Ephedra-based diet supplements are completely and fully banned, despite many years of mixed messages.
Here is where things stand:
- February 2004 – FDA prohibited sales of diet supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids.
- In April 2005 a judge in Utah struck down the FDA ban.
- Later in 2005 supplement makers began making pills with a 10mg dose of the ephedra alkaloid. This made things very confusing and left many wondering whether ephedra was legal or not.
- Aug 17 2006, the FDA upheld their original ban (effectively reversing the Utah court decision).
The FDA Ban
From the FDA:
No dosage of dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids is safe and the sale of these products in the United States is illegal and subject to FDA enforcement action.
Ephedra will always remain a controversial supplement. Along with many critics, there are also many who support the use of ephedra as an effective fat burner.
The supporters claim an overall ban is unfair and that pharmaceutical drugs consistently bring far more deaths and adverse side effects than ephedra ever did. As to it’s effectiveness, a report available on the FDA site concludes that:
The short-term use of ephedrine, ephedrine plus caffeine, or the assessed dietary supplements containing ephedra and herbs with caffeine is associated with a statistically significant increase in short-term weight loss (compared to placebo).
I suspect this debate will carry on for many years to come.
Dan, I have suffered with a bile duct disorder following gall bladder removal for 4 years. There is surgery to correct it, and it was attempted however it failed and after I woke up not only was I not fixed, I had the added complication of acute pancreatitis. Long story short, after having this complication, I had to go to so many different doctors because NONE were willing to risk attempting the procedure because I am now high risk for mortality. I had to be put on fentanyl patch because of liver/pancreas pain. I finally found a Dr in Indianapolis to treat me. (He pioneered the surgery to correct) but I had to wait 3 months. I was in and out of the hospital and the Drs were doing what they could to keep me comfortable and hydrated. I even had to have a PICC line put into my neck because my veins all collapsed. Two weeks before my surgery, the TN drug task force called me in for an interview so I could explain myself. I was in the hospital when I got the call with pancreatitis. I was told if I didn’t go to meet with them immediately, I would be arrested. I’m on my death bed, trying to stay alive until I can get the surgery I need, and now I have to worry about being looked at as a criminal or worse being arrested for what my Drs have prescribed for my pain? I have a perspective on this issue, like I hope no one ever has to go through. It has been a nightmare, and I’m scarred for LIFE. What kind of country do we live in that this can happen to someone who is gravely ill???
The only difference between ephedrine and pseudoephedrine is the orientation of the hydroxyl group on the benzylic carbon. Both are almost identical to methamphetamine and it can be synthesized easily from either one.
I am using pure ephedrine from last one year and i reduced my weight with 20lbs.
Bronk-Aid is sold over the counter next to sudafed you need to be 18 and have an I’d it contains something that loosens mucus and 25mg ephedrine sulfate worka great with caffine 200mg and asprin gives me hours of energy
People have died from OD’ing on water. Should we ban water as well??
is this from over dose? i have heard that people can over dose on ephedrine but how much would you need to intake (tablet form) to overdose?? thanks
You can still buy products with ephedra on the internet. You can also buy Primatine tablets in the drugstore, they have ephedrine in them, I used them for before my wedding and lost 14lbs in 2 weeks. You have to ask for them from the pharmacist, but they are legal, they regulate them because they can be used to make meth, you do not need a prescription, just have to show them your ID.
To clarify only 1 death was ever reported……ONE……UNO…..and it was because he was a juicehead and grossly misused the pills.
They use pseudo-ephedrine to make meth. They are two different chemicals.
a lot of these people i can see at a protest ralley screaming “steroids are bad, our kids look up to these athletes” Not knowing that 85% of people who use steroids are gym rats using them for cosmetic reasons.. ha we live in a country where if a woman wishes to become a man she is prescribed testosterone but if a man wants to take testosterone to add mass he cant because its “dangerous”
GTFO
FDA is a joke!
a money could run a better department
they might as well ban all OTC medicine.
Seeing as people have died from OTC medicine all the time.. Hell kids can get high off of OTC cough medicine.
