Ephedra Tidbits

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(collected from various websites)

 

Ephedra nevadensis: No serious side effects known. May depress appetite if

used to excess. Contains little or no ephedrine

 

Ephedra is a shrublike plant found in desert regions throughout the world. It

is distributed from northern China to Inner Mongolia. The dried green stems

of the three Asian species (E. sinica, E. intermedia, E. equisetina) used

medicinally. The North American species of ephedra does not appear to contain

the active ingredients of its Asian counterparts.

 

Ephedra, commonly referred to by its Chinese name ma huang, has received much

publicity recently. The herb consists of the dried green stems of several

species of Ephedra native to Central Asia. These include E. distachya L., E.

equisetina Bunge., and E. sinica Stapf. Ma huang has been used in China for

the treatment of bronchial asthma and related conditions for more than 5000

years.

 

The therapeutic use of ephedra is due to its content of several closely

related alkaloids of which ephedrine is both the most active and the one

present in largest amount. A typical ephedra plant contains about 1.5% total

alkaloids of which some 80% is ephedrine. American species of Ephedra, one of

which is E. nevadensis S. Wats., often referred to as Mormon tea, contain no

active alkaloids

 

The Ephedras are typically categorized into geographic groups that vary in

their alkaloid content. It appears that the North American and Central

American species do not contain useful alkaloids and any pharmacological

activity attributed to these plants must be due to compounds other than

ephedrine or its derivatives. Examples of species found in the United States

that are used to make alkaloid-free beverages include E.nevadensis (Mormon

tea) and E. viridis (Squaw tea).(11,15) Species commonly used to produce

herbal ephedra (ma huang) preparations include E. major, E. equisetina and E.

sinica.

 

The Chinese herb ma huang is a member of a primitive family of plants that

look like thin, branching, connected straws. A related species, Ephedra

nevadensis, grows wild in the American Southwest and is widely called " Mormon

tea. " However, only the Asian species of ephedra contains the active

compounds ephedrine and pseudoephedrine.