Like many subjects relating to the human body, the question; how does hoodia work is still being studied. Many scientists agree that it does work as an appetite suppressant and on-going clinical trials are mostly concerned with issues concerning dosages, drug interactions and other factors affecting positive results. The connection between a portion of the brain called the hypothalamus, hoodia gordonii and appetite was made by scientists at Brown University. The San of southern Africa knew nothing about the affect that hoodia had on the brain. They only knew that it alleviated their hunger and thirst.

Scientists at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research were not much concerned about how does hoodia work. They were evaluating what is called