1. What type of hCG does the program use e.g. injectable, prescription, hCG; sublingual drops, pellets, pills, creams or nasal sprays?

Since the hCG diet has gained media attention, there have been massive unscrupulous and unscientific adulterations and adaptations from Dr. Simeons' original, scientific hCG protocol. Only the authentic, injectable, prescription form of hCG was used in Dr. Simeons' original protocol. When hCG is injected into the body it gets into the blood stream and travels to the hypothalamus and restores it to its original, normal function. When combined with a 500 calorie diet--consisting of specific amounts and types of meats, fruits and vegetables--the body is "sculpted" in a way that is unique to weight loss resulting from authentic, injectable, hCG. This is because only the abnormal, problem-area fat is removed from the body, leaving the emergency-reserve fat and muscle intact. The type of weight loss occurring from sublingual drops, pellets, pills, creams or nasal sprays is no different from weight loss resulting from any other diet e.g. Atkins, Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, etc. hCG taken in the above oral, sublingual, topical or spray forms does not get into the blood stream and therefore does not reach the hypothalamus to create the sculpted body that results from authentic, injectable, hCG. Weight loss resulting from these adulterated forms of hCG comes at the expense of a person's emergency reserve fat and their muscle. To avoid being scammed with the various adulterations of hCG, you should find a physician with experience using real, authentic, injectable hCG for your weight loss program.

2. Is the business offering the hCG weight-loss program a real medical clinic or just an internet site?

The best programs will have been in business for at least 4-5 years, will have treated thousands of patients and will have an actual physical address and real people you can talk to should you have problems. Presently, there are thousands of internet websites that offer adulterated forms of hCG (as well as real, injectable hCG) that are only a website with just an email address, no physical address and no way to talk to a real, live person should you have trouble during your program. Thousands of unsuspecting weight-loss consumers have been scammed by these unscrupulous, internet marketers of the adulterated forms of hCG as well as with the real, injectable hCG. The likelihood of success of your weight-loss program is greatly increased when the program provider meets the minimum requirements described above.

3. What is the average number of pounds and inches lost for the 23-injection and

40-injection programs for both women and men?

A real hCG weight-loss medical clinic will be able to give you data on the actual number of pounds and inches their patients have lost on their programs. If they are not forthcoming with precise numbers you should avoid that clinic. The average female patient will lose around 15 pounds and 2.5 inches from their waist or hips on the 23-injection program and 30 pounds and 5 inches on the 40-injection program at a good clinic. The average male patient will lose slightly more pounds and inches (21 lbs. and 3.5 in. with 23 injections and 40 lbs. and 7 in. with 40 injections). If the clinic's data is significantly less than the above averages you should avoid that clinic. If their data is substantially higher than the above averages you should also avoid that clinic as they are likely providing you with false data. Since authentic, injectable hCG only allows the removal of abnormal, problem fat from the body while preserving muscle and emergency fat reserves, the inches lost in relation to the number of pounds is close to 2-fold higher than with regular dieting without authentic hCG. In other words, weight lost with adulterated forms of hCG will typically yield half the number of inches from the abdomen or waist e.g. 30 lbs. of weight loss with the adulterated form of hCG will typically result in only losing 2.5 inches.

4. What percentage of the patients gain their weight back and why?

A first-rate hCG weight-loss clinic will also be able to give you precise data regarding how many of their patients gain their weight back after completing a round of hCG injections. At the best clinics the percentage of patients that gain weight back is around 35%. This is in stark contrast to the medical literature that reports between 90-95% of all individuals on traditional diets will regain what they lost within 1-3 years and almost all will gain an additional 10 lbs more than their original starting body weight. Almost all of those patients who regain their weight following a round of hCG injections do so because they neglect the cardinal rule to weigh themselves every day and do a steak and apple day should they ever inadvertently gain more than 2 lbs. above their ending weight. When they do a steak and apple day they will lose between 2-4 lbs overnight and be back to their ending weight immediately. The failure to weigh daily is disastrous because after a course of hCG as much as 10 pounds will need to be regained before any noticeable change will occur in how your clothes fit. The reason for this is that after the treatment newly acquired fat is at first evenly distributed and does not return preferentially to certain areas of the body such as the abdomen and hips. The few cases we have had of individuals who faithfully weighed themselves daily and yet regained a portion of their lost weight have been found to be gluten intolerant, have significant hormone imbalances or have high levels of toxic, heavy metals, such as mercury or lead. Once these issues were dealt with these patients were able to easily maintain their weight by weighing daily and doing a steak and apple day when necessary. All patients who complete a round of hCG injections have access to this tool to self correct any inadvertent weight gain that can occasionally occur in social settings when a person may overeat.

5. Is the program medically supervised and what are the credentials of the supervising physician?

The importance of medical supervision of a hCG weight-loss program cannot be overstated. More than 50% of all obese patients who begin a weight loss program are on prescription medications for obesity-related diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, edema, depression, anxiety, hyperlipidemia, insomnia, sleep apnea, chronic joint pain, etc. Since patients lose weight rapidly (about 1 pound each day) medications must be monitored and adjusted or discontinued. For example, in diabetic patients blood glucose levels drop quickly while on the hCG injections and the 500 cal diet. This necessitates daily monitoring by a physician who will stop or reduce the patients diabetic medication during the program to prevent life-threatening hypoglycemia from occurring. Patients on hypertensive medications must also monitor their blood pressure daily and report these to their physician who will decrease or stop one or more of the patient's blood pressure medications to prevent hypotension which might cause the patient to pass out. Diuretics are especially potentially dangerous if not adjusted or discontinued during the course of treatment. If a patient does not stop the diuretic soon enough they run the risk of over diuresis, resulting in possible kidney failure.

The best clinics will have a qualified physician--MD (medical doctor) or DO (doctor of osteopathic medicine)--physically present in the clinic to monitor all patients on the program. Only MD's and DO's can legally prescribe injectable hCG (Physician Assistant's and Nurse Practitioner's may do so under a physician's supervision). It is a good idea to find out how many years and how many patients the physician has supervised. Seek out physicians whose practice emphasis is at least 70% hCG weight loss patients. Some physicians do hCG weight loss programs as a hobby and typically only their nurse sees and supervises the patients. Avoid these types of physicians like the plague.