Metabolife Dangers

Metabolife is made up of the herb ephedra, which is derived from the Chinese native ma huang shrub. Taking Metabolife and other ephedra products heightens alertness by stimulating the central nervous system, but Metabolife has been linked to deadly and serious side effects. The FDA had been unsuccessfully trying to obtain adverse event reports from industry since at least 1997, but since the deregulation of herbal products, the figures had not been collected. Metabolife has been linked to reports of heart attacks, seizures, strokes, as well as other health problems, and the FDA has since collected reports of over 100 deaths among ephedra users, inclusive of Metabolife. Metabolife is the number one maker of ephedra supplements in the U.S. The FDA’s attempts to regulate the doses of ephedra-containing products, such as Metabolife, were also unsuccessful.

Military Services Document Metabolife Dangers

The Navy Surgeon General stated that “all three military services have documented medical cases where significant adverse events and deaths have occurred among active duty service members taking certain dietary supplements, specifically preparations containing ephedrine alkaloids.” This has resulted in the Navy banning the sale of ephedra containing dietary supplements from Pearl Harbor stores and the Marine base at Kaneohe Bay. Due to the reports of soldier deaths due to ephedra products, such as Metabolife, the Moncrief Army Community Hospital issued a statement saying, “We recommend that you don’t take ephedra at all. The bottom line: Ephedra is a very dangerous herb that can kill.”

According to a December 21, 2000 New England Journal of Medicine article, researchers consider 25 mg to be the recommended therapeutic dose that is usually given with about 200 mg of caffeine. This one dose of Metabolife quickens the heart rate, opens up the bronchial airways allowing more oxygen to become available, and constricts the blood vessels resulting in an increased blood pressure. Some Metabolife users react more or strongly to ephedra compounds than others that may be why Metabolife side effects are experienced.

If you have taken, or are still taking Metabolife or any other ephedra-based products, please contact us to confer with a Metabolife lawyer.

Why Is Metabolife Not Federally Regulated?
Metabolife is an ephedra-based product that stimulates the nervous system and speeds up metabolism. Contained in hundreds of other herbal products, despite being linked to more deaths and injuries than every other type of herbal product combined, the 1994 federal law allows ephedra to be exempted from federal regulation because it is classified as a food. Supplements like Metabolife are not subjected to the same strict clinical testing standards as prescription and most over-the-counter drugs. The FDA has been criticized for trying to obtain information on the adverse effects associated to Metabolife and other ephedra products. The FDA has not been able to get Metabolife to provide any information until the Metabolife criminal investigation was launched.