skin, elasticity and collagen depletion.

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You can take your chances but the consequences may hurt your health for the rest of your life. I've had women mention getting them tested but not sure whether they've done it or not. I think one of the issues that has been raised is that in a lab, they need to know what they are testing to find. There is no hCG in the bottle based on the label measurements so they won't find hCG and indeed a pregnancy test kit is enough to tell you that.

You don't lose weight from these drops. It's the starvation diet that does it. If you do get them tested, please, keep us updated. I've heard from so many people that have been harmed by this diet. Did a search for this diet and hives and you are not alone. I don't know if it has to do with starving your body or something hidden in the drops. Really, there is no hCG in these drops but that's not to say there isn't some chemical or drug or something that is not on the label. I discovered and many women have said the same that when you have complications with this diet, the people selling the diet are very quick to blame you and accuse you of being dishonest somehow.

It is awful and worse because you are already feeling so awful from this crazy diet. That diet really did such a terrible number on my body. For me, I had to ditch trying to lose weight entirely. Well, I wish I had seen some of these comments a long time ago!! Thank you for sharing your stories. I did hcg drops years ago to prepare for a hernia surgery.

I was successful in loosing 30lbs and keeping it off for a few years. Once things started to creep back on, I went to a doctor which put me on the hcg injections. After 4 weeks I only lost 9 lbs. He was disappointed with my results and even accused me of consuming msg in Chinese food: Then went on to tell me that I was hcg resistant and there was really nothing I could do about it.

During both hcg experiences I developed low iron, hair loss, leg cramps, headaches, heart palpitations, and extreme irritability. Since this last bout of the shots over a year ago, I am up 30lbs. I have fought every single pound that has come on! I have been to medical doctors, natural path doctors, consulted nutritionist, started exercising, hired a personal trainer, gone to the gym and done hours and hours of research.

Nobody can find any fault in my diet and I have completely baffled all in involved! It is so nice to hear these sad stories just because it makes me feel that I am not alone and not going completely crazy! I am wondering though Does anyone have any wisdom at all on how to heal a broken metabolism? Where do we all go from here?

Are we all just destined to carry around the extra lbs? I am at a complete loss right now and am feeling pretty defeated. I did this diet and lost 54 lbs. I went to several different Drs and they could not figure out the cause of my hives other than said it was an allergic reaction Tried all different types of creams, otc allergy medications dbl doses, oatmeal baths with no relief. I had black n blues all over from nonstop scratching. I stopped the diet altogether and after a few months the hives disappeared. I gained back about 30 lbs and decided to go back on this diet because of my past success.

I have stopped the drops and on p2d3 my hives have subsided. Clearly something in the drops are causing the allergic reaction. Guess I'm just going to eat clean and hope to drop some weight. I've only taken them twice but both times have caused stomach cramps. Does anyone have a suggestion of where I could take them? Felize, thank you for sharing your story. I too was so discouraged by posts being deleted that talked of any side effects. Had I seen the 'real' posts, I never would have done this.

Tells you why they delete those posts though. They wouldn't get much business at all.

How to Fix Trouble Sleeping on the hCG Diet (and why it's so important)

You can share your stories with others but some just have to go through the terrible side effects themselves to get it. Your story is a common one, sadly enough and, yet, women keep doing this to themselves. I ended up with severe reacting after loosing 80 lbs in 4 months. I ended up damaging my heart due to the hcg side affect which i didnt notice till later on. Weight coming back swollen ankles and face. Itndamagednmy kedneys and liver. I thought it made me lookngreat at ln s crom But now i wish i had never takn it.

The clinic should be sued and theynstill aremselling hcg to people. Molly, easy to become obsessive on this diet, isn't it? I hear that from so many who have contacted me and, sadly, has led to many women with serious eating disorders. Stop focusing on what the other women are doing. A lot of it is built on untruths. So many women end up fatter and in worse shape after this. Work on getting yourself healthy.

Hopefully your story will help others from starting. Some of the saddest messages I get are from women who read all of this but started anyway. They later email me to share what an awful mistake it was. Please, keep us updated on your progress and healing. Stay away from fad diets. You've learned a valuable lesson here. So glad to have found this. It's hard not to feel like a big fat ter loser when the downside of this diet is not publicized and all you see on fb are pictures of high school witches that are supposedly maintaining.