FDA hasnt banned that yet..
good job lol let kids die off of this stuff and ban a product that could help this obese country become a little less fat ha makes so much sense..NOT!
it amazes me the amount of people who think they know anything about supplements or better yet the side effects of supplements
has the media really brain-washed the general population that much to where you’ll believe anything they say?
haha morons
The ECA stack is easy and cheap to make on your own using 2 Primatene tablets (12.5mg Ephedrine HCL + 200mg Guaifenesin), 200mg Caffeine tabs, and Aspirin. In fact, the FDA ban actually saves people who want to use a stack money.
I could do without the expectorant, but otherwise, it’s just fine.
I want to share my experience and knowledge on this subject so that people don’t get the wrong idea about things based on unverified myths.
Some have previously pointed out the claim that “You don’t need a pill to lose weight, you just need to count your calories and exercise.” I would have thought it would be common knowledge in this day and age that there are people who’s metabolism is naturally low which makes it very difficult for them to lose weight even when following the oft quoted mantra from above to the strictest degree.
In life, there are many ways of achieving the same goals each carrying different pros and cons. Shouldn’t it be an individual’s liberty which one of those paths he thinks is best, which set of pros and cons he will choose?
If anyone is familiar with the harm principle, it states that the only right a government has to interfere with an individual’s personal decisions is when those personal decisions cause harm to someone other than himself. Now, one could argue that using potentially harmful drugs harms others than the user by causing sadness in those close to him. This is a weak argument though, for think of this analogous situation. A son decides he is not Christian anymore and it hurts his mother who is a fundamentalist Christian. It causes deep pain in her because she believes that her son is going to go to hell for eternity. If we follow the same line of logic, the logic that says an individual harms those he cares when he uses drugs because it could cause him harm which saddens them, we would have to conclude that the son should have to be a fundamentalist Christian to take away his mother’s pain, because I guarantee you the mother who believes her child is going to hell hurts just as bad as the one who’s child is using drugs.
But the real reason people favor prohibitive laws against substances doesn’t have to do with any kind of reasoning as complex as that, it is because we live under the rule of a daddy government and as a result, the majority are indoctrinated to believe that it is “just right” that a government should “protect” its citizens by placing laws on potentially harmful substances, and they take it for granted that their government is a worthy judge of OK substances and NOT OK substances.
One of the biggest drivers of stigmatization of particular substances or activities is that you are always going to hear the horror stories about drugs, but you’ll seldom hear the life/quality of life-saving stories. There is multitude of people who use pain medication who have been given back their ability to enjoy life, to have occupation, to be free from suffering for every one person who overdoses. And in reality, things could be much better than they are if it weren’t for the always-err-on-the-side-of-under-treating-pain climate that the recent DEA “crackdown” on “mis-prescribing” practices has created in medicine, which creates a situation where people in quality-of-life-robbing pain can’t get meds legally and end up hooked on black market substitutes exposing them to the risks of impurities, a narrow range of options usually only consisting of H, an unsteady supply, and arguably the worst of all, they are left without the advice of a professional who can work with them to arrive at the best possible treatment.
So Ephedra has risks… Everything has risks, working your ass off at the gym and counting calories every meal and still being unable to lose a healthy amount of weight has many risks… Heart disease, joint wear n tear, depression, suicide.
Honestly, most people commend our daddy government’s drug policy because their life has not placed them in a situation that conventional means have not been able to solve. Take a person who believes in our prohibitionist policy, put 5 years of bad fibromyalgia pain on his belt and the depression that comes from seeing your life fall apart, that comes from not being able to perform at your job as well as before, or at all, the pain of seeing your relationships deteriorate because you can’t go out much anymore, and because you aren’t as jubilant as before, and you want to be really bad, but no matter how hard you try, you can’t crack anything but a fake-it-til-you-make-it smile. Even the most rigid conservative who’s been indoctrinated to the highest degree into thinking that our drug laws are just will break when he has been to more doctors than he can count, none being able to treat his problem with conventional means, and every one of them turning down his plea of desparation for something stronger than Darvocet so that he can have just one more happy moment without pain.
There is the typical bell curve that describes our populations need for use of drugs. There’s those who never need it, those who need what’s conventional, and a little tiny percentile of people who are living in hell in spite of having gone through every possible conventional treatment only to have minimally detectable relief. It is important for these people that they be afforded every possible solution to their woes. It is necessary that these people be allowed to decide for themselves whether they will assume the risks that our prohibited substances pose. For someone writhing in pain that has not abated for more than fleeting moments for years and years, who is big daddy pants to say that morphine isn’t worth the risk. Many people feel so bad that they wish they would just die, but are too devoted to their family to put them through the trama. Who is daddy to say that these people, who by their account are better off dead than the way they currently are, cannot decide to assume the risks of this drug or that for the possibility of finding relief, at the possibility of switching from “I wish I could just die, but I can’t kill myself” to “Ah, at last, I can see the world clearly again without the blinding veil of my body’s suffering.” Who is anyone to take that chance away from someone.
