Ephedrine is an alkaloid, or chemical compound, found in the plant ephedra and is traditionally used in Chinese medicine and some over-the-counter and prescription medications. More recently, it has been marketed as a diet pill.

Ephedra-containing products stimulate the central nervous system and often include additional stimulants, such as caffeine, to promote weight loss. According to the Food and Drug Administration, ephedra has been found in weight-loss supplements and products to increase energy levels and athletic performance. Some variations of ephedra have even been sold as alternatives to illegal drugs.

The use of ephedrine has been controversial because of side effects such as high blood pressure, rapid heart rate, nerve damage, muscle injury, psychosis and memory loss. More serious results have also been reported, including heart attack, stroke, seizure and death. Because ephedrine and supplements containing it have been linked to unreasonable risk of illness or injury, according to the Mayo Clinic, ephedrine is currently banned in the U.S.

To learn about other potentially dangerous weight-loss drugs, take a look at our list of dangerous diet pills.

Photo: Joe Cohen, WireImage

In the past we've delivered you experts' crash diets, this week AOL Health takes a look at celebrity quick fixes for weight loss, reviewing what pills and supplements they've tried -- and which, if any, are safe. Among the famous pill-poppers and their weight-loss aid of choice, are the Kardashian sisters (who we've told you all about on That's Fit) and QuickTrim, Wynonna and alli, and more.

Would you ever consider a weight-loss drug? Does FDA approval matter to you? Tell us what you think in a comment below.

Diet pills do work. But they've gotten more dangerous than effective over the years, and experts warn that there's no miracle potion out there that can shrink you back into your college jeans without compromising your health. Diet and exercise -- now, these are two formulas that work. Still, we're on a hunt for the perfect skinny pill.

Redbook magazine digs up the scoop on five popular diet drugs and offers a rundown on them all right here. There's Alli (orlistat), Meridia (sibutramine), Zimulti (rimonabant), Glucophage (metformin), and Byetta (exenatide). If you think blocking the digestion of fat calories is the way to go, Alli might be your drug. But if you eat too much fat, you'll need to be prepared for loose, oily stools. Maybe you'd like to just feel full faster. Then Meridia is tops. Well, if you don't mind high blood pressure and an increased risk of heart attack or stroke. Shutting off your appetite is another possible fix, thanks to Zimulti, which might just happen to turn on a little anxiety and depression.

You get my drift, right? Yes, weight-loss drugs work. Their effectiveness just comes with a cost-- one I'm not wiling to pay. How about you?

Source

Have you had it up to here with all the magazine diets and infomercial diets? With the holiday season reaching its peak, more dieting nonsense than ever is coming out of the woodwork. This is probably due to all the excess eating many of us are doing and with New Year's resolutions coming right up.

But which of these work and which don't? That's impossible to answer, as all these diets -- no matter how zany -- will always have a success story behind it.

Top-of-the-mill candidates of recent years carry names like Weight Watchers, South Beach Diet and Atkin's. These aren't fad diets really, and they all work (according to all the people I've spoken with who are using each method to lose -- and maintain -- a lower weight).

Want some others to consider, though? Try these on for size after doing some research on each one to see which of them caters to your style and personality. Who knows -- maybe one will work for you in the long term. But, I doubt it will be in pill form or working "while you sleep."

Source

How much does it cost you to lose a pound? If you're anything like an average woman, it could cost you $1660. A recent study showed that of a study of 2000 young women, this was the average amount spent on each pound of weight loss, on items like weight-loss programs, DVDs, gym memberships, equipment and specialty foods. Over a lifetime, most spent over $300,000. Yikes!

That's not all -- there are even more alarming statistics. For example:

• 90% of women surveyed have gone a full day without food. 30% have gone two or more days without food.
  
• Half of the women questioned said that losing weight meant eating less than 1000 calories a day.
  
• 30% have taken diet pills
• 30% have made themselves throw up
• 11% have taken speed or cocaine to rev their metabolism.
  

Good lord. These are some alarming result, don't you think?

Source

A recent study indicated that many diet drugs end up having serious side effects while resulting in very little long-term effectiveness for weight loss.

Surprised? Why many people believe a pill can lead to meaningful weight loss is still lost on me, and this recent research seems to support that.

In the study, men and women weighing about 220 pounds lost less than 11 pounds on average after taking diet drugs designed for long-term weight loss. I supposed these drugs could be marketed as moving customers from obese status to overweight status.

Source

From the I can't believe I'm writing this department: Here's an update on Slentrol. You probably already read Jonathan's post on the news, in January, of the FDA's approval of the drug; it's a weight loss pill for dogs. Yes, you read it right. It is, in fact, a weight loss pill for your precious pooch!

And shockingly, it seems that (even with a backlash) Americans who are too busy or too lazy to walk their dogs are actually turning to the new, experimental drug (which was released in June 2007) to help Fido lose the unwanted pounds.

Generally speaking, if your dog is overweight it's not usually from lack of exercise, but more from the food that he eats. And, evidently you've forgotten that your dog can't open the refrigerator or open a box of biscuits. In fact, your dog can only eat what you feed him, and when you feed him. So sadly (and more importantly) you're dog doesn't have a problem... you do! And, if we can't keep our animals from overeating how can we possibly hope to prevent ourselves from overeating?

