supplements

Ephedrine: side effects

Definition of ephedrine

"It produces a pleasant sensation of well-being and energy, which pervades the whole body ...": it is the definition that, at least at first, many faithful users attribute to ephedrine.

More than the plant itself, Ephedra synica - from the Greek ephedros, to indicate a climbing plant - is known for its active ingredient (ephedrine).

Therapeutic properties

In fact, for therapeutic purposes, ephedrine can occasionally be used as a nasal decongestant and a bronchodilator, useful against asthma, cough, various allergic forms, rhinitis, and to combat obesity, thanks to its lipolytic-thermogenic action. More than for these healing properties, however, ephedrine is remembered above all for the heavy side effects that derive from its abuse.

Medical prescription

First of all, the prescription from the doctor is necessary for the authorization to take ephedrine, often renamed "vegetable adrenaline". Not by chance, in Italy and in various other countries it is absolutely forbidden to include ephedrine in the formulation of food supplements; we find it instead in some medicinal specialties, mainly in the form of pseudoephedrine.

Reaction of the organism

Several people illegally take ephedrine in the belief that no significant side effects develop: but it is not. If at the beginning of the intake, even at low doses, the body tends to resist more fatigue and is filled with a pleasant excitement, to continue to enjoy these benefits the subject is forced to take increasingly high doses of ephedrine. This substance can therefore be considered a real drug: when the body gets used to the intake and begins to develop tolerance and dependence, it pushes the person to take it in ever greater quantities.

Contraindications

Ephedrine should not be taken by subjects suffering from prostatic hypertrophy, diabetics, people suffering from hypertension, arrhythmias or other cardiovascular problems, from cachexia, insomnia, hyperthyroidism or glaucoma, and from those with depression, anxiety and agitation .

Not recommended for children and the elderly.

Frequent use of ephedrine to alleviate disorders such as rhinitis, sinusitis and nasopharyngitis, in addition to causing hypersensitivity of the treated area, can cause increased pressure (hypertension) and cardiovascular reactions.

Side effects of ephedrine

There are many side effects of ephedrine abuse: hyper-arousal, nervousness, wheezing, tachycardia, arrhythmias, hypertension, pulmonary edema, myocarditis, psychomotor agitation, anxiety and tremors. If then ephedrine is taken at high doses, together with exciting substances, such as caffeine, synephrine or worse amphetamines, the result can be catastrophic for the organism, up to coma and death. Other possible side effects include those at the metabolic level, with the appearance of hyperglycemia, ketonemia and ketonuria, especially in diabetic or insulin-resistant individuals. Concomitant use of ephedra and MAO inhibitors can cause hyperpyrexia, hypertension and coma.

The use of ephedrine for slimming purposes is a completely wrong approach to the problem of overweight and obesity. Instead of educating to a more correct lifestyle, in fact, ephedrine therapy is limited to giving the patient the illusion of rapid weight loss and without renunciation, at the price of heavy side effects and absolute weight loss in the long term, in the which - considering the phenomenon of pharmacological tolerance - the subject tends to regain the lost weight with a lot of interests (yo-yo effect or cyclic weight syndrome).