Of coarse, that is an extreme illustration, but any theory worth it’s weight in gold must be able to admit of extremes. And seriously, get over yourselves, just because you wouldn’t personally take a risk, or let your young child take a risk, doesn’t mean that someone else can’t say, after a fully rational inquiry into the subject, that the risk is worth it for them.
We humans sprang into existence without being consulted first on whether or not we wanted to, and it’s sickening to think that now that we are here, we can’t use all of the world’s offerings to make our lives better, or at least less painful. If someone would rather spend their precious time in this one chance of existence they will ever get doing something other than spending an hour at the gym every day, and depriving themselves of the food they love, who are we to say they can’t assume the risk of using a pill with risks. Even if it is the “easy way” or “cheating,” who says that’s wrong.
I honestly never have replied to a blog statement. However, I agree completely with what you wrote. The way you drafted it is probably the only possible way these fools will listen and or be educated. You must be an attorney. Thank you for that it is nice to know that the world is not full of numbskulls.
Shouldn’t it be our choice what we put in our bodies!! Maybe its more dangerous for me to be fat than to take Ephedra. Maybe I would rather die young and be thin and happy then live a long lonely life fat and miserable!
here we are once again…they love to ban something that actually works…and it is because ephedra was otc and cheap that brought attn to it…so they said we can make money on regulating this…plain and simple…unbelievable..lets hope it comes back…and for all the idiots that say u dont need it just control ur calories…u r so brain dead…
they use ephedrine to make meth.. that’s one of the BIG reasons it was banned unless it is for medicinal purposes. i take prematine tablets nodoz and baby aspirin. it’s perfectly safe as long as you’re not an idiot and don’t abuse it. i wouldn’t recommend taking it before a workout either. i only do in the morning when i wake up and an hour or so after my workouts which is 6-7 hours after i wake up. it works great for me. sometimes it causes the jitters a tad bit but so do energy drinks and they make you FAT
Ephedra is a powerful drug. Use precaution when taking it and FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS. Always make sure you don’t have a pre-existing medical condition. DO NOT OVERDOSE! If you follow these directions, you will live.
What people don’t fully understand is that ephedrine was taken off the market because it is a threat to prescription medication. When people take Ephedrine they lose weight. When people lose weight the obesity problem in America decreases which gives less diabetes, heart disease and a huge array of other fat associated diseases. The FDA is persuaded by the drug companies for these decisions. It’s all based on money and greed.
Yes some have died due to abuse. The number of deaths with Ephedrine comes even come close to the number of deaths with prescriptions meds.
Hello Everyone..Is this site legit?
ephedraoutlet.com
Has anyone use the Yellow Bullet product with Ephedra??
I just like to know if its really contains Ephedra before I purchase. Any help is appreciated!!
Regarding phentermine or phen phen , fen fen or axipex . I was involved with the manufacturing of phentemine375™, this almost did not get produced; one of its active ingredients is extremely close to phen phen active ingredient. Its literally in the same family, the pharmaceutical manufacture notified our company of this fact , here is an expert from that email “this product is a kissing cousin to phen fen and production is on hold until proper investigation of its legality in the use of our phentemine375™. “ DHEA was the next problem producing we encountered in this product .In fact we were rejected for processing by a bank because this product contains DHEA or dehydroepiandrosterone. We have since after 2 years of testing, production released the product on the market. Our biggest complaint so far has been the appearance size and color. Since we added the DHEA the color has changed from a crisp white tab with blue specks to a larger slight grayish tab with blue specks. Most people don’t realize that pharmaceutical products are covered under patents and there ingredients are secrete. We have to list the binding agents in our tabs on the label. Since we have also added DHEA and a HGH the tab size has obviously increased. Now instead of a tiny table it’s like taking an aspirin. If you were to attempt to purchase specific ingredients in our tab you would be require to have a prescription. We specifically developed our product into the tab which was classified differently. For obvious reason we did the whole project to avoid the prescription requirement. Effedera diet pills for years were sold over the counter. Many other diet pills which contain Alkaloids have been removed from the market due to the abuse or misuse of people manufacturing methamphetamine . Obviously abuse of a good product is what typically ruins it for everyone else. Many over the counter like dextrim have been taken away and were proven to work effectively. We hope our product will stay on the market and people will not abuse it. I have already seen posts from students that they use it to study with, helps their concentration or help to keep them sober when partying supposedly. We assume it’s having a similar effect that other Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder when using substances like Ritilan. We never tested phentemine375™ for that purpose, but again that is what happens when people start abusing a product. Our phentemine375™ does address some hormonal issues and certainly will increase your heart rate and metabolism and help curb appetite improve your body’s ability to burn fat stored, if you follow the instructions on the bottle. It’s not going to lose weigh alone; you will actually have to diet and exercise accordingly. No pill on earth will help you if you are over consuming calories .
