I want to find a genuine hoodia product (appetite suppressant) that is
a five-star quality product with a reasonable price. Purity, a South
African authentic plant source and quality are more important to me
than price. But, of course price does matter if we are talking about
two or more equivalent brands with different prices. I found a product
that appears to be the "best" but the comparative information was
published by the producer of the "best" product in the article rather
than by an outside source. So, I am a bit suspicious. The product I
found is "Desert Burn ZA-750.  I found the comparative information at
this web address: http://www.100hoodia.com .  I would like you to
research "Desert Burn ZA-750's" claims to see if they are
valid and I would like you to find any higher quality or equivalent Hoodia
products. Information on Hoodia's effectiveness would also be
appreciated, if you have time to look into that.
Thank you, Laura  lauravalvatne@charter.net

It is highly unlikely that the product you mentioned contains genuine
hoodia gordonii, or the component that actually suppresses appetite. 
The molecule in hoodia gordonii that is responsible for appetite
suppression is P57. P57 has been patented by Phytopharm and cannot be
sold for weight loss by other companies. Furthermore, the plant itself
is considered rare and is protected by African law and cannot be
exported.  At this point, Phytopharm has licensed Unilever (the makers
of Slimfast and other products) to sell genuine Hoodia Gordonii,
though it is not on the market yet. It has taken extensive research to
find a way to actually extract a form of P57 into a product that can
be taken safely and effectively. It isn't as simple as drying and
grinding the plants. They are currently in the testing phase to learn
if it is indeed effective, and if it is safe to consume long term.
They hope to have a safe and effective product on the market by the
end of 2006 or early 2007. Until then, save your money.

Experts are now saying that there is more fake hoodia gordonii for
sale in stores and online than there are genuine hoodia gordonii
plants on the planet. So what's actually in those capsules? No one
really knows.

I agree with your opinion that the comparative results of the
100hoodia report should not be trusted because they are the same
company as the product they recommend purchasing.

I bought some hoodia from www.nowfoods.com, but only took 1 capsule so
far, so I can't say if it works.
Supposedly, you can't patent a natural food. It sounds like the
company mentioned above may be planning to market the active
ingredient. It also sounds like marketing material (P57?).