By Jennifer Procario

Dee’s hopes for quick weight loss died this past Feb. 6. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) passed a law that bans Ephedra. A 21-year-old University student, Dee is so concerned with appearances, she won’t even allow her real name to be associated with this story. Last spring, Dee began to worry about her frame and figure. She started going to the gym. Being appearance conscious, she noticed that one of her friends was losing weight at a much faster pace and her fascination started.

Dee became a student in the school of fat-burning pills and got advice on which course she needed to take. To her surprise, it wasn’t gym. Eagerly, Dee purchased her first bottle of diet pills and began to shed those unwanted pounds. The banning of Ephedra hit her like the loss of a loved one. Ephedra, also referred to as Ma huang, is a natural substance derived from plants. Its most active ingredient is ephedrine, which has been linked to illnesses and fatalities such as heart attacks and strokes. Dee switched over to Ephedra-free diet products, but found they had the same negative side effects as Ephedra, without the benefits.

Dee was still shaky but the weight was not coming off as fast. She began combing health food stores and pharmacies for old Ephedra pills that hadn’t been taken off the market yet. Hands shaking she admitted, she is presently taking Stacker 2’s with Ephedra that she bought for $30 from a store that had extra in the back. And so began the game of ping-pong Dee continues to play between her beloved but hard to find Ephedra and her over the counter Ephedra-free products, which are supposed to be the safe way to go.

“In the Ephedra-free pills, they replaced the Ephedra with caffeine, so you’re still shaky and nervous, but definitely not as bad as the ones with the Ephedra. And I guess you can compare it to having a lot of coffee at one time,” Dee said.

Linda Rabeno, manager of GNC in Roosevelt Field Mall, gave some ingredients of the newer products.

“They’re taking the Ephedra, which is the Ma huang, and they’re replacing it with synephrine, bitter orange or some sort of other alternative herb, like Yerba Mate, that will increase the energy levels in the body,” Rabeno said.

After reading the supplement facts of GNC’s top-selling product, Thermo Burst, it’s clear that Yerba Mate and similar herbs consist of high amounts of caffeine, which explains the shakiness in Dee and other fat-burning hopefuls.

Nanette M. Wachter, associate professor of organic chemistry at the University, took a look at the supplement facts herself. “From the supplement facts, [on Thermo Burst] there are over 200 milligrams of caffeine per serving, which is three tablets, and that is about equivalent to two cups of coffee,” she said.

Another reason why the new products have negative side effects is that they contain synephrine. As Wachter sat in her office, she sketched the chemical breakdown of synephrine, ephedrine and epinephrine ,(adrenaline) which all share a striking resemblance. Wachter noted that synephrine is more likely to trigger protein receptors found in fat cells, while ephedra triggers receptors in the cardiac tissue, central nervous system or respiratory track. However ,she then explained that because synephrine structurally falls between ephedrine and epinephrine, there is a possibility of the same risks.

“It [Synephrine] will preferentially stimulate the breakdown of fat in fat cells but it’s also very likely to interact with the other receptors in the central nervous system, in the heart, and in the blood vessels to produce similar affects to adrenaline and ephedrine,” Wachter said.

This chemical similarity might explain why Dee felt the same negative effects from both Ephedra and Ephedra-free pills. Professionals suggest that this could explain why synephrine isn’t printed on supplement facts or bottles. Some companies would rather promote herbal titles to distract attention from the synephrine.

At GNC, Rabeno admits that Ephedra-free diet pills affect the central nervous system and shouldn’t be taken by people with diabetes, high blood pressure, heart problems or anxiety.

“They’re trying to get it as close to the Ephedra effect, that’s why the energy levels will increase, the heart will increase, shortness of breath can happen. It depends upon the individual,” Rabeno said. “Of course it’s safer, and it’s not Ephedra, but if you’re taking two or three pills you’re going to get that undesired effect.”

Many professionals, however, don’t agree these products can be considered safe just yet.

Aside from the similarities between Synephrine and Ephedrine, the increase in caffeine alone can be a health hazard. Dr. Sabine Fednard, a family physician and the medical director at the University warns caffeine can cause sleeplessness, fatigue, kidney and gastrointestinal problems, neurological or psychological problems, and cardiac problems. Fednard says that caffeine, though legal, is a drug and people should take this into consideration especially when using any medication. She also says that being on fat-burning pills while drinking coffee or taking a cough suppressant would be like double dosing.

“This is, in no uncertain terms, a medication,” Fednard said. “It’s not something that you can [take], like a supplement or like a vitamin. They try to promote it as such, but basically it’s a drug. They tell you there’s homeopathic or natural herbs, but a lot of these herbs are caffeine extracts, and the ephedrine and the synephrine part, really those medications are very similar.”

Bibi Hussin, assistant to Rabeno at GNC, said many buyers of these products are college students, mostly females, and some from the University. Rabeno agreed that the majority of herbal diet pill consumers are females from 22 to 35 years old.

“I would think that even though GNC says that’s their clientele, a lot of clients are college students and college students really are 17 to 23,” Fednard said. “By the time these young people, especially females, are say in their mid-twenties to late twenties, they can start having problems of addictions to the medication, as well as social ramifications from using or depending on these kind of medications.”

Fednard said that she sees about one or two students from the University per semester who are taking a supplement to fat burn.

“I always question them: Do they understand what they are taking? Are they taking any other medications? Do they talk to their own doctors about it? Because it’s nothing else but a drug,” Fednard said.

Robert Lazow, an associate professor of Health Professions and Family Studies who teaches a drug and alcohol course at the University, said students seem to be very aware that food supplements can contain stimulants that can harm them. Although La he does not get a sense that many students are using these fat-burning pills, he added, “There are probably people who know it’s dangerous, but rationalize it.”

Dee is the typical user; in everything from her gender to her age to her attitude toward the products fit the descriptions the professionals present. Dee is extremely conscious that there are side effects to both Ephedra and Ephedra-free products, but she has no plans to stop using them. She is happy with her weight loss and chooses to ignore her nervousness and unsteady hands.

In the lounge of her building, Dee laughed in her chair like a child up to no good.

“It’s definitely not healthy, but I see results so I’ll probably continue it, unfortunately,” Dee said.

Ephedra-free products that claim to burn fat, like Stacker 2, can be sold over-the-counter at many nuturtion stores.

The drug that is now banned from commercial used, Ephedrine, comes from the grassy plant Ephedra, which grows in the southwest and the plains.