Who are the San Bushmen and why do they use Hoodia Gordonii?
The San Bushmen belong to a nomadic tribe of people who are hunters and gatherers. They live in the Kalahari Desert of South Africa and have been in this region for over 1000 years. This tribe subsists on the vegetation of the Desert for their survival. Once such category of vegetation that they use is the succulent variety “Hoodia” out of which Hoodia Gordonii is used by the tribe for its appetite suppressing properties.
Hoodia Gordonii belongs to the Hoodia plant species. Out of the twenty species that come under the Hoodia plant category, only Hoodia gordonii has the appetite suppressing capabilities. The San Bushmen eat only the fleshy core of this plant to ward off feelings of hunger and thirst in order to survive through the problems of scarcity in food and water. This is a condition commonly existing in Desert regions.
Eating Hoodia Gordonii was particularly useful for the tribe when they went of long hunting expeditions. Hunting in the Desert is a very different situation compared to hunting in the jungle. Hunting in the desert involves facing hardships such as lack of food, water, moving animals and waiting for a long time, before getting a catch. In order to survive, the San Bushmen had to, suppress their appetite till they found enough food to eat and water to drink.
After eating Hoodia their appetite would be suppressed and this effect would last for about twenty-four hours. Over centuries the San Bushmen have been using this succulent and have found no side-effects in eating it. They also value it for it medical properties and have used it for problems such as hemorrhoids, hypertension, diabetes and abdominal cramps.
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