FDA Official: Non-Prescription HCG a Fraud

TEMPE – HCG has become the latest diet craze. It’s a hormone people use to lose weight, but some top doctors say there’s no proof that certain HCG products actually work.

We’re talking about over-the-counter HCG products, like oral drops or sprays, not full-strength HCG prescribed from a doctor.

You might be tempted to get those products for less at your local health store, instead of a doctor’s prescription, but health experts advise not so fast.

HCG is a hormone produced by the placenta during pregnancy. Supporters claim HCG is a weight-loss miracle when combined with a 500-calorie-a-day diet.

But according to a top FDA official, as told to USA Today, “Retail versions of a popular weight-loss aid that contain trace amounts of a pregnancy hormone are a fraud and are being sold illegally.”

The FDA approves drugs made from certain homeopathic ingredients, but HCG is not one of them.

Tempe doctor Laree Hooker says there is no medical evidence that over-the-counter HCG products actually work.

“With the injectible HCG all the literature shows, that after the protocol, it basically recalibrates your metabolism for your body’s new set point for your weight, and that evidence is just not present for the homeopathic version,” says Dr. Hooker.

She adds that non-prescription HCG products could be dangerous.

“If people are purchasing this over the counter, they are not being evaluated by a physician, they’re not having someone look at their bloodwork just to make sure that they’re a healthy individual to be able to do this.”