Contents

Page 1
1.0 Introduction.
2.0 Calculating the ephedrine/caffeine content.
2.1 Where does the 20/200 amount come from?
Page 2
3.0 What about willow bark/aspirin?
3.1 What about synephrine, St. John's wort, carnitine, etc?
Page 3
3.2 What about cycling and adrenal exhaustion?
Page 4
3.3 The beta-3 scandal: the discovery
Page 5
3.4  The beta 3 scandal: the truth withheld
Page 6
4.0 Do not start with the full dose.
Page 7
4.1 Is ECA safe?
Page 8
4.2 Massive obesity.
Page 9
5.0 Selecting a good thermogenic formula.
5.1 Price Comparison.

3.0 What About Willow Bark/Aspirin?

The use of willow bark as a substitute for aspirin has been questioned. According to Mowrey's book (4-BK), willow bark (salicin) acts more like sodium salicylate than aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid). If Mowrey is correct, then willow bark would not be an effective substitute for aspirin in the ECA stack because sodium salicylate does not irreversibly inhibit prostaglandin formation by acetylating the cyclooxygenase enzyme. For more information on this, check out the illustrations in my post, "How ECA Works." However, Mowrey also states that "We must note that the possible lack of activity of salicin on thermogenesis is currently just a theory."

Clearly, the best way to inhibit peripheral prostaglandin synthesis is to take real aspirin. Therefore, whether one takes an herbal stack or a "mini-thin" stack, it is arguably a good idea to take one 81 mg enteric-coated aspirin per day. I would classify aspirin as optional -- ephedrine and caffeine works quite well without aspirin. I would not take more than one 81 mg enteric-coated aspirin per day because higher doses of aspirin greatly increase the risk of getting an ulcer. Thus, I prefer herbal stacks that do NOT contain willow bark.

3.1 What About Synephrine, St. John's Wort, Carnitine, HCA, etc., etc., etc?

There are quite a few supplements that may have a small fat burning effect; however, none of these supplements come close to matching the thermogenic effect of ephedrine and caffeine. Lets put this in perspective: almost without exception, reduced sympathetic activity and blunted thermogenic responses have been found to be a MAJOR factor in EVERY type of obesity that scientists have studied. We are talking about approximately 100 years of scientific research here. Then, in the 1980s, scientists screened all sorts of drugs and found that the ephedrine/caffeine combination was the best way to correct this thermogenic defect (5, 6, 7). ECA is the state-of-the-art obesity drug. Any company that says they have something better than ECA is lying.

OK. Now that we have put this in perspective, lets take a brief look at some of this stuff:

Written
Mar 2000
Last Update
Mar 2000

• Ma huang Free Formulas: Obviously these are a rip-off because they contain no ephedrine.
• Herbal Phen/Fen: Generally, these contain ma huang (ephedrine) and St. John's Wort. Ephedrine is not very effective unless it is taken with caffeine. Indeed, the Astrup/Toubro team of researchers from Denmark found that "the ephedrine/caffeine combination is effective, while caffeine and ephedrine separately are ineffective for the treatment of human obesity" (13). St. John's Wort might be a helpful addition to the ECA stack, but it cannot replace caffeine in a thermogenic formula. If you do not understand this, you should read "How ECA Works."
• Synephrine and HCA: If there was 1% as much research as hype, this stuff would rule.
• Nutrients: (chromium, carnitine, potassium, magnesium, choline, etc.) Many herbal thermogenic products contain small token amounts of these nutrients. I take large doses of a variety of nutrients for their health-promoting effect. Unfortunately, at best, they have only a modest effect on your waistline. Read The Magnesium Lottery to learn about my favorite addition to the ECA stack.
• Tyrosine/Phenylalanine: These amino acids are a good addition to the ECA stack -- especially if you are dieting and not getting enough protein. (Both of these amino acids are precursors to catecholamines.) Thus, many obese people find that they feel better when they take these amino acids -- especially if they are taken on an empty stomach to avoid competitive transport across the blood-brain barrier (BBB). This helps to ensure that there is adequate noradrenaline production. This phenomena should not be confused with the dubious and unfortunately-named "adrenal exhaustion syndrome."
• Green Tea: Dulloo et al. (12) recently found that green tea has more thermogenic effect than can be explained by its caffeine content. For more information see Green Tea and Thermogenesis.

    
Next Page

Home
DrumLib's Posts
Vitamin Price Comparison
Document Retrieval
Dictionary
FAQ
Links
E-mail
Terms & Privacy
TOC

1.) Astrup A and Toubro S "Thermogenic, metabolic, and cardiovascular responses to ephedrine and caffeine in man" Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1993, Vol 17 Suppl 1 Pg S41-3, PMID: 0008384179.

2.) Astrup A, Toubro S, Cannon S, Hein P, Madsen J "Thermogenic synergism between ephedrine and caffeine in healthy volunteers: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study" Metabolism 1991, Vol 40 (3), Pg 323-9, PMID: 0002000046.

3.) Toubro S, Astrup A, Breum L, Quaade F "The acute and chronic effects of ephedrine/caffeine mixtures on energy expenditure and glucose metabolism in humans" Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1993, Vol 17 Suppl 3 Pg S73-7; discussion S82. PMID: 0008124407.

4-BK.) Mowrey, Daniel B. Ph.D. "Fat Management : The Thermogenic Factor" Victory Publications, 1994. ISBN: 0-936261-07-2.

