Heather Boon, BScPhm, PhD and Michael Smith, BPharm, MRPharmS, ND
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 Labeling standards existed for only a few herbs, including chamomile, echinacea root, ephedra, feverfew leaf, ginkgo, peppermint, St. John's wort and valerian. In addition, while all Traditional Herbal Medicines were required to adhere to Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), establishment licenses were not necessarily required.2 No products for sale in Canada as non-prescription products (i.e. |
volker schulz and Rudolf Hansel
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 Coughing induced by stimulation of the tracheal or bronchial mucosa in anesthetized animals is suppressed by ephedra extracts (Hosoya, 1985) much as it is suppressed by ephedrine itself (0.01 mg/kg b.w.). This suppression of the cough reflex results from the bronchodilating action of ephedrine, although a pronounced antitussive effect is obtained even in nonasthmatic subjects (Aviado, 1972). One disadvantage is that ephedrine lacks an expectorant action and has even been shown to reduce airway secretions in laboratory animals. |
| Huck P (1999) Revisting ephedra. Health Suppl Retailer 5(4): 22-25,28,30.
Ing_fsd_tir K, Jurcic K, Wagner H (1998) Immunomodulating polysaccharides from aqueous extracts of Cetraria islandica (Iceland moss). Phytomedicine 5: 333-339. Iravani J (1972) Wirkung eines Broncholytikums auf die tracheobronchiale Reinigung. Arzneim
Forsch (Drug Res) 22:1744-1746. Jahn E, Miiller B (2000) Efeublattertrockenextrakt - Padiatrische Therapiestudie zur Wirksamkeit und Vertraglichkeit. Deutsche Apotheker Zeitung 140:1349-52. |
| Although possible, it is not likely because of the difficulty in separating the product from accompanying plant material. A much more likely starting material is pseudoephedrine which is readily available in pure form. Large-scale sales of that alkaloid are now monitored by the Drug Enforcement Agency (Maltz, 1996).
Due to concerns about the reported and potential toxicity of ephedra-containing dietary supplement products sold in the U.S. for purposes other than the traditionally used respiratory indications, i.e., as aids in weight loss and for enhancement of athletic performance, the U.S. |
| In 1995 and 1996, the FDA held two meetings of an expert advisory group to make recommendations regarding the continued marketability of ephedra products. |
Michael Castleman
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 Recent studies have also shown that ephedra boosts metabolic rate—the speed at which the body burns calories. As a result, it has shown some benefit as a weight-loss aid, but only in those who are significantly overweight. ephedra can also increase heart rate and blood pressure, so don't use it if you have high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes or glaucoma.
How-to: For a decoction, use one teaspoon of twigs per cup of boiling water. Simmer 10 to 15 minutes. Reheat if desired. Drink up to two cups a day.
In a tincture, take up to 14 teaspoon a day. |
Kathi Keville
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 Other herbs that can raise blood pressure when taken in large amounts are ephedra, angelica, black cohosh (which also causes dizziness and irritates the nerves) and ginseng, according to some reports. ephedra and the caffeine-rich plants coffee, guarana, mate and kola nut stimulate the adrenal glands and can make you nervous, cause your heart to race and make it hard for you to sleep. Chances are that if caffeine were a new drug today, the FDA would approve it for prescription use only. |
Dr. Mary Dan Eades
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 Suppress your appetite with ephedra, guarana, and kola nut. Caution: Do not use ephedra if you suffer from anxiety, glaucoma, heart disease, high blood pressure, or insomnia, or if you are taking an MAO (monoamine oxidase) inhibitor.
• The thyroid function is enhanced with bladderwrack, borage seed, hawthorn berry, sarsaparilla, and licorice. Caution: Excessive amounts or long-term use of licorice (over 6 weeks) can elevate blood pressure. Do not use this herb on a daily basis for more than 1 week, and avoid it completely if you have high blood pressure. |
The Life Extension Editorial Staff
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 Other botanicals and plant products that can help asthma include licorice, Yerba mate, bee pollen, ephedra, and American angelica.
• Licorice combats coughs and lung congestion. It works as a demulcent (soothing, coating agent) due to its high mucilage content which soothes irritated mucous membranes. It can be as effective as codeine, and safer, when used as a cough suppressant. It also works as an expectorant to help with coughs by increasing the secretion of the bronchial glands. |
| Other stimulants will also produce unwanted anxiety, such as ephedra or ma-huang. Avoid these substances unless directed by a physician.
Supplements
Deficiencies of many vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and fatty acids can imbalance the nervous system. You can take a high-quality multivitamin and minetal formula and consider adding a B-complex supplement along with extta calcium and magnesium at a one to one ratio. This will ensure you are getting enough of these essential nutrients you may not be receiving from your diet alone. |
Glenn W. Geelhoed, M.D. and Jean Barilla, M.S.