Once upon a time about 13 years ago I weighed in at a boat sinking I lost on a treadmill over 8 months. It wasn't pretty, people. Some calorie restriction, some cravings but overall a tolerable time. I came to adore snackwells chocolate cookies and fought my children for them regularly. Eventually I fell off the exercise mostly but ate decent enough, slowly over a few years, nothing alarming 20 lbs crept back on.

No big, I didn't panic, I still went from a size 26 to 18 and was cool to be there awhile. Fast forward from that amazing span of 7 or 8 years when I didn't deny, didn't obsess, ate out with my family and didn't stress over my butt. I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia 3 years ago. Weight began creeping even faster due how bad it hurt to move. I cut out carbs and found relief without medication and dropped 30lbs. Then I was cruising at about , feeling better and starting up at the gym again to finish what I started.

THEN I came across hcg. I was focused on how LONG it took to lose pounds, not the fat that I maintained it for a decade like a rockstar, through raising small kids, college, working and being diagnosed with Fibro. I wanted it now. That beeeeeeep couldn't get here fast enough. You all know how that goes. You end up having to sleep sitting up it's so painful.

My first round rocked. I have to admit, I did feel good. Sloooooowly, despite being perfect with eating, it started coming back. I got real frustrated. I mean, it had to be me, right? I shouldn't have had that second ounce of cheese. It was those beeeeeep unsalted mixed nuts with all those healthy heart oils that got me. Saddle up cowgirl, we're gonna do this right this time. Round two was harder. I began obsessing about food.

I would smell everything and count the day til I could have it again. Even at lbs I never "smelled" food. So again I go into p3. I started round three early because I couldn't keep the scale from going up. THIS time, I loaded for three days. You know, just in case. That round failed miserably. I ended it after 9 days because I felt like crap this time and couldn't keep my head "in the game. Very recently a light came on for me.

I have kept zero of hcg weight off after a year and a half of back and forth. I will confess, I just did a round early December. I was in 16's and was pushing the manufactures stitch limits. On December 1st, I had to decide go buy 18s or get back on the crack. I did a 3 week round because, you know, it was gonna work this time. I went on p3 for Christmas thinking I'd just sail back into the back half. Nope, epic bomb number I lost count. I have no idea what I've done to my body.

I went on an eating tear like you have never seen.

In a matter of four days, every pound from the three week round is back. I am sitting here happily eating unsalted mixed nuts and have accepted the fact that this just isn't going to work. Lord, let it be 18s and not 20's But even if it is, I have a bigger problem to deal with. This new crazy obsession with food and a carb addiction to beat the band. I have a gym membership unused for a year and a half on hcg and plan on using it now.

Saddle up cowgirl, we're gonna do it the right way this time. Sorry to ramble, this is just not an easy thing to come to accept. My metabolism has to get used to eating normal food again. That might mean more gains. I'm mentally preparing for it. I have worse pitting edema in my legs than I have ever had, I've always leaned toward puffy with a grain or two of salt But this is nuts.

I have to try to avoid simple carbs for my fibromyalgia when I just came across this amazing recipe for homemade brownies. This is so crazy. Do I regret hcg? Before hcg I could eat one brownie. Now I'll throw down for the whole pan. I don't think I hope and pray I don't have any lasting damage besides a wrecked metabolism and some head games. I phoned my best friend who has been right along side me for this maddness and told her I'm done. I can't do this anymore. I'm going back to the gym and doing it the way we did before, real slow with lots of sweat.

She's jumping on one more round on new years. She's gained it all back too, but, you know, this time it'll work. I'll be here for her when she sees the light.

Weight Watchers: What does it involve?

Much love to anyone else out there who has been on this merry go round. But then again, I probably would have done it anyway. Thanks to everyone else for sharing their story. Now to see if I can reach my shoes to lace up for the gym. Your metabolism has likely slowed so much that your body is holding on to every calorie possible thinking that you are starving.

That would account for the bloat. If you find that the weight starts returning quickly or discover other problems like with a rapid heartbeat or pain, see your doctor right away. The problems that I am having after my second cycle of the drops, is bloating and headaches. Plus, I noticed that I am waking up more throughout the nite so sleeplesness too. I have stopped useing this product altogether.

