Ephedra was originally used in Chinese medicine to treat hay fever and asthma for thousands of years. It was not until the 21st century that ephedra was introduced to the mainstream diet scene in America. Ephedra was widely used as a stimulant and thermogenic. Dozens of dietary supplement manufacturers jumped on the opportunity to add this wonder drug to their product. Ephedra helped many dieters experience dramatic results in weight loss by increasing the heart rate and metabolism.
It seemed that ephedra was on track to becoming the answer to the obesity problem in America. However, over the course of a few years dozens of ephedra related side effects were being reported. These reports would eventually get strong attention by the FDA. The side effects ranged from skin reactions and headaches to heart attack, stroke, and even death. In 2004, the evidence against ephedra was insurmountable and the FDA was forced to ban the sale of ephedra-containing dietary supplements. As predicted, appeals from ephedra supplement manufacturers were attempted but would have quite failed. As of August 2006, the sale of ephedra based diet supplements is still illegal.
So, where did this leave dieters? Even with the negative side effects, and the fact ephedra was illegal, many dieters would still try to get there hands on this diet drug. Since Aug 2006 A viable, safer alternative was being researched. I've spent some time researching alternatives to ephedra and all paths lead to Advantra Z also known as bitter orange. Georgetown University Medical Center and the McGill Nutrition / Food Science Center at Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal have performed studies on the safety and effectiveness of Advantra Z. It's been documented that Advantra Z has been shown to increase fat-burning and speed up the metabolism.
After digging even further I found two dietary supplements containing Advantra Z as its active ingredient. These supplements are called NuPhedrine and Miracle Burn. The NuPhedrine website claims that clinical trials were performed to measure its safety and effectiveness. However, the product was released in 2007 and is, in my opinion, too young in its usage stage to determine any long term side effects. As with any diet supplements, you should always consult your doctor or physician before usage.
