Ephedra, Phen-Fen, and the Nanny State

[corplinx]

Several states are considering banning the substance ephedra. Its a stimulant that speeds up your metabolism and is found in diet aids. Ephedra is safe in moderation and to date I have heard of no cases of someone dieing from ephedra being used in recommended doses.

However, a few morons have died from taking too much. So of course, government with nothing better to do wants to ban ephedra in its reactionary way. ASPIRIN is bad for you if you take too much, ban that too. Most drugs will kill or adversely affect you if you take too many.

This whole situation reminds me of phen-fen. When phen-fen was new on the scene, it produced real weight loss results. However, it was a combination not for everyone. The side effects could be bad for someone with cardiovascular irregularities. It was up to the prescribing physician to judge that.

Along with real results came the vultures. Doctors started advertising their practices as weight loss centers and prescribing phen-fen to anyone with the money. Doctors who before couldnt hold up a private practice were now turning their offices into volume businesses. And of course, some people who bought phen-fen without a proper examination were adversely affected.

Government's solution? Ban phen-fen. Its the typical big brother knows what's best for you paternalism that Orwell wrote but most people forget about because they are so focused on the surveillance society theme.

 

[jayrev]

I would be interested to see sources that say ephedra is safe in recommended doses. From what I understand the purpose of this product is to raise the heart rate in order to increase metabolism and burn calories. Sorry, but that sounds risky to me. I agree that I don't like the government telling me what medications I can and can't take, but I also wouldn't like companies to be able to sell me a dangerous product with risks that outweigh its benefits. I'm not sure where the line is, but I wouldn't want my hypothetical teenage son to be able to buy dangerous products like ephedra without my knowledge so that he could make weight for the wrestling team.

 

[corplinx]

Most ephedra supplements I have seen have explicitly stated that they are not for long term usage. Long term usage of maximum dosages ephedra in theory can wear out your ticker.

 

[Questioninggeller]

Most ephedra supplements I have seen have explicitly stated that they are not for long term usage. Long term usage of maximum dosages ephedra in theory can wear out your ticker.

A liquor store down the street sells pure ephedra and the owner (I know him personally) knows for a fact what he is selling and why people buy it. That is, it is a cheap and legal substitute for Meth. The people know the effect and consquence; I think the government should put a warning label, but keep their hands off the drugs. Knowing people who take it and hearing the cases that people die I hope for two things:

1) An end to the ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ Drug War.
2) People to be smart enough to avoid Drugs.

 

[jayrev]

Ephedra is safe in moderation and to date I have heard of no cases of someone dieing from ephedra being used in recommended doses.

Most ephedra supplements I have seen have explicitly stated that they are not for long term usage. Long term usage of maximum dosages ephedra in theory can wear out your ticker.

<Insert I'm no Doctor but... disclaimer here> Sorry, but I find these two quotes to be contradictory. If long term usage wears out your ticker, then it is likely caused by the cumulative effects of several doses. This leads me to believe that a single dose of ephedra must cause some damage to the heart.

As to your statement that you have heard of no cases of someone dying from recommended doses, have the well publicized deaths from ephedra been caused by what would be considered an overdose, i.e., a dosage substantially greater than the recommended dosage? I honestly don't know the answer to this one.

 

[Ed]

Or maybe these people had a bum ticker to start with.

I really don't understand what the realities are that people that do not want drug laws envision. It sounds like (correct me if I am wrong) anyone should be able to buy anything. Is that right?

 

[patnray]

Ephedra is safe in moderation and to date I have heard of no cases of someone dieing from ephedra being used in recommended doses.

Can you supply a source for any properly controlled and refereed study that proves ephedra is safe? Can you supply a single example of packaging that informs consumers of the known side effects and contraindications for ephedra?

 

[corplinx]

Re: Re: Ephedra, Phen-Fen, and the Nanny State

Can you supply a single example of packaging that informs consumers of the known side effects and contraindications for ephedra?

I looked in a stash of old ephedra based pills I confiscated from my wife. Hydoxycut, Metabolife, Metabo-Lite, and Pro-Image pills all display large warnings about ephedra.

You think these companies don't print warning labels with the litigious society we live in? Most of these labels are over 2 inches tall. The hydroxycut warning looks to be about a thousand words.

 

[Dancing David]

Hey most crack heads are thin, lets hope they don't excede the daily recomended intake...