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 Ephedra, or ma huang, is a potent anti-allergic herb. It contains alkaloids that help soothe bronchial spasms, making it effective against asthma.
CAUTION: ephedra should never be used by pregnant women or people with high blood pressure. eucalyptus Australians ease congestion by breathing in eucalyptus vapors. To try this, put the leaves into a large pot of boiling water, and boil them for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and, with a towel draped over your head, breathe in the steam. You can also add a few drops of lemon balm or chamomile oil. All of these will soothe mucous membranes. |
| Ephedra
The Chinese use a plant called ma huang (or ephedra) as a stimulant. Ma huang contains ephedrine, a decongestant and bronchodialator with a healthy kick. A tea made from the powdered or cut root can keep you going for the long haul. But, use this herb with caution — ephedrine is an extremely powerful stimulant, and long-term use can be harmful. It should never be used by pregnant women or by people with elevated blood pressure.
Ginkgo
Ginkgo trees have been around for over 200 million years. |
| It is made by steeping 1 Vi ounces of dried ephedra branches in 1 pint of boiling water for no more than 20 minutes. This treatment works because the ephedra plant contains the substance ephedrine, a natural decongestant. CAUTION: This remedy should not be used by people with hypertension. |
The Life Extension Editorial Staff
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| Most species of ephedra contain the adrenaline-like substances ephedrine and pseudoephedtine, which stimulate the sympathetic nervous system and help relieve asthma, cold, and allergy symptoms. Synthetic ephedrine compounds are widely used in over-the-countet cold remedies like Sudafed.
• American angelica has compounds that can relax the windpipe and thus may be beneficial for asthma. More exotic botanicals such as Tylophora asthmatica, Boswellia serrata, and Petasites hybridus are worth checking into as well (Miller 2001). |
Ray Strand, M.D.
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 They explained to Christina that they believed the seizures were a result of the natural herb combination of caffeine and ephedra that Juan had been taking. The neurologist had seen this same reaction twice before in her career. She said that even if Juan did manage to survive, he would most likely sustain significant brain damage.
After three months the EEG had settled down enough that the neurologist felt she could take her patient off the sedation and try to wake him up. Juan came off the ventilator without any problems and remained seizure-free with the help of medication. |
| For the next year, Juan continued to work out, using ephedra with no problems. His body looked amazing, and soon he had met the love of his life.
The next year Juan married Christina, and a year and a half later they were blessed with a beautiful baby girl. Being a husband, father, and the manager of a very successful business began to take a toll on Juan. He gained some weight and found that his stressful lifestyle, which included getting up at 5:00 A.M. after waking several times in the night to a crying baby, was causing him fatigue. |
| How would one actually know how much ephedra is in the herb he is taking?
Dangerous Herbs
Several herbs are known to have harmful side effects for the user. These risks often remain undisclosed to herb users even though they have been reported in the medical literature. Like the doctors who don't inform their patients of known side effects found in the medical literature, many herbalists and health food store workers are either not aware of the literature and the reports, or simply fail to inform the buyer. |
| He didn't dare nod off while doing the detailed financial work, so he decided to take his regular dose of the ephedra. This time, however, things turned out differently.
Christina recalls Juan calling her about 9:00 P.M. and telling her that he didn't feel good. He had a headache and was having trouble thinking. She encouraged him to just come home and rest; he could have his assistant finish the paperwork. Juan told her he'd just tough it out. He didn't want to risk any mistakes.
Less than thirty minutes later he collapsed and started to have a grand mal seizure. |
Michael Castleman
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| In fact, millions of people who have no idea they're taking a medicinal herb regularly use a chemical modeled after a constituent of ephedra. "One chemical in Chinese ephedra is the decongestant pseu-doephedrine," explains Varro Tyler, Ph.D., professor of pharmacognosy at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, and author of The New Honest Herbal. Pharmaceutical companies now synthesize pseudoephedrine as the decongestant in Actifed, Allerest, Contac, Tylenol Cold and Flu, NyQuil, Formula 44 and other cold formulas and allergy products. |
Kathi Keville
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| Other herbs that can raise blood pressure when taken in large amounts are ephedra, angelica, black cohosh (which also causes dizziness and irritates the nerves) and ginseng, according to some reports. ephedra and the caffeine-rich plants coffee, guarana, mate and kola nut stimulate the adrenal glands and can make you nervous, cause your heart to race and make it hard for you to sleep. Chances are that if caffeine were a new drug today, the FDA would approve it for prescription use only. |
Earl Mindell, R.Ph., Ph.D.
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 If you use ephedra, you should do so only for a very limited time under the supervision of your physician and/or natural healer. (People with diabetes or high blood pressure should avoid ephedra, as should pregnant women.)
