Caralluma adscendens

Caralluma adscendens is a succulent plant in the family Apocynaceae. Its distribution ranges from India and Sri Lanka through the Arabian peninsula to North Africa and the Sahel. C. adscendens has been eaten in rural India for centuries, raw, as a vegetable with spices, or preserved in chutneys and pickles, and is often found as a roadside shrub or boundary marker. Various diet pills claiming to contain Caralluma fimbriata extracts are marketed for weight loss. A study published by the US NIH in 2015 showed the supplement to be well-tolerated, but to have no clinical effect compared to a placebo at the supposedly therapeutic dose of 1g daily The key phytochemical constituents of the herb are pregnane glycosides, flavone glycosides, megastigmane glycosides, and saponins.