By Melissa Wheeler
A voluntary recall of products containing ephedrine issued by Health Canada earlier this month misses the point of ephedrine abuse, say some Ottawa merchants and fitness trainers.
“To tell you the truth, I think (the recall) is stupid,” says Joey Villeneuve, trainer and owner of Sports Supplement Expert on Merivale Road. “I’m in the (fitness) industry, so I know you have to find out the truth about what these (body builders) are doing, and how much.”
Ephedrine is used in the body building and fitness industries because it stimulates the heart, increases metabolism and energy levels. It enables body builders to build up their stamina, giving them more time to work out and burn more fat. Ephedrine is popular in the diet industry as an appetite supressant.
“What people are doing is they will take lots of it, and they’ll get this real high,” says herbalist Ken Binda, owner of Diversified Nutrition Lifestyles on Lancaster Road. “Their bodies are just screaming, and of course you do burn off fat, no two ways about it. ”
In addition to increased energy and suppressed appetite, ephedrine can induce feelings of euphoria when the dosage is raised. Farkhondeh Razavi, owner of the Nutrition House franchise in the Rideau Centre, says his ephedrine sales have increased by 80 per cent recently. He says it is mostly teenagers who want the pills that are known as “herbal speed.”
The body gradually becomes immune to the effects of ephedrine, so people increase the dosage.
“I’ve used it for four years on and off, and it’s not a dangerous substance,” adds Villeneuve. “But if you start playing with the dosage like anything else, it’s not good. Alcohol is fine, but if you drink too much then it can kill your liver. Ephedrine is in the same category, so I don’t know why (body builders) want to do that.”
There are hundreds of products containing ephedrine that make claims to help with weight loss and body building, some of which have not been certified by Health Canada. Approved supplements have an eight digit Drug Identification Number (DIN).
The recall targets products that do not have a DIN number. It includes products that have more than eight milligrams of ephedrine per dosage, and products that advise more than 32 mgs a day. However, there are still products that have up to 25 mg of ephedrine that do have DIN numbers and will stay on the shelves.
This is not the first advisory from the government. In 1997 and June 2001 Health Canada issued warnings. At the time of the June advisory, there were 60 reported cases of health complications involving ephedrine, which is the active constituent in the herb family Ephedra. Since that advisory, there has been one death involving ephedrine use.
Ryan Baker, a media spokesperson for Health Canada says the department does not know much about the death, only that it was a woman in her 30s who was believed to be taking a product for weight loss. Health Canada does not know whether or not she was abusing the stimulant.