Ephedra Comeback??


On April 14, 2005, Federal Judge Tena Campbell reversed the ephedra ban ruling sending it back to the FDA to determine safe usage levels. If the FDA wants to continue to ban the product, they will have to show proof that the product is harmful at the manufacturers recommended doses. Obviously this has been over 10 months ago and I still do not see any ephedra products back on the market.

I figured that once this ban was lifted the Metabolife companies of the world would be selling just about anything with ephedra in it to help 275 pound women the chance to weigh 125 pounds again without jumping on the treadmill and putting down their McNuggets. To be honest back in the day I used Hydroxycut and Xenadrine with pretty good success.

Anyway, recently, while searching for some new supplements I noticed that there are a few companys that are offering “designer imposter” type ephedra products that are supposed to be just as good as the Hydroxycuts and Xenadrine of old. For example, Superdrine RX-10 (Xenadrine knockoff), Ripped Power (Ripped Fuel knockoff)and Firelean.

I have been pretty faithful to Biotest products for quite some time and they have never failed to live up to their promises but I am just wondering if anyone has tried any of these knock-offs with any success.

Also, just wondering that seeing how the ephedra ban has been lifted how come Biotest does not reformulate their HOT-ROX supplement to include ephedra? I guess that’s all for now. I look forward to what you all have to say.

-J

As far as I know, that lifting of the ban was only in Utah. Actually, this was discussed a while back pretty thoroughly:

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=716390

As far as making HOT-ROX with ephedra in it, it defeats the purpose of us ever having made HOT-ROX. We began developing HOT-ROX long before ephedra was ever banned. Tim had a conference with Bill and myself and wanted to develop a product that would make ephedra obsolete in terms of efficacy and safety. The original article explains a great deal of this. With HOT-ROX, you don’t have to worry about beta 2-adrenergic down-regulation, nor excessive cardiac stimulation nor increase blood pressure due to lack of selectivity when it comes to ephedrine’s adrenergic effects. You’re also improving endogenous thyroid hormone levels. In terms of altering body composition, it’s hard to argue that ephedra or ephedrine is more effective. In terms of an anorectic effect from ephedra and the CNS stimulatory effects, one can make a case for ephedra being more effective and rightly so as there is at least one amphetamine-like compound in the alkaloid extracts.

All of that aside, adding ephedra to the current HOT-ROX formula would require dropping out at least one of the compounds due to possible interactions.

Again, the reason we developed HOT-ROX was to have a product which had greater overall efficacy and safety than ephedra products and I think we succeeded. The fact that HOT-ROX and its’ related products have been so successful in terms of sales over the years, while other products designed to replace/exceed ephedra products are now off the shelves or were ditched long ago, I think, is supportive of that. Furthermore, I believe the success of the product has opened doors for it to be sold on a much wider scale than any other previous products.

Again though, in terms of psychiatric effects and CNS stimulation, I’d admit that ephedra is superior, but most people simply aren’t seeking such a product when it comes to losing fat.

[quote]Xtreme115 wrote:
On April 14, 2005, Federal Judge Tena Campbell reversed the ephedra ban ruling sending it back to the FDA to determine safe usage levels. If the FDA wants to continue to ban the product, they will have to show proof that the product is harmful at the manufacturers recommended doses. Obviously this has been over 10 months ago and I still do not see any ephedra products back on the market.

I figured that once this ban was lifted the Metabolife companies of the world would be selling just about anything with ephedra in it to help 275 pound women the chance to weigh 125 pounds again without jumping on the treadmill and putting down their McNuggets. To be honest back in the day I used Hydroxycut and Xenadrine with pretty good success.

Anyway, recently, while searching for some new supplements I noticed that there are a few companys that are offering “designer imposter” type ephedra products that are supposed to be just as good as the Hydroxycuts and Xenadrine of old. For example, Superdrine RX-10 (Xenadrine knockoff), Ripped Power (Ripped Fuel knockoff)and Firelean.

I have been pretty faithful to Biotest products for quite some time and they have never failed to live up to their promises but I am just wondering if anyone has tried any of these knock-offs with any success.

Also, just wondering that seeing how the ephedra ban has been lifted how come Biotest does not reformulate their HOT-ROX supplement to include ephedra? I guess that’s all for now. I look forward to what you all have to say.

-J[/quote]

There’s a supplement store I walked into last week and they had lots of real Ephedra on the shelves. The manager (who I talked to for a while and who was much more knowledgable than the old lady I talked to last time I went into GNC 3 years ago) he told me that there was a loophole which allowed them to continue to sell ephedra until they run out.

