Ephedra, also known as ma huang in traditional chinese medicine, is an herb - often used in formulas to address respiratory problems such as asthma. It was discovered that it also supresses the apetite. Used properly, it is a very valuable herb. Unfortunately, it has been misused in many diet preparations by companies that don't have a good understanding of combining herbs effectively. Psuedoephedrine is the synthetic formulation that mimics the effect of ephedrine and is often used in preparations to treat cough and colds.

You can get the pure herb. Yes, it can be dangerous. Yes, it speeds up your heart, raises BP and metabolism.

The heavier one is, the more out of shape, the higher the bp to begin with, the higher dose you take - all increases its risks. Also - you may have undiagnosed issues that could be effected.

It seems that those in the news that have had major problems with Ephedra fall into one of two categories - they overdosed or they had problems to begin with.

hth