Our society places great importance on being healthy and looking thin, leading us to look for quick fixes that make us look great as quickly as possible. For a time, one such solution was ephedra-based diet pills. As effective as the pills were, the dangers outweighed the potential benefits, and these pills are no longer available.
About Ephedra
Ephedra, also known as ephedrine, has been proven to stimulate the nervous system. Ephedra was used in the 1960s in its herb form to treat asthma, but its greatest notoriety came from its combination with caffeine, which proved capable of increasing metabolism and, by extension, helping users to lose weight.
Ephedra in Diet Pills
It didn't take long for pharmaceutical manufacturers to discover the slimming capabilities of ephedra, and so ephedra-based diet pills became widely available in the 1990s. Big names like Xenadrine, Hydroxycut and Ripped Fuel all used ephedra and caffeine in their formulas, resulting in big sales and satisfied customers. Due to the nature of the drugs involved in these diet pills, manufacturers included specific instructions for the use of their pills. However, if one did not follow these instructions, the results could be tragic.
Downfall of Ephedra
Though ephedra was thought by some to be too dangerous for public consumption, widespread backlash against ephedra didn't begin until Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler's death in 2003, which was linked with the ephedra-based Xenadrine. Within a year of Bechler's death, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had enough evidence of ephedra's hazards to ban the drug from being sold. This ruling forced many companies who produced ephedra-based diet pills to either overhaul their offerings or go out of business.
Ephedra Alternatives
Despite ephedra's ban in 2004, the diet pill industry is still in full swing seven years later. Some of the top names, such as Xenadrine and Hydroxycut, are still offering ephedra-free diet pills. These pills consist of caffeine, aspirin and various herbs that attempt to simulate the performance of ephedra. However, some users still believe that there is no possible substitute for ephedra, which is still for sale through illegal websites based outside the United States.
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