Ephedra Linked To Serious Health Issues

Ephedra is an ingredient found in many over-the-counter medications such as diet pills, fat burners, decongestants, allergy medications and other products. Ephedra is also contained in Ma Huang. Ephedra has been linked to serious health problems and injuries including stroke, heart attack and death. The lawyers with Phillips Law Group in Phoenix have extensive experience representing those harmed by ephedra.

On December 30, 2003, the FDA published a Consumer Alert regarding dietary supplements containing Ephedra [1] . The FDA concluded that supplements containing Ephedra present an unreasonable risk of illness or injury, and should not be consumed. On February 11, 2004, the FDA formally published their determination in the federal register. Effective April 12, 2004, all dietary supplements containing Ephedra were banned from sale or promotion [2] .

More official information on Ephedra and its side effects can be found on the FDA Ephedra web page [3] . The Rand Report was the principal document compiled by the FDA to document and eventually ban Ephedra from the marketplace. A summary of the report can be found on the FDA’s site [4] .

If you or someone you know used an over-the-counter product that contained Ephedra, and serious injury was the result, please contact Phillips Law Group to see if you have a claim for the harm that you have been caused.