Ginseng: Ginseng can raise blood pressure in some people. If you have high blood pressure, check with your physician or natural healer before using ginseng.
Magnesium and potassium: Magnesium and potassium supplements should not be taken by people with kidney disease. |
Dr. Michael Heinrich, Joanne Barnes, Simon Gibbons and Elizabeth M. Williamson
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 Herbal ephedra has recently gained notoriety as 'herbal ecstasy', with a number of sources selling plant material over the Internet and in magazines. Claims for the stimulant, 'ecstasy-like' properties of the herbal drug are not unfounded due to the high similarity in structure of ephedrine and ecstasy (methylenedioxymethylam-phetamine, MDMA). These herbal preparations are dangerous and should therefore be avoided. |
Earl Mindell, R.Ph., Ph.D.
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 Ditto for ephedra, which can also raise blood pressure.
People respond differently to caffeine and ephedra. Some people may be highly sensitive to these stimulants, while others can use them with no adverse effects. Frankly, I'm not too keen on stimulants, but if you do use them, be careful not to overdo it. If you feel dizzy, anxious, or restless after using these products, discontinue use.
Avoid the thermogenic agents found in typical diet pills that contain amphetamine. These drugs not only can cause adverse reactions in many people but can be habit-forming. |
Henry Pasternak, D.V.M., C.V.A.
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 Ephedra (Ma-huang)
Ephedrine is a chemical compound found in all species of ephedra, of which the Chinese varieties, known as ma-huang, are the most widely used in herbal medicine. Ephedrine's basic pharmacological action is similar to that of epinephrine (adrenaline), although ephedrine is much less active. Ephedrine stimulates both the alpha and beta receptors of the nervous system as well as induces release of norepinephrine, which further stimulates the nervous system. |
Jack Challem
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 Supplements containing ephedra, a stimulant, may help as well—but they carry risks that include higher levels of anxiety and nervousness and increased blood pressure, and I do not recommend them.
Skin Disorders
What Are Skin Disorders?
Your skin is your body's largest and most direct interface to the world around you. As such, it is exposed to a wide variety of insults, including air pollution, chemicals, sunlight, bacteria, and viruses. Under these circumstances, a vast number of conditions can cause transitory or chronic inflammatory skin disorders. |
Textbook of Natural Medicine 2nd Edition Volume 2Michael T. Murray, ND
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| Botanical medicines
The most popular historical herbal treatment of asthma involved the use of ephedra sinensis (Ma huang) in combination with herbal expectorants. Example of commonly used expectorants include:
• Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice)
• Grindelia camporum (grindelia)
• Euphorbia hirta (euphorbia)
• Drosera rotundifolia (sundew)
• Polygala senega (senega).
This approach appears to have considerable merit as ephedra and its alkaloids have proven effective as bronchodilators for the treatment of mild to moderate asthma and hay fever. |
Mark Stengler, N.D.
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 The problem is, anyone taking ephedra in the "straight" form—without the benefit of other combinations of herbs—may as well be taking amphetamines. For someone with severe obesity who is contemplating surgery, it might make sense to be treated with ephedra by an experienced practitioner—and it certainly is an alternative to more dangerous pharmaceutical medications. But it can have extensive and serious side effects ranging from increased blood pressure and heart rate to anxiety, insomnia, and increased urination. |
Dr. Michael Heinrich, Joanne Barnes, Simon Gibbons and Elizabeth M. Williamson
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| Ephedra herb is used as an antiallergic agent; this is supported by evidence that it induces immunoglobulin A in Peyer's patches and blocks complement activation by both the classical and alternative pathways.
Toxicology
The herb has been abused as a slimming aid, but this can be dangerous if high doses are used for long periods. For example, hypertension and other cardiovascular events, and a case of exacerbation of hepatitis, have been noted. |
Mark Stengler, N.D.
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| For someone with severe obesity who is contemplating surgery, it might make sense to be treated with ephedra by an experienced practitioner—and it certainly is an alternative to more dangerous pharmaceutical medications. But it can have extensive and serious side effects ranging from increased blood pressure and heart rate to anxiety, insomnia, and increased urination.
I would never recommend ephedra to someone with preexisting heart conditions (especially arrhythmias), thyroid disease, and diabetes. |
Dr. Michael Heinrich, Joanne Barnes, Simon Gibbons and Elizabeth M. Williamson
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| Although isolated ephedrine and pseudoephedrine are theoretically con-traindicated in asthma because they can precipitate an attack, ephedra herb has a long history of use without apparent ill-effects; this is attributed to other constituents in the whole extract. Antimuscarinic drugs (e.g. atropine), which have bronchodilator effects and also dry up secretions, have largely been superseded by derivatives such as ipratropium. |
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