I didn’t buy any. My main problem is that it is biologically addictive in my opinion. Not much more than coffee, but I knew people who couldn’t function 100% when they went off it for the first week.

Also, I know a lot of people who just turned to pseudoepehdrine in cold “remedies”. At one point you could get 100 60 mg pseudo capsules, uncoated at a popular pharmacy for $5.99. Thats about 1/10 the cost of Ephedrine and I knew a pro hockey player who told me that he had tried both and that it was a more powerful stimulant.

Sorry, off topic, but I think pseudo is a big addiction scam. If you need a 96 pack for a cold, and you get a pack every month like some co-workers I know, and you have incessant cold symptoms, it doesn’t seem to be a very effective remedy.

Anyway, didn’t somebody make Ephedra obsolete? If so, why would anybody ever want to buy it?

[quote]mertdawg wrote:
There’s a supplement store I walked into last week and they had lots of real Ephedra on the shelves. The manager (who I talked to for a while and who was much more knowledgable than the old lady I talked to last time I went into GNC 3 years ago) he told me that there was a loophole which allowed them to continue to sell ephedra until they run out.

I didn’t buy any. My main problem is that it is biologically addictive in my opinion. Not much more than coffee, but I knew people who couldn’t function 100% when they went off it for the first week.

Also, I know a lot of people who just turned to pseudoepehdrine in cold “remedies”. At one point you could get 100 60 mg pseudo capsules, uncoated at a popular pharmacy for $5.99. Thats about 1/10 the cost of Ephedrine and I knew a pro hockey player who told me that he had tried both and that it was a more powerful stimulant.

Sorry, off topic, but I think pseudo is a big addiction scam. If you need a 96 pack for a cold, and you get a pack every month like some co-workers I know, and you have incessant cold symptoms, it doesn’t seem to be a very effective remedy.

Anyway, didn’t somebody make Ephedra obsolete? If so, why would anybody ever want to buy it?
[/quote]

You’d be right about the ephedra/ephedrine addiction. There’s a good deal of supportive evidence. If one is able to get the full-texts of these, especially the first two, there is some good info.

On an anecdotal note, I personally was addicted to ephedrine/ephedra products for six years.

Am J Psychiatry. 2005 Nov;162(11):2198.
Am J Psychiatry. 2005 Jan;162(1):189-91.

Psychosomatics. 2003 Nov-Dec;44(6):508-11

Nord Med. 1968 Nov 14;80(46):1545-9.

Wien Klin Wochenschr. 1969 Apr 11;81(15):269-71

[quote]Cy Willson wrote:
As far as I know, that lifting of the ban was only in Utah. Actually, this was discussed a while back pretty thoroughly:

http://www.T-Nation.com/readTopic.do?id=716390

As far as making HOT-ROX with ephedra in it, it defeats the purpose of us ever having made HOT-ROX. We began developing HOT-ROX long before ephedra was ever banned. Tim had a conference with Bill and myself and wanted to develop a product that would make ephedra obsolete in terms of efficacy and safety. The original article explains a great deal of this. With HOT-ROX, you don’t have to worry about beta 2-adrenergic down-regulation, nor excessive cardiac stimulation nor increase blood pressure due to lack of selectivity when it comes to ephedrine’s adrenergic effects. You’re also improving endogenous thyroid hormone levels. In terms of altering body composition, it’s hard to argue that ephedra or ephedrine is more effective. In terms of an anorectic effect from ephedra and the CNS stimulatory effects, one can make a case for ephedra being more effective and rightly so as there is at least one amphetamine-like compound in the alkaloid extracts.

All of that aside, adding ephedra to the current HOT-ROX formula would require dropping out at least one of the compounds due to possible interactions.

Again, the reason we developed HOT-ROX was to have a product which had greater overall efficacy and safety than ephedra products and I think we succeeded. The fact that HOT-ROX and its’ related products have been so successful in terms of sales over the years, while other products designed to replace/exceed ephedra products are now off the shelves or were ditched long ago, I think, is supportive of that. Furthermore, I believe the success of the product has opened doors for it to be sold on a much wider scale than any other previous products.

Again though, in terms of psychiatric effects and CNS stimulation, I’d admit that ephedra is superior, but most people simply aren’t seeking such a product when it comes to losing fat.

Xtreme115 wrote:
On April 14, 2005, Federal Judge Tena Campbell reversed the ephedra ban ruling sending it back to the FDA to determine safe usage levels. If the FDA wants to continue to ban the product, they will have to show proof that the product is harmful at the manufacturers recommended doses. Obviously this has been over 10 months ago and I still do not see any ephedra products back on the market.

