Ephedra

Ephedra, from the plant Ephedra sinica, has been used as a herbal remedy in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of asthma and hay fever, as well as for the common cold. Known in Chinese as ma huang (simplified Chinese: 麻黄; traditional Chinese: 麻黃; pinyin: má huáng), ephedra is a stimulant that constricts blood vessels and increases blood pressure and heart rate. Several additional species belonging to the genus Ephedra have traditionally been used for a variety of medicinal purposes and are a possible candidate for the Soma plant of Indo-Iranian religion. Native Americans and Mormon pioneers drank a tea brewed from an Ephedra, called Mormon Tea, but North American ephedras lack the alkaloids found in species such as E. sinica.

Ephedra-containing dietary supplements have been linked to a high rate of serious side effects and a number of deaths, leading to concern from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, and the medical community. However, initial efforts to test and regulate ephedra were defeated by lobbying and political pressure from the dietary supplement industry. Ultimately, in response to accumulating evidence of adverse effects and deaths related to ephedra, the FDA banned the sale of ephedra-containing supplements on April 12, 2004.
Following a legal challenge by an ephedra manufacturer, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit upheld the FDA's ban of ephedra in 2006.[14] The sale of ephedra-containing dietary supplements remains illegal in the United States due to evidence of adverse ephedra-related effects. Following the FDA's ban, the supplement industry has marketed "ephedrine-free" or "legal" ephedra products, in which the ephedra is replaced with other herbal stimulants such as bitter orange.

Biochemistry and pharmacology
The alkaloids ephedrine and pseudoephedrine are the active constituents of the plant. Pseudoephedrine is used in over-the-counter decongestants. Derivatives of ephedrine are used to treat low blood pressure, but alternatives with reduced cardiovascular risk have replaced it for treating asthma. Ephedrine is also considered a performance-enhancing drug and is prohibited in most competitive sports. Some species in the Ephedra genus have no alkaloid content; however, the most commonly used species, E. sinica, has a total alkaloid content of 1–3% by dry weight. Ephedrine constitutes 40–90% of the alkaloid content, with the remainder consisting of pseudoephedrine and the demethylated forms of each compound.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ephedra
See Also: flora, online flowers, flower arrangement