I have lost thirty pounds but feeling terrible and bloated. Jennifer, I am so sorry. You are not alone. I cannot even tell you how many women have messaged me to tell me this diet made them fatter and it really does a terrible thing to our metabolism. Other women tell me they developed eating disorders because the rebounding weight was too much for them. Don't do that either! Sounds like you are on the right track now.

Just avoid these fad diets and seek the advice of a nutritionist. You might find a much safer way to shed those lbs. Danielle, I am so sorry. It was so awful. I hope you are feeling better soon. It's amazing how much harm can come to your body through this diet. Feel for it and am day 3 and quitting I've never felt worse in my life. It's literally like death. Pounding daily migraines along with nasty stomach pains that make me want to puke all day. In hot in cold I'm tired I'm misserable. If anything, I've heard from more people doing the drops than the shots and they seem to be even worse.

With the shots, at least you are closely monitored or should be but, with the drops, you get a distributor who is making money off this diet and does not want to admit the problems. I hope you find something that works for you. I know, like you, my body lost muscle and gained more fat. Just an awful diet all around.

I tried the HCG injections for 4 courses. Did well the first couple of times but as I added even healthy foods back I gained and gained. Was worst mistake of my life. My hair thinned and everyone told me while yes I was thinner I was looking old and frankly misshapen. That was 2 years ago and I've worked hard just eating clean to keep my weight down but the odd extra bulk on my arms and legs are here to stay. I actually fell for the FB ads for the Omnitrition diet until I was accepted into a private chat room with no answers to my questions and vague references to "drops".

I did some further research and have come to conclusion it's the same old gimmick HCG with dangerous diet that left me deformed with really no explanation why! I've had women email me to ask how to get all their weight off that they gained after the hCG diet. I've got nothing there. This diet slows the metabolism so much, I think the only solution is to work with a nutritionist. Doing more rounds only makes the problems worse and, I believe, causes a lot of future health problems. We chatted last year about someone who went on this crazy diet!

I Have been following the woman who lost all the weight on the drops last year - well she gained a lot of it back! She was trying all kinds of things to get the weight back off but nothing is working - another surprise! So now she is starting the drops again tomorrow. Sandy, I am so sorry. It does seem that unless you are committed to the unhealthy routine of dieting and starving yourself apple days, steak days I have had so many women message or email me to tell me how depressed they became after the diet because even though they did everything the way they were supposed to, they didn't want to continue cycle after cycle after cycle and they got fatter.

Some women have even admitted to developing eating disorders bulemia, anorexia, etc.. It's so disheartening to see that weight jump up again. Please, keep us updated. I was convinced into this diet after having an immensely difficult year professionally and personally during which I gained about 20 pounds which was a lot considering my petite frame 5'0 and went from pounds.

I was finally getting my life into order and going to the gym when a friend suggested the diet and I thought, this can't hurt and if it doesn't work, "oh well". It turned out I lost 17 pounds in a little over a month and although it was a difficult month, the idea behind losing all this weight was incredible and kept me going. I felt in that moment that I wanted to stop, since I was so close to my ideal weight and while I did read about all of the horrors of going back to a natural diet, I refused to continue the P3 stage because I was really done dieting and wanted to have normal healthy food.

Within a week, I gained 10 pounds, and this is healthy eating with a sweet here and there, but 10 pounds in a week is terrible. Yes I gained 20, but that was during a hard year. I now find myself with terrible anxieties, difficulty sleeping and afraid of what my scale will look like the next day or until I remove from my system whatever terrible contents where in that bottle easy HCG drops.

I'm considering doing a cleanse, because I am really afraid of the contents that were in that bottle. I will share again my story in a week, in hopes that whoever is experiencing the same can get a follow-up. These extreme fad diets can definitely affect your cycle. It really affected mine. In fact, it totally changed mine. I'm glad you got off that diet sooner rather than later. I don't think the drops affected your cycle but I could be wrong. They contain no real hCG but nobody seems to know what is really in them or if they are just water.

The super low-calorie diet is what really causes problems. Talk to your doctor and see what they suggest. I took the omni drops last month for only 5 days. I became extremely sick. Dizziness, migraines, nausea, vomiting. I started this diet right after my period ended last month. I was due for my period for this month 11 days ago. So far I've gotten negative pregnancy tests. I normally have a regular cycle, so I'm wondering that if I'm not pregnancy than if these drops have something to do with it??? This diet does seem to do a number of the body.

