White House will outlaw sale of ephedra products

The Bush administration announced yesterday that it will outlaw the sale of ephedra, an herbal stimulant used for weight loss that has been linked to 155 deaths and harmful side effects, such as heart attacks and strokes.

“The time to stop taking this product is now,” Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson told reporters in announcing the ban on ephedra and on products that contain it. “They are just too risky to use.”

Dr. Mark McClellan, the head of the Food and Drug Administration, said his agency will publish the final rule, which will state that dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids “present an unreasonable risk of illness or injury.”

This marks the first time that the federal government has banned a dietary supplement. Manufacturers of products containing ephedra are expected to sue, because they deny that ephedra is unsafe, provided it is used properly.

The ban will take effect two months after the new rule is published. FDA spokeswoman Laura Alvey could not provide a firm date for the rule’s publication.

“It will be in the coming weeks,” she said.

Dr. McClellan said despite the legally necessary delays, “consumers should stop buying and using ephedra products right away, and the FDA will make sure consumers are protected by removing these products from market as soon as the rule becomes effective.”

Mr. Thompson said despite the lawsuits, which he expected, the decision to ