warning about diet drugs / herbs
 

My husband just got home from his mother's wedding. He and his younger brother (27) were on their way to the reception when his brother started sweating and passed out in the car. They took him to the hospital and they think he had a seizure.

Turns out he's been taking some kind of diet / weightlifting supplement. My husband doesn't know what kind.

Pretty ironic considering I just got that message about the Ephedra warning and passed it on.

He had been drinking a bit as well.

I just hope he's learned his lesson, and maybe someone else will.

Hope everything is o.k. now with your brother in law. Let us know what supplement that was (if he confesses), as I doubt it's ephedra, but who knows. :)

Wa'il

Thanks Wa'il
I'll make my hubby call him tomorrow and make sure he's ok, and find out what it was. Now that I've thought about it I do remember him talking about using "Ripped Fuel" a while ago. That does contain ephedra.

Makes me wonder how many things like this happen that don't get reported and counted in the "stats".

I know even if it was that I don't know if he was following the instructions or whatever, but still that stuff makes me nervous.

The problem is, most of those supplements are unregulated. Most people don't think of them as a medication. I hope he stops taking that junk and will be ok. Keep us informed.

I've been taking Xenadrine for 2 months now. I can't get through my day without it. I have made it until about 1pm but my butt is dragging if I don't take it. I've tried Ginseng and B vitamins for energy but they don't work. Any suggestions?

My husband just talked to his brother. He has been taking Hydroxycut, which does indeed contain ephedra. He's been taking it for quite a while and said he "hasn't had any problems although he was dizzy a couple of times". He was taking it according to the directions. He had had a couple of beers.

I don't think he'll be taking it anymore!

I just can't believe the co-incidence between me receiving that warning from Health Canada at 12:30 am Friday, and this happened to him at about 5:30pm Friday.

And people say it doesn't happen often.

Do they know it's the supplement that caused his seizure? Have they ruled out other possible causes?

I'm not necessarily advocating the use of Ephedra or other supplements, but I think we should be careful how we interpret the evidence. After all, as we all know, low carb has a bad reputation too!

Just my humble opinion.

Rachel

Directions to take it with beer? Sorry, couldn't resist.

There's a controversy about the usage of ephedra. Links opposing it's use abound (such as Health Canada and the FDA), so I'll post a link to a site that offers studeis and research about their benefits. http://www.drumlib.com

The lesson to be learned, I think, is to always research the information before taking supplements or getting into something you don't know how your body react to. That why I always ask :Have you read any low-carb book?". Something maybe great and wonderful for most people, but in certain cases and medical conditions, they may not be that great.

Wa'il

Correction: he has only been taking Hydroxycut for 2 weeks, he was taking a different brand before that. He's 27 years old and has never had a seizure or any other health problems. They didn't find anything to specifically say what caused it.

He didn't have any health conditions that would indicate he shouldn't take it. I guess it's one of those things that you don't know how you will react to until you try it. Too risky for me.