Dangers of HCG Injections for Weight Loss

Human chorionic gonadotropin, or HCG, is a hormone produced during pregnancy, found in the blood and excreted through urine. HCG injections are prescribed to treat infertility by causing ovulation in women and increasing sperm count in men. Some people also use it to help with weight loss, although no research supports the theory that HCG injections are useful for this purpose.

Misconceptions

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved HCG injections for weight loss. Although doctors can prescribe medications for unapproved, or off-label, use, the FDA requires advertising materials and product labeling for HCG to state that no substantial evidence shows any effectiveness of HCG for weight loss. There also is no substantial evidence that HCG injections can redistribute fat or that it decreases hunger.

Pregnancy Considerations

Women who may become pregnant must be very cautious about using HCG injections for weight loss. The hormone can greatly increase the chances of a multiple pregnancy, resulting in twins, triplets or even more. Multiple pregnancies, particularly those with more than two babies, can be high-risk for both the mother and the babies, and often lead to premature delivery and low birth weight. Additionally, HCG can cause severe birth defects. Women who use HCG injections to treat infertility must stop using the hormone as soon as they become pregnant, and women who use HCG for weight loss must also do so.

Life-Threatening Complication

HCG injections are associated with ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, a disorder that can be life-threatening. Symptoms include severe pelvic pain, abdominal swelling, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, swelling of the hands or legs, weight gain, difficulty breathing and urinating less than normal. These symptoms occurring while taking HCG injections should be considered a medical emergency.

Rare Serious Effects

Rarely, HCG injections can cause a blood clot. Symptoms include pain, swelling, warmth, redness, and numb or tingling sensations in an arm or leg. A person with a blood clot also might experience dizziness and confusion and develop a severe headache. An additional rare but possible side effect is an allergic reaction to HCG. Signs are a rash or hives, difficulty breathing, throat closing, and facial or mouth swelling.

Contraindications

HCG injections can be dangerous if the patient has a hormone-related cancer or another condition that can be worsened by additional hormones. These types of cancers include prostate, breast, ovary, uterine, hypothalamus and pituitary. Women with an ovarian cyst and anyone with a thyroid or adrenal gland disorder should not use HCG injections.

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What Are the Benefits of HCG Injections?

Human chorionic gandotrophin, or HCG, is a hormone found in the urine of pregnant women. There are many speculated benefits associated with the use of HCG. Some claim that it is a highly effective tool in the fight against weight loss. This is not only an unproven claim, but the official U.S. Food and Drug Administration position is that it is untrue. However, the medical community does concur that there are some benefits to HCG in the treatment of certain conditions, including infertility and various hormone related problems

Identification

HCG is a water soluble hormone produced by the placenta. It is found in the urine of pregnant women, primarily during the first trimester of pregnancy. It is part of a class of glycoprotein hormones, which include FSH (follicle stimulating hormones), TSH (thyroid stimulating hormones) and LH (luteinizing hormones). It contains both alpha and beta amino acids.

Benefits

HCG can help to increase an infertile woman's chances of becoming pregnant, and it can help women suffering from irregular menstrual cycles. It also aids in the production of testosterone and sperm. Finally, male children who are born with cryptorchidism (an abnormality in the testes present at birth) are aided by HCG.

HCG and Obesity Claims

Between the late 1950s, when first introduced by Dr. Simeons, and 1976, when the FDA and Federal Trade Commission took steps against HCG injections, HCG injections were the most popular method of obesity control in America. Dr. Simeons claimed that the drugs allowed people to live on as few as 500 calories a day, and that the drugs distributed stored fat and helped the body to metabolize fat.

Some speculate their popularity was aided by doctors who wished to have the promise of patients returning for a weekly injection. Due to lack of proven results and the government action, HCG injections lost popularity until they were revived in 2007 by an infomercial and book by Kevin Trudeau claiming that HCG injections were the cure to obesity and that the American Medical Association, FDA and other medical groups were part of a conspiracy to suppress the truth.

FDA Position on HCG and Obesity

Many doctors will no longer perform HCG injections due to the lack of proven results and the potential side effects and risks associated with the drugs. Furthermore, since 1975, the FDA has required a warning to be affixed to HCG products stating that they have not been proven to be an effective therapy in the fight against obesity, that no evidence shows that they fulfill any of the promised claims.

Side Effects

In males, side effects of HCG include breast enlargement, height increases, and/or the sudden development of facial or pubic hair when administered to adolescents. When used as a treatment for fertility, HCG can cause indigestion, vomiting or nausea, uncontrollable passing of small amounts of urine, difficulty breathing, bloating or rapid weight gain.

If used as an obesity aid in conjunction with a very low calorie diet, risks of drastic calorie reduction exist, as doctors warn that eating a 500 calorie diet may not be enough to sustain vital organs within the body.

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HCG Injections & Stroke Risks

HCG--or human chorionic gonadotropin--is a special hormone created during pregnancy in women. While controversial in nature, over the years the hormone has been manipulated to where it may be injected into individuals to help them lose weight on extremely low-calorie diets. But as with many other low-calorie weight-loss programs, there are potential downsides, such as stroke and malnutrition. Knowing what is safe to take is paramount to losing weight the right way.