I know the people selling it are telling us how 'healthy' it is but, based on all the stories collecting here and the poll results, it is obvious this is anything but healthy and it does make so many people fatter in the long run. I wish I had a good solution on how to heal from this diet.

Many people have asked me. If you are feeling depressed or suicidal, I think the first step would be a counselor of some sort. I have also talked to so many women who developed eating disorders or serious depression as a result of this diet and I think counseling would be a good step to take. I did HCG diet Jan When searching for side effects I could not find any negative comments.

So I started out with the drops and ended with injecting it. It was very hungry for the first two weeks and finished one round. I lost about 20 lbs. I quickly started gaining the weight back and have put on an additional 40 lbs. If I eat any starchy or carb contains foods I gain weight immediately. I still weigh every morning to try to keep a handle on the weight gain. HCG has ruined my life to the point I have felt suicidal at times which I would never act on.

How could this diet affect someone five years after the fact. It is almost like the brain or body still thinks I am in the loading phase of the diet after five years. I would like to see this site focus on a solution at this point to help those of to get back to normal. Most of us are searching for a solution Since doing this diet, I've struggled with bladder and kidney infections as well. It has been awful. I did HCG twice by injections and once by drops from and now have very serious renal problems. I followed the diet exactly and lost weight but soon developed joint stiffness following the last time, then bladder infections and then renal deterioration.

I had no health problems before. Well, it is hCG in name only since there is not real hCG in it I'm so glad you have stopped. A gal I know had serious problems with her kidneys as a result of this diet and I've had kidney infections since my own time doing this diet. You should report your side effects to the FDA and what you were told. Thank you for sharing your experience with us. I specifically asked the gal selling me the drops if it was like HCG I had done that diet before and gained all plus some back She said NO!

I asked do you have to only eat calories, She said NO! No money back guarantee, but she had great success, so I started. Day 3 I had headaches, constipation and starving! Now, my kidneys hurt! Gotta be a better way. I've had a few women message me who have had problems with the Nite Lite, some of them serious. New studies are out warning about taking niacin in increased doses.

There can be some very serious complications. Interesting that you mention getting sick after starting this. I've had even more people telling me they got pretty ill after doing the hCG diet. Don't know if it is the diet lowering the immune system because you are starving yourself or what but I hope you feel better soon. I started taking Nite Lite to cure my insomnia. It got me off of my prescription pills.

Then I started getting chronic headaches. I didn't know if it was from the Nite Lite product or the horrible sinus infection I acquired shortly after I began this product. So, I got off of it and focussed on getting my sinuses better. Does anyone know if this product has any major symptoms? I am sorry and glad to hear you are quitting before this gets any worse. Fortunately, you should be able to get your money back.

Side effects were so common when I was doing it. I felt like you but parked myself and watched their page on Facebook. They were quick to delete 'problem' posts. Sometimes I wonder if that is why they keep closing their Facebook page and starting a new one. Easier to get rid of all the people who haven't had a good experience with the products. My husband and I have been on this diet for 4 days. I immediately started with dizziness. Day 3 came the headache. Not your run-of-the-mill headache. A Horrible headache that i still have. Also i got diarrhea. This is when i started looking for side effects.

I kept thinking all along that there has got to be posts, somewhere. Thankfully I found this. I had decided last night to stop taking the Omni products. I just convinced my husband to stop too! Oh Mary, I am sorry. There are folks online who really believe their cancer was a result of the hCG diet.

After 1 month on the HCG shots I had severe pains in my stomach so dr said stop taking shots as that is a side effect! One of the difficulties though is this will slow your metabolism so much that you'll gain much easier now and it really is harder to lose it again. I think you ought to complain to the BBB and get your money back.

I am currently doing my first 40 day round of HCG injections. I'm on day Some days I haven't felt that bad but lately I'm starving, grouchy, haven't slept well since I started. I heard about HCG years ago but never considered it. I tried for 3 years and could not lose a pound. Things that worked in the past didn't work anymore. I did this as a last resort out of desperation. After 30 days at calories I have only lost 13 lbs. Better than nothing but not great considering how extreme this diet is.

