The rush will soon be over

LOLITA HARPER

It’s a dark, windy night and I am standing in a dimly lighted alley

holding a $48 check and a large bag. I am waiting for the shipment.

“You got the stuff,” I say softly to a small brunet making her way

toward me.

“Right here, don’t you worry,” she says with a wink and a nod.

And there it is: two cases of fruit punch Speed Stack -- emphasis

on the “punch.” Speed Stack is designed to increase energy and boost

metabolism. And while it is not written on the bottle, I find it

helps suppress your appetite.

The active ingredient? You guessed it: Ephedrine, the supplement

lawmakers love to hate.

Starting today, ephedrine will be illegal to buy. My friend Aimee

Mashburn, the slim brunet I referred to in the far-fetched situation

above, is my only connection to my favorite workout supplement. We

are buying in bulk and we are not the only ones.

Newport Beach-based MaxMuscle lets its customers know about the

impending ban and has been encouraging them to stock-up before their

favorite products become contraband. An enormous sign covered nearly

the entire storefront that read:

“Fat burners with ephedrine will be illegal to sell as of

[Wednesday]. Stock up now or forever hold your fat.”

Inside, store manager David Bourlet said the sign was the ultimate

marketing tool to unload their future-illegal product.

“We knew it was coming,” Bourlet said. “All major makers stopped

producing it about six months ago. It is really hard to find in

Orange County and California.”

He is right, hence, Aimee’s secret Speed Stack supplier.

“It’s the kind of product that when you abuse it, it can be

harmful,” he said. “If it were really that bad, there would be a

national ban.”

There it is folks: the epitome of the “jinx.” Minutes after he

uttered those words, Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy

Thompson and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Mark McClellan

announced they were about to ban dietary supplements containing

ephedrine.

Thompson and McClellan think it is “that bad.”

“I don’t know why anyone would take ephedra,” Thompson said during

the Tuesday news conference, which Newsday transcribed and posted on

its Web site. “I wouldn’t and I wouldn’t want anyone in my family to

take it either.”

The officials went on to say that they have received more than

16,000 adverse incident reports, from a single company, in regards to

ephedrine. It is reported to cause shortness of breath, increase

blood pressure and, in some high-publicized cases, death. Although

ephedrine products make up only 5% of the supplement industry, they

account for about 45% of adverse incidents reports, officials said.

McClellan said the FDA pursued this action for one main reason:

“Our concern for the safety of young people, our sports figures

and others, who have looked to ephedrine for a quick fix for dieting

and sports performance. Some have even died.”

What? Americans looking for quick fixes? Say it isn’t so.

Lets be clear, ephedrine is no joke. It does what it intends to

and that is to raise a person’s body heat so that the heart pumps

faster and you burn calories more quickly. It is also no secret that

the product should not be used by people with high blood pressure,

those who have heart conditions, those engaged in strenuous exercise

and women who are pregnant. It says so right on the bottle.

So, why do people continue to suffer at the hands of this product?

Or perhaps the better question is, do people continue to suffer at

the hands of this product? Or do they suffer at their own hands,

ignoring the warnings and abusing the substance?

I can think of numerous products on the market that are used

inappropriately in hopes that it will quickly fix something.

Overconsumption of alcohol and food come to mind, when trying to

alleviate stress or emotional issues. Obviously alcohol has its own

safety issues, yet continues to be legal. And there is no way to

really ban food, but abusing it can have life-threatening effects as

well.

“People who have addiction problems will abuse anything,” Aimee

said.

Aimee and I use the product in a similar fashion: a half bottle

before an afternoon workout. Aimee said the product helps her “get

the maximum use of her workout” by adding that extra “oomph” required

to complete that final set of squats.

I use it to simply give me energy after a hard day’s work. I am in

the gym at least four days a week and it is much better to be

energized for a workout than be dragging all the way through it.

Admittedly, I am no scientist, what do I know? Only what works for

me. And what works for me is half a bottle, before a workout, about

four days a week, in addition to lots and lots of water to hydrate my

body, which is working on overdrive.

Either way, my ephedrine habit is about to come to an abrupt end.

“Everyone involved in marketing ephedra should be on notice that

as soon as the rule becomes effective, we intend to shut you down,”

McClellan said. “And we also have a clear message for consumers: ‘If

you haven’t done so already, it’s time to stop buying and using

ephedra products.’”

Maybe Thompson and McClellan are actually doing me a favor. I

guess I’ll find out after my stash is gone.

* LOLITA HARPER writes columns Wednesdays and Fridays. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4275 or by e-mail at lolita.harper@latimes.com.