What is HCG?

Human chorionic gonadotropin is a special glycoprotein hormone women's bodies naturally create when they are pregnant. It is her body's way of helping a woman cope with the caloric intake that is naturally funneled to the developing embryo during pregnancy. In effect, it helps the woman's body survive on an extremely low-calorie diet of between 500 and 800 calories per day, far below what is needed for normal, healthy living. HCG also may affect the woman's overall immune system during the pregnancy.

Uses

Since HCG is a hormone, it has been synthetically reproduced over the years and adapted into a wide variety of uses, ranging from supplements in hormone-deficient individuals to a wonder drug of sorts to help people lose weight. It also can be used to help induce ovulation as well as testosterone. It can also be used as a tumor marker, although the most common use for the hormone is fertility and weight loss.

Weight-Loss Wonder Drug

While somewhat controversial in the medical community, HCG has been promoted in recent years as a wonder drug of sorts to help individuals lose weight using an extremely low-calorie diet of less than 500 calories. The claim is that HCG helps a person's body shed fat rather than lean muscle during the weight-loss period, by making the body think it is carrying a fetus, thus adjusting the levels of caloric intake needed and the way the body burns fat normally.

Possible Side Effects

There are a number of side effects that an individual may suffer if taking HCG injections for weight loss, not the least of which is the possibility of a stroke. Blood clots are one of the more serious side effects that can result from using HCG injections, and go hand-in-hand with hives and difficulty breathing, as well as swelling of the face. Other symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and shortness of breath. Contact a medical professional immediately if you suffer from any of these symptoms while using HCG injections.

Stroke Risks

One of the problems with the HCG injection and diet is the fact that the 500 calories a day the diet prescribes is far less than what your body needs to operate at a healthy level. Since you are consuming only 500 or so calories per day, your organs are not getting their required vitamins. Blood flow is also restricted, and the lack of vitamins and minerals combined with ischemia (the lack of blood flow) can disturb the normal circulation to your brain. In addition, HCG injections have been known to cause blood clots, which can also lead to the occurrence of a stroke.

Doctor's Advice

As with any type of weight-loss program, it is important to consult with a licensed physician before undertaking any sort of extremely low-calorie diet. There are a number of side effects of starving your body with such a low intake of calories on a daily basis, not all of which may be attributed to HCG alone. While HCG has shown results in certain individuals, like many other drugs the results may vary.

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The Average Cost of HCG Injections

Human chorionic gonadatropin (hCG) is produced by the placenta during pregnancy. The hormone stimulates changes in a pregnant woman's body, including increases in male and female sex hormones, that facilitate normal embryonic development. Intramuscular injections of hCG can be medically indicated to treat delayed puberty in males, undescended testicles, female infertility and low sperm count. In addition to the medical conditions for which hCG injections are prescribed, there is a growing demand for hCG without a prescription.

Cost of Prescribed hCG

• Injectable hCG is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing under the brand names Chorex, Novarel, Pregnyl and Profasi. Most health plans classify these products as fertility regulators and apply the lowest co-payment applicable to the specific plan (usually $5 to $20) for a one-month supply.

  While hCG injections are not universally accepted for weight loss, many insurers, including some Medicare Advantage plans, will cover hCG injections administered within a physician-monitored weight-loss program. The cost to the patient varies from plan to plan, with some covering the full cost and others requiring a single co-payment for each month-long course of injections. Ask your health-care provider to contact your insurer to determine the conditions for which hCG injections are covered and any applicable co-payment.

  If there is no insurance covering hCG injections, the cost will vary with dosage and purchase site. For example, CVS Caremark offers 10,000 IU ampules of Novarel and Pregnyl for the discount price of $45.91 and $51.53, respectively. Both Novarel and Pregnyl are available through online pharmacies in 1,000 IU ampules at an average cost of $16.99.

Non-Prescription hCG Uses

• The hormone hCG is rarely used by body builders to increase muscle mass because it is expensive and relatively ineffective. Bodybuilders using anabolic steroids, however, often use hCG injections to return testes to pre-steroid size and even to mask the presence of steroids and other banned substances in blood and urine.

• Costs With hCG Diet

• More commonly, hCG is used off-label, and even without a prescription, for weight loss. Dr. ATW Simeons created a diet program consisting of hCG injections and a 500-calorie-per-day diet regimen.

  Dr. Simeons suggests using 1,000 IU vials of powdered hCG reconstituted into eight (8) 125 IU doses. This means that if the product is purchased online, the average cost per injection would be approximately $2.12 for the hCG plus the cost of sterilized water and injection supplies.

Counterfeit Products

• Whatever brand is purchased, hCG is derived from the urine of a pregnant woman. For this reason, purity in manufacturing is essential.

  The demand for hCG has generated a substantial black market for the product, particularly on the internet. Products purporting to be "generic" forms of brand name hCG formulations may have few active ingredients and/or contain contaminates.

Risks and Side Effects

• The potential side effects of hCG injection will depend on individual sensitivities as well as dosage. Common side effects include injection site irritation, fluid retention, acne, fatigue, mood changes and hair loss.

  Injecting contaminated hCG products can cause infection, swelling and even skin ulcers and gangrene.

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