I wanted to share this with everyone here so you can see from both sides. Products that work are very difficult to bring to market , then once on the market people want to criticize you because its new . Then you get to the part where people start abusing it. Next you get sued or the FDA forces you to take it off the market. What I hope everyone here will understand it’s mostly about being responsible for your actions. Don’t abuse, don’t over eat, over drink do abuse anything, even water in excess can cause serious health issues. All things consumed need to be balanced. Abusing diet pills, tabs, supplements or prescription medications carry dangerous consequences. If you do abuse a product you are responsible and that responsibility should be yours alone and not the rest of the people who are showing responsible actions. I don’t agree with all of the FDA regulations on diet products , personally I think most of it is due to the pharmaceutical industry lobbing, but it also bits them in the butt at times take the example of phen fen . You should also thank all of those greedy people and attunes who sue simply to get an easy buck.
That’s my 2 cents worth , I hope if causes people to reflect on the diet industry and self control .
Raquel
Nicky are you taking a multi????? Nose bleeds maybe mean your deficient in a mineral or some sort. I got them before I did an ECA stack and was out of the blue. I take a multi everyday,CLA, ECA thats it. Well protein shakes but I eat every 3-4hrs small portion meals too so I get enough nutrients.
You can get ephedra otc. Products such as Vasopro and Bronkaid are excellent sources. They both have no difference due to one is HCL and the other is Sulfate. I use i tablet of Bronkaid,200 mg caffiene, and white willow which is the original asprin and does not cause severe problams like the aspirins you see otc. Aspirin is derived from White Willow bark and is a natural herb. I find myself to feel more energy than ever and feeling good throughout the day. Everybody is different and need to talk to a physician before any diet program. ECA is effective and why bother the extract crap you see. Thats junk and does not have all the alkoids to ephedra. Always start slow to see your tolerance. Some people reacts better to higher caffiene than others. But always go what your body says if you don’t feel right then something is wrong. And always no pill will help achieve your weight loss goals unless your dkiet is clean. So don’t expect to take something when your at all you can eat burgers at McDonalds. Diet comes first before anything. Like the saying goes, you are what you eat. ECA is a helping hand but not a miracle pill.
Where do you get your ephedrine? I can’t find it anywhere anymore.
The ban of the ephedrine alkaloids, is true. However, the extract is still legal as far as I have heard. alkaloids and the extract are different,being the extract is much less potent.
Personally I think all drugs should be legal, I think there would be a lot less crime, and a lot less money spent on good people going to jail.They could spend the money they saved on our children’s education and rebuilding and doing maintenance on their dilapidating schools, and school buildings. if drugs were legal, we would probably have no deficit, no huge businesses failing, there would be a far stronger economy.who cares what everybody else does “live and let live” I don’t know what that say’s about all of us who feel this way, but that is how I feel.
I use an ECA stack to help me with weight loss! The only problem i have found from using this have nothing to do with the Eph but infact from the aspirin as aspirin thins your blood it cause me too bruise and the lightest touch and have spontaneous nose bleeds bar that i have never had a problem.
Ive used (not abused) Ephedra for 12 years. It makes me sick that a few idiots have ruined it for those who benefit from it.
Though I originally took it for weight loss, I found out almost immediately that it is EXCELLENT for ADD.
I specifically remember the first time I took it, and had an uncanny ability to focus.
As with any herb, your body reacts positively only if it something it needs. If you are getting the jitters you are either taking too much or you dont need it at all.
I completely agree with the first post I read on this thread – big pharma companies have the $$ it takes to influence many regulatory bodies and the general public – and why WOULDN’T they try to take down an inexpensive source of a remedy that (at the time ) was totally unregulated??? Its no different from any business trying to take down a competitor.In fact, thats ALL it is…
I very much miss Ephedra…I took the supplements begining in 2002 thru 2005 when they were banned. I began at 220 lbs and at my lowest got down to 120..lost half my body weight! to be honest tho, i didnt like myself that skinny, and packed back on 10lbs respectfully..(like a bit of curve, know what i’m sayin?) and felt better than i had in years! I had always been an athletic healthy child/teenager but with the miscarriage of my first pregnancy my second pregnancy left me no choice but be bed ridden at the advice of my doctor, which made me gain over 80lbs alone! the weight just never came off and kept creeping up with the pregnancy of one more child..and years of just being used to being a fattie mommie *winks* I never really had low self esteem and just didnt realize how big i really was! saw stacker 2 in the stores and gave it a try, wanted it mainly for energy due to excessive fatigue, never thought it would actually work for weight loss..didnt really care about that to be honest..took it as directed, beginning with one then two per dose..and it worked WONDERS for me, improving even adhd issues i had always suffered with sharpening my focus, attention, and comprehension, as well as giving me energy to make it thru days and days of hectic mania life!
since 05 when they took it off the market my life has declined..im now 175 lbs to 180 lbs (depending) and i’m now having to take adderall again for my adhd issues just to make it thru each day and feel some semblance of normal again! i havent had to take adderall since i was a kid! as i recall then, it was a pretty harsh drug..hope i can handle it this time as an adult. so far, i’m not sleeping at night tho!
so…i’m going long winded here, but to those who say that ephedra is abused by the “fatties” who need to learn how to diet and exercise..well you can kiss my big ass! the only time i sat around and did nothing was to save the life of my first live born child (as well as possibly myself)! otherwise this big momma runs around everywhere..working hard day by day over 40hours a week in a warehouse on my feet the entire time but for a half hour lunch..only to come home to clean house, do laundry, maintain the yard….screw this! i don’t have to explain myself! obesity is a problem for people for different reasons..heredity, health issues *ie tyroid, glandular, heart, diabetes etc*, slowed metabolism, compromised immune systems, mental issues *ie eating disorders, depression, bi polar for which anti depressants are prescribed causing weight gain*, and gross inactivity/overeating..the latter not ALWAYS being the cause..too often i hear an insensitivity to a largely growing population of obese people. it’s a real epidemic, and to take something off the market that not only helped me but countless others is a travesty! and totally unfair! It’s a shame that the FDA decided to take it off the market, and an even worse shame that the deaths that came from the use of the drug had to come at the hands of people who were careless with the drug in the first place..my heart goes out to them, but my understanding is that they were responsible for their lives, not the ephedra.
Your rights are dead. If you live in the USA, right now, your rights have died…. The only think to get them back would be a revolution. And once Obama is elected, that is what we will probably have.
No matter what happens…we should fight for our rights!!!!!
Your comments are full of inaccuracies. Please read a book. If you get your news from ET, please slit your wrists. Look up how many death ephedra or ephedrine have caused. Then look up how many deaths ANY OTC drug or prescription drug have caused.
Weight loss supplements are a big business, when something comes along that actually works (ephedra), they must be crushed to allow the diet cash cow to continue.
netnutri is a scam company promoting ephedra extract. Ephedra extract is similar to chemically produced Ephedrine HCL. Neither stimulate the CNS anywhere near the original ephedra with alkaloids.
I too used ephedra and lost 24 pounds and had boundless energy. Now, I have gained back 10 pounds and can’t seem to lose it. Have you found anything compaarable to ephedra?
So how can we get this ban overturned? Our WONDERFUL government is made up of elected people, who can we FIRE for this crap? Its BS like this, like global warming, and everything else that they try to hold over our head in the name of FEAR that has to be stopped.
Has our government forgotten how it got its start?? REVOLUTION. What buffoons.
How can we get this overturned and the folks responsible investigated? I am SURE they arent squeaky clean in this matter…… FDA = big $ and corruption is rampant there.