I guess I'm wondering if only 1 round will still damage my metabolism further? I paid my Dr. That really was the goal when I created this page. I saw too many posts deleted on the Facebook page when people had side effects. I saw comments like this before the entire post was deleted: Your comment could stop a person from using a product that could change their life!!

I developed some pretty serious side effects. I also believe that some of the effects of this diet may not be seen right away. Since doing this diet, I have been having some pretty serious kidney infections. Had I not had those initial side effects, I might not have linked these infections to what that diet may have done to my kidneys. I'm so glad people can share their stories here to balance out what they 'share' and won't share on the Facebook page. A page like this would have kept me from doing this awful diet. I had thought about doing omni drops because a friend has lost 47 pounds, she doesn't have any side effects now, but my common sense tells me that I can't survive with calories per day.

It sounds too good to be true and too little food!! I have to admit I was tempted until I read this blog. I read the diet and it gave me a real headache just by reading what I was supposed to eat and finding it way too small portions and no carbs at all. Second, I found this page and it's the only page that I feel tells the truth from different people. Talk to your doctor and let them know if you think it may be affecting you. Fortunately, unless there are hidden ingredients, there is no hCG in the drops so you won't have to deal with hCG side effects.

I just started 6 days ago this hcg diet and I am already disappointing. I did everything what it says on Dr. This morning I was really upset and I wanted to do some research on this product and I'm so happy that I did. Thank you, Cari for your honest story and your site! Now I need to figure out how I can clean this garbage from my system. I hope it's not too late and I won't have big problems with my health. I have never heard of the cream before. Sounds awful and since hCG can't be absorbed through the skin, who knows what is in there. You really ought to report that doctor to the FDA along with your side effects.

The FTC might be interested as well.

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That is just awful. My story is new and very short! I started hcg cream on sept 19th. I went into the doctors office, and everyone in the office had used it and lost tonnage of weight. I was so pumped up and excited. Now Im tryin to figure out if its worth it! I do not like being sick, and certainly don't have time for that mess!

It really does slow down your metabolism, making it so much harder to lose weight in the future. I'm glad you didn't eat the calorie diet though. There is no hCG in the drops so even if hCG did work, they are not even there to work and the starvation diet just does such a number on the body. That page was hard for me too. I was so bothered by all the posts they were deleting. If I had seen the real posts, I wouldn't have done the diet either. I started this diet right after Christmas I did NOT follow the calorie diet, although I did eat very small portions of what the rest of my family was eating.

My goal was to lose 15 pounds, and I did in very short time. However, I could not sleep at night, and I developed night sweats and hot flashes unlike anything I have ever experienced. I was 55 at the time, and I suppose you could blame it on menopause, but I think there was more to it than just that - never before had I been having 8 or 9 per hour. I had wonderful slimming results but stopped after 4 weeks due to all the crazy physical stuff. Eight months later, I have gained back the 15 pounds plus a few extra, and you're right in saying that nothing seems to get it off now.

I was very bothered by the Omnitrition Facebook page, and should have gone with my instinct, but the results for a few of my FB friends were too tempting. I should have known better. This diet really does a number on the body and I have no doubt long term for many. It definitely makes weight loss more difficult for the future. There is no doubt hCG is not the answer. I hope you are able to recover from the diet and find a plan that work for you. Thank you for the comment. I did this diet religiously 2 years ago--I probably did 6 rounds; I went from size 16 to an 8.

But in between every round, I would gain weight back.

Atkins Diet: What's behind the claims? - Mayo Clinic

It was an endless cycle. I lost hair, couldn't sleep, had horrid stomach pains, etc. I finally decided it was a cycle that was destructive. Since then I have cut out all wheat, grains, sugar except dark chocolate , dairy except heavy cream , and try to eat high fat low carb. When I introduce any wheat back, I wanted to die. So I thought the paleo way was my answer. But I lived every other day doing steak days. I've tried intermittent fasting. I'm scared to mess with hormones, but frustrated nothing works. The heart problems are scary and too many women seem to develop heart trouble during this diet.

I also have no doubt because of what I've been through and so many other stories shared that this does something internally. About half the people responding here that have done the diet, according to the poll, report serious side effects, This is not worth the risk. The fact that so many people follow it to the letter and get fatter alone should keep us away from this diet.