5.) Dulloo AG and Miller DS "Screening of drugs for thermogenic anti-obesity properties: antidepressants" Ann Nutr Metab 1987, Vol 31 (2), Pg 69-80, PMID: 0003592617.

6.) Dulloo AG and Miller DS "Thermogenic drugs for the treatment of obesity: sympathetic stimulants in animal models" Br J Nutr 1984, Vol 52 (2), Pg 179-96, PMID: 0006477859.

7.) Massoudi M, Evans E, Miller DS "Thermogenic drugs for the treatment of obesity: screening using obese rats and mice" Ann Nutr Metab 1983, Vol 27 (1), Pg 26-37, PMID: 0006830140.

8.) Dulloo, AG "Ephedrine, xanthines and prostaglandin-inhibitors: actions and interactions in the stimulation of thermogenesis." Int J Obes 1993 Feb, Vol 17 (Suppl 1), Pg S35-40, PMID: 0008384178.

9.) Liu YL, Toubro S, Astrup A, Stock MJ "Contribution of beta 3-adrenoceptor activation to ephedrine-induced thermogenesis in humans" Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1995 Sep, Vol 19 (9), Pg 678-85, PMID: 0008574280.

10.) Toubro S, Astrup A, Breum L, Quaade F "The acute and chronic effects of ephedrine/caffeine mixtures on energy expenditure and glucose metabolism in humans." Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1993 Dec, Vol 17 (Suppl 3), Pg S73-7; discussion S82, PMID: 0008124407.

11-NA.) Dulloo AG and Stock MJ "Ephedrine in the treatment of obesity" Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1993, Vol 17 Suppl 1 Pg S1-2, PMID: 0008384172.

12.) Dulloo AG, Duret C, Rohrer D, Girardier L, Mensi N, Fathi M, Chantre P, Vandermander J "Efficacy of a green tea extract rich in catechin polyphenols and caffeine in increasing 24-h energy expenditure and fat oxidation in humans" Am J Clin Nutr 1999, Vol 70 (6), Pg 1040-5. PMID: 0010584049.

13.) Astrup A, Breum L, Toubro S, Hein P, Quaade F "The effect and safety of an ephedrine/caffeine compound compared to ephedrine, caffeine and placebo in obese subjects on an energy restricted diet. A double blind trial" Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1992, Vol 16 (4), Pg 269-77. PMID: 0001318281.

14.) Breum L, Pedersen JK, Ahlstrom F, and Frimodt-Moller J. "Comparison of an ephedrine/caffeine combination and dexfenfluramine in the treatment of obesity. A double-blind multi-centre trial in general practice." Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 1994 Feb, 18(2):99-103, PMID: 0008148931.

15.) Lazarou J, Pomeranz BH, and Corey PN. "Incidence of adverse drug reactions in hospitalized patients: a meta- analysis of prospective studies." JAMA. 1998 Apr 15; 279(15):1200-5, PMID: 0009555760.

16-NA.) "Alternative medicine--how safe is it? [editorial]" Adverse Drug React Toxicol Rev 1998 Nov, Vol 17 (4), Pg 205-7, PMID: 10196625.

17.) Young JB and Macdonald IA. "Sympathoadrenal activity in human obesity: heterogeneity of findings since 1980." Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 1992 Dec; 16(12):959-67, PMID: 0001335975.

18.) Bryde Andersen H, Raben A, Astrup A, Christensen NJ "Plasma adrenaline concentration is lower in post-obese than in never- obese women in the basal state, in response to sham-feeding and after food intake" Clin Sci (Colch) 1994, Vol 87 (1), Pg 69-74. PMID: 0008062522.

19-NA.) Andersen HB, Raben A, Astrup A, Christensen NJ "Plasma adrenaline increases during sham-feeding in normal subjects but not in post-obese women" Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1993, Vol 17 Suppl 3 Pg S96; discussion S97. PMID: 0008124413.

20.) Curran PK and Fishman PH "Endogenous beta 3- but not beta 1-adrenergic receptors are resistant to agonist-mediated regulation in human SK-N-MC neurotumor cells" Cell Signal 1996, Vol 8 (5), Pg 355-64, PMID: 0008911684.

21.) Langin D, Tavernier G, Lafontan M "Regulation of beta 3-adrenoceptor expression in white fat cells" Fundam Clin Pharmacol 1995, Vol 9 (2), Pg 97-106, PMID: 0007628838.

22.) Lipworth BJ "Clinical pharmacology of beta 3-adrenoceptors" Br J Clin Pharmacol 1996, Vol 42 (3), Pg 291-300, PMID: 0008877018.

23.) Nantel F, Bouvier M, Strosberg AD, Marullo S "Functional effects of long-term activation on human beta 2- and beta 3- adrenoceptor signalling" Br J Pharmacol 1995, Vol 114 (5), Pg 1045-51, PMID: 0007780639.

24.) Dulloo AG and Miller DS "The thermogenic properties of ephedrine/methylxanthine mixtures: human studies" Int J Obes 1986, Vol 10 (6), Pg 467-81, PMID: 0003804564.

25-NA.) Pasquali R and Casimirri F "Clinical aspects of ephedrine in the treatment of obesity" Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1993, Vol 17 Suppl 1 Pg S65-8, PMID: 0008384185.

26.) Astrup A, Lundsgaard C, Madsen J, Christensen NJ "Enhanced thermogenic responsiveness during chronic ephedrine treatment in man" Am J Clin Nutr 1985, Vol 42 (1), Pg 83-94, PMID: 0004014068.