I figured that once this ban was lifted the Metabolife companies of the world would be selling just about anything with ephedra in it to help 275 pound women the chance to weigh 125 pounds again without jumping on the treadmill and putting down their McNuggets. To be honest back in the day I used Hydroxycut and Xenadrine with pretty good success.

Anyway, recently, while searching for some new supplements I noticed that there are a few companys that are offering “designer imposter” type ephedra products that are supposed to be just as good as the Hydroxycuts and Xenadrine of old. For example, Superdrine RX-10 (Xenadrine knockoff), Ripped Power (Ripped Fuel knockoff)and Firelean.

I have been pretty faithful to Biotest products for quite some time and they have never failed to live up to their promises but I am just wondering if anyone has tried any of these knock-offs with any success.

Also, just wondering that seeing how the ephedra ban has been lifted how come Biotest does not reformulate their HOT-ROX supplement to include ephedra? I guess that’s all for now. I look forward to what you all have to say.

-J

[/quote]

Cy,

Thanks for the post regarding my topic. I appologize for being redundant and bringing up a topic that was discussed so long ago. I must have missed that topic in the archives during my readings on the T-Nation website.

I look forward to trying the HOT-ROX in the next couple of months when my Alpha Male supply runs out. Thanks again for setting me straight!

J

[quote]Xtreme115 wrote:
On April 14, 2005, Federal Judge Tena Campbell reversed the ephedra ban ruling sending it back to the FDA to determine safe usage levels. If the FDA wants to continue to ban the product, they will have to show proof that the product is harmful at the manufacturers recommended doses. Obviously this has been over 10 months ago and I still do not see any ephedra products back on the market.

I figured that once this ban was lifted the Metabolife companies of the world would be selling just about anything with ephedra in it to help 275 pound women the chance to weigh 125 pounds again without jumping on the treadmill and putting down their McNuggets. To be honest back in the day I used Hydroxycut and Xenadrine with pretty good success.

Anyway, recently, while searching for some new supplements I noticed that there are a few companys that are offering “designer imposter” type ephedra products that are supposed to be just as good as the Hydroxycuts and Xenadrine of old. For example, Superdrine RX-10 (Xenadrine knockoff), Ripped Power (Ripped Fuel knockoff)and Firelean.

I have been pretty faithful to Biotest products for quite some time and they have never failed to live up to their promises but I am just wondering if anyone has tried any of these knock-offs with any success.

Also, just wondering that seeing how the ephedra ban has been lifted how come Biotest does not reformulate their HOT-ROX supplement to include ephedra? I guess that’s all for now. I look forward to what you all have to say.

-J[/quote]
Ephedra is back on the market however they can only market it as an energy booster in some states and in others only on the internet in others however Big boxes & supp chanes like GNC, Vitamin shoppe,Wal Mart,Target,& A&P wont carry ephedra Or anything with ma hung G.

[quote]Cy Willson wrote:
All of that aside, adding ephedra to the current HOT-ROX formula would require dropping out at least one of the compounds due to possible interactions. [/quote]

Cy - Would it be dangerous, or simply decrease the effectiveness of the HOT-ROX compound to stack it with ephedra?

[quote]Kailash wrote:
Cy Willson wrote:
All of that aside, adding ephedra to the current HOT-ROX formula would require dropping out at least one of the compounds due to possible interactions.

Cy - Would it be dangerous, or simply decrease the effectiveness of the HOT-ROX compound to stack it with ephedra?
[/quote]

Hi Kailash,

It could very well be dangerous. Taking HOT-ROX with ephedra could cause a greater alteration in heart rate and blood pressure than what would be seen otherwise.

There are plenty of knock offs out there of the old products. A company called West Pharm makes a couple of good ones. Hydrolean and Xtralean. These are sold behind the counter in many supplement stores.

From what i’ve been told here in Alberta we are one of the only provinces that are still allowed to sell ephedrine on the shelves. And we sell a lot of it in the store that I work in. However it is only available in 8mg tablets and 50 per bottle. They are now labelled as an Oral Nasal Decongestant.
See Ya

i think it is interesting that Utah was the state to reverse this. the history of ephedra is in fact traced to this region as the plant was boiled into a tea and used for asthma remedies. it was often called Mormon tea. the stuff must still have a bunch of fans in the region.

So you can buy REAL ephedra now? Or am I dreaming. Where can you get it…

I’d also like to know where to get real ephedra. ASAP.