Source

The first few paragraphs of this recent article in The New York Times are interesting, and after that it gets really scary. The interesting part has to do with how science is discovering that seemingly minuscule environmental and physical issues can have permanent affects on infants, some good and some bad. Like did you know that the temperature of your home can affect how many sweat glands your baby develops? And appetite and metabolism are affected in similar ways by how and what the baby is exposed to in terms of hormones and nutrients?

So here's the scary part: Having discovered that things can be changed and manipulated like this, scientists are working on creating an "anti-obesity baby formula." The idea is that a baby's eating habits, metabolism, and propensity to gain weight could be modified in the developmental stages, thereby creating an adult who could essentially eat whatever they wanted and not end up overweight.

Wow, seriously? This is taking things too far people -- get a grip.

Source

Celebrities are under pressure to be super-thin for movie roles, appearances and more. They try some pretty crazy weight-loss gimmicks to lose weight, while all seem either unhealthy, unnatural or downright uncomfortable. AOL Body has put together this list of the wackiest diet ideas:

• Martha's Vineyard Diet
• Cabbage Soup Diet
• The Lemonade Diet
  
• Blood Type Diet
  
• Facial Analysis Diet: Your diet is determined by an analysis of your skin
• Grapefruit Diet: This involves eating half a grapefruit before every meal
  
• Fat Flush Diet: This mostly-water diet should be called the water-flush diet -- that's all it does
• Coconut Diet: Based on the belief that coconut boost metabolism, you eat a lot of coconut on this plan.
  
• Cardio-free diet
• Any diet using diet pills

Come on, fess up -- have you tried any of these? Most of us have

Source

Are you better off taking an FDA-approved weight loss drug when you need to lose weight, or taking an ordinary nutritional supplement? That is a question that has been around for quite some time, and it seems to never go away.

Diet drugs are relatively new to the U.S. in terms of FDA approval. In fact, Alli was the first, and it just came out this year. What isn't said regularly in the mainstream media is that there are natural products that are also effective regarding weight loss. One of them, ephedra, is still taken by millions every day, but was banned in the U.S. I wonder venture as to why -- you can do that.

But, would you rather trust a pharmaceutical drug or a natural product to help you with your weight loss? Researching the details behind each one and coming to an informed decision (imagine that) is the wisest course of action. What will you do when you're presented with the decision to lose weight?

Source

There are so many "diet" pills these days that it's hard not to look at one of them and consider it even close to legitimate. After all, diet pill marketers hone in on the need of customers to try and lose weight (and failing) consistently. And there you have it -- a billion-dollar scam business.

Although there are some pills that do actually work (according to customers), are any of them worth the bottle they ship in? The various over-the-counter and prescription diet pills are plentiful, and current faves like hoodia gordonii and even the newer Alli are being marketed furiously at the current time.

The Diet Channel takes a hard look at the various types of diet pills in this expose, which I found to be very interesting. Read it here -- and then reconsider whether that next sales pitch is really worth it.

Source

It's a refreshing breath of fresh air when I see a diet pill or weight-loss plan that does not suggest some absurd "lose weight while you sleep" claim or something similar. Why people continue to eat up this nonsense is beyond me.

Let's take it in another direction: what if a diet pill advertised that its customers must east sensibly and exercise as well as take the pill? Oddly, that kind of honest may work well for all the millions of people who have fallen for the various weight-loss scams in the past.

GlaxoSmithKline's "alli", the first over-the-counter diet pill approved by the FDA, will hit stores next month and honesty and the appearance of integrity are being used as marketing tools here -- not false promises. Hmm, which would you rather have?

Source

In this modern world of ours that is increasingly obsessed with thinness, it's no surprise that the use of diet pills and other over-the-counter medications that supposedly lead to rapid weight loss are on the rise, most notably among young women. But a study in Australia reports that use of diet pills, diuretics and laxatives has risen dramatically among men as well. There's no denying that obesity affects men as much as women, but men are often overlooked when it comes to eating disorders -- a female-dominant condition. As the article points out, Australian Musician Daniel Johns recently admitted to a battle with anorexia, bringing light to the fact that eating disorders affect both genders.

Does this news surprise you?

Source

When it comes to losing weight, using a quick-fix method like a diet pill seems almost too good to be true. Usually it is, but the weight loss supplement industry is worth millions, so there must be something to it, some sort of science behind the claims that these pills can help you lose the pounds for good .... at least I hope there is. Luckily eDiets is here to save the day -- they've busted common 'diet pill' mistakes in this article. Their final say? There's no such thing as a quick-fix -- weight loss involved hard work. Sorry folks, I know it's disappointing news.

What's your take on diet pills?

Source

Have you taken diet pills to try and lose that excess weight recently? If so, you are part of the one in seven U.S. adults who have used non-prescription dietary supplements to try to lose weight.

A new report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) stated fact after compiling data from more than 9,500 people over the age of 18. These subjects were asked about how much and how long their non-prescription weight-loss supplement use was.

Did these survey takers control their weight or even ask the advice of a healthcare professional? How about actually doing some research into what ingredients were in the supplements they used? 15% of the respondents said they had used weight-loss supplements -- and 8.7% said they had done so in the past year. As always, though, there is no substitute for a correct diet and regular exercise if you want to control that weight, as willpower does not come in a bottle.

Source