I just had a baby 4 months ago and I decided to try it I was doing well and then I started taking charge and had some heart issues because of it I have also been haVing alot of stomach problems because of it I recently got off it and still am having problems with my stomach AND I feel bigger then when I started I've struggled forever with weight and I hope people see this and decide against it!

At my heaviest, I was tipping the scale at pounds. I slowing lost weight and got to pounds losing it the "right way". Some of my weight loss also contributed to Weight Watchers. Over the course of ten years, I gained back 20 pounds making me At that point a friend convinced me to try HCG. I did online research for 2 months to be sure this was "safe". There seemed to be little to no side effects according to the countless articles. I decided to do the diet. I did it not once but three times. The second time I did it I convinced my friend to do it with me as well.

Each time I lost 25 to 35 pounds. I did take the recommend break between the diet so it would work and be "safe". I got down to pounds over the course of 3 rounds. I couldn't remember the last time I was under pounds maybe high school. Now its been a year since the last round of HCG. I few months after I did the maintenance phase, the weight started piling on. No matter how much I exercised or ate right, I kept gaining weight. Today I am at pounds. I have been waking up at 5 am and working out at the gym I have only gained weight. I measured myself to see if I was at least losing inches I have gained inches.

My weight continues to pile on and I am desperate to make my metabolism back to normal. I eat protein, vegetables, the "good" carbs and fruit. I only drink water, tea or almond milk. My next step is to see a dietician. Do yourself a favor First of all, huge hug for you.

This diet just put you through so much. More and more people are contacting me talking about the depression this experience has left them in and talking about the personality changes. It's interesting, I had such awful side effects that I wonder what it really did to my body.

After reading about some of the products and ingredients in them, it could start doing damage and you wouldn't know until years later and who would connect those dots then? For example, they were trying to push a product on me with super high levels of niacin and I found out that it can cause long-term liver damage and there was a study that showed that in people who took high levels of niacin, they were fatter after ten years.

I just think all these products are unsafe now. Best wishes on getting your health back. Thank you for comment. Each and every comment helps so many people. I hear that a lot. I did HCG for 11 weeks back in I lost 70 pounds. I had gained quite a bit of weight from having my two children, and this was the only diet that got me where I wanted to be. I had a really difficult time doing the diet because I was always hungry. But I had experience with starving myself as I did quite a bit in my younger years always trying to lose weight. I believed everything that my mentor told me and knowing that I had to go back week after week and tell how much weight I had lost helped keep me accountable.

The kind that you get where you can't even move, where you actually want to slit your wrists and die because it hurts too much to keep your head level. I went through that for 11 weeks. There was no pain medication to relieve the pain. It felt different from migraines, which I have had in the past. I literally felt like my head was constantly being pressed in. I have a feeling, after doing some research, that the culprit may have been the Truvia that I started sweetening my coffee with.

We were told that we could either us Truvia or Stevia and I opted for the cheaper. Truvia is not actually a pure extract of Stevia like I was led to believe. During this time I had lots of energy, there were times that I would feel fatigue, but for the most part I slept well and felt good. Other than the headaches, lol. Then I took a trip out of stat and during the course of going to several friends and faimlies' houses, got my first taste of "real" food. I got home and the first thing I shoved into my mouth was a freshly baked cookie. I didn't see teh weight start coming back on for a few weeks.

I noticed clothes were a little tighter so I started trying to take the drops again. I couldn't do the diet without accountability. I tried for a full 2 years, on and off, to start the drops and the diet, unsuccessfully, and have gained more than I took off in the beginning.

A Detailed Guide to the Cabbage Soup Diet: Can the Plan Help You Lose 10 Pounds in 7 Days?

In fact, I am at my heaviest weight ever. I am heavier now than when I was pregnant. I would say about a year following when I stopped the drops, I was in a deep depression, and I"m thinking that it has to do with the fact that I was gaining weight back at a very fast pace and couldn't stop it - along with the crazy stuff that HCG did to my metabolism, hormones, balance, everything. I started feeling like I was going crazy!!

I was still having horrible headaches, which affected my driving, my temper, my mood, my marriage, the way I spoke to and treated my children, my friendships - I lost many friendships. I must have been horrible to be around - I was in so much physical pain with the headaches, not sleeping well, and depressed about my overall appearance and health.