What is Ephedra sinica used for?
People use ephedra for weight loss and athletic performance. It’s also used for allergies, nasal congestion, asthma, common cold, headache, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses. Ephedra is also unsafe. Ephedra has been banned by the US FDA since April 2004. Ephedra is widely used by athletes as a performance-enhancing drug, despite a lack of evidence that it improves athletic performance. Ephedra may also be used as a precursor in the illicit manufacture of methamphetamine. Ephedra has been used as a weight-loss aid, sometimes in combination with aspirin and caffeine.People use ephedra for weight loss and athletic performance. It’s also used for allergies, nasal congestion, asthma, common cold, headache, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses. Ephedra is also unsafe. Ephedra has been banned by the US FDA since April 2004.Accordingly, ephedrine has repeatedly been implicated in adverse and sometimes fatal outcomes despite compliance with recommended dosages. Ephedrine has been likened to other sympathomimetics and controlled stimulants,5 and the FDA cited significant cardiovascular risk in support of their final rule to ban its sale.Mechanism of Injury The cardiovascular side effects and complications of ephedra use have been attributed to these sympathomimetic constituents. The liver injury has been attributed to ephedrine as well, but other constituents may be responsible for this idiosyncratic liver injury.
Is ephedra good for health?
Dietary supplements containing ephedra alkaloids are unsafe, with reports of serious side effects and ephedra-related deaths. Precautions for specific demographics, populations, and/or conditions. Ephedrine is a stimulant and increases heart rate. It also has multiple cardiovascular side effects and may increase the risk of heart attack and stroke.Ephedra is used in many over-the-counter weight loss products. It is also used by some athletes who believe it can improve their performance. It may be combined with herbs containing caffeine (such as guarana) or with other substances in these supplements.Ephedra contains a natural alkaloid ephedrine, similar to the hormone epinephrine (adrenaline), a stimulant that acts on the central nervous system (CNS), dilates the bronchial tubes in the lungs, elevates blood pressure, and increases heart rate thereby giving a feeling of jolt of energy.Many dietary supplements contain Ephedra/Ephedrine and promote their use for: weight loss, metabolic enhancement, increased personal energy or wakefulness, appetite suppression, improved mood, increased exercise tolerance and bodybuilding.Synephrine has become the most frequently used ephedra replacement in dietary supplements and is listed often as “extract of C aurantium” or “extract of bitter orange.
What is ephedra used for in bodybuilding?
The ma huang herb, otherwise known as ephedra, has gained widespread popularity as an ergogenic supplement. With the sympathomimetic alkaloid ephedrine as its primary active ingredient, ma huang is marketed to reduce fatigue; increase strength, power, and speed; decrease reaction time; and improve body composition. Abstract. Ephedra is one of the oldest medicinal plants in traditional Chinese medicine for nearly 5000 years. The medicinal species are used as a stimulant and as antiasthmatic agents to treat cold, bronchial asthma, cough, fever, flu, headache, edema, and allergies.The whole Ephedra sinica plant has traditionally been used to treat symptoms of bronchial asthma, colds, influenza, allergies, and hives in teas or tinctures. Because of adverse events and lack of efficacy, use is not recommended for weight loss or increased athletic performance.The ma huang herb, otherwise known as ephedra, has gained widespread popularity as an ergogenic supplement. With the sympathomimetic alkaloid ephedrine as its primary active ingredient, ma huang is marketed to reduce fatigue; increase strength, power, and speed; decrease reaction time; and improve body composition.Soma- Ephedra gerardiana is an Ayurvedic herb used for the treatment of asthma, fever, weakened cardiac muscles, difficulty in urination and muscular pain.
Does ephedra burn fat?
The best-known mechanism for the weight-loss effects of ephedra is through the modulation of the sympathetic nervous system to increase metabolism and exercise capacity. Its active component, ephedrine, is a CNS stimulant (1, 2); its immediate effects are attributable to stimulation of dopamine release.