You may have heard recently about a new weight loss product called carraluma. Many people haven't heard about this diet supplement, even though it hit the market over 5 years ago. Recently there has been some more high-profile publicity about it as it has been picked up as the new "hot product" by some celebrities. It has also started showing up on major television networks like the Discovery Channel, and even on 60 Minutes. So, you probably found my article because you've heard about it, heard it's a great product, and are looking for someone else who's used it.

I've been using caralluma for a little over 4 months now and have dropped just over 40 pounds, which is the best diet result I've had since my junior year of college (mumble mumble) years ago. I thought it would be useful to write a little about my experience with it and maybe help someone else.

I was always very active through high school, but I put on the dreaded "Freshman 20" when I was in college, and it stuck with me all through my sophomore year. I beat that by getting back into intramural athletics my junior year, but when I got out of college and into my first job, I was sitting at a desk 12 hours a day, and over the course of several years, put on not just 20 but close to 50 pounds. I'm only 5 foot 3, so you can guess how much I "plumped up".

I'd put on enough that even getting back into exercising was only helping me drop a few pounds a month, and then I'd hit a busy patch where there was no time to hit the gym, and I'd put back on a few pounds, wiping out my last two months of progress. If you've had trouble with keeping off extra weight, you probably know what I'm talking about.

I finally gave up and started trying some of the better-known diet supplements out there, and I even had some good results on one or two of them (I had some good results with Hydroxycut), but the problem was that the ones that worked well for me also had some nasty side effects because of the stimulants in them. I'm really, really sensitive to caffeine, and I couldn't take the tradeoff between losing weight and not being able to sleep at night, and feeling nervous all day long.

Finally, late last summer, I saw something about caralluma on the Discover Channel. The show was actually about the history of famines and how different cultures through history have dealt with them. If you didn't know, caralluma fimbriata is a plant that grows wild in India, sort of like a cactus. The people there have been using it for centuries to help ward off thirst and hunger, especially many of the rural tribes. The Indian Government has designated it an official "famine food" to be used when no other food is available because it is extremely nutritious, and it helps you function well on less calories.

For some reason, the show stuck in my mind, and especially that idea of a "famine food". And I thought, if this stuff helps you get by on less food, maybe it could help you to lose weight. I started snooping around at the higher-end markets in Seattle to see if I could buy some of it, but I couldn't find any, even in places like Larry's or the specialty organic stores. No luck.

Of course, I wasn't the first one to have this bright idea. Since caralluma fimbriata is a succulent plant it's highly perishable. Naturally, some scientists discovered how to get the best part of the plant into an extract form which they then make pills out of. So it was possible to buy the stuff from the plant that worked for weight loss, if I could just track down a maker; I went looking on the web and discovered that there was a product called Caralluma Actives that filled the bill perfectly. I bought 3-month's worth to try out, and had fantastic results using it since last August.

I just take one pill each day before lunch, which is usually my biggest meal. The stuff absolutely kills my appetite, and I almost never overeat any more. I started losing weight on the stuff even during the 3 weeks before I got back into the gym, probably about 4 pounds. But once I started exercising, the pounds just dropped off. I find I've got a lot more energy when I go in to work out, too, which I'm sure has to do with a combination of the caralluma and the extra weight I'm not hauling around now. In the four months since I got on caralluma and hit the gym, I've been averaging about 10 pounds a month. I didn't even put on anything over the holidays (well, maybe a pound or two).

So, my advice to you if you've been trying to lose weight and are interested in trying caralluma is to find a reputable supplier like Caralluma Actives and try it out. I'm sure there are other good companies out there, if you look; it's just that Caralluma Actives was the first one I found that was specific about not adding stimulants and they've been around for about 8 years so I knew they weren't going to disappear right away. Plus they offered a 30-day free trial and good discounts for buying a few months' worth at a time. But frankly, the product is getting a lot more popular, so there are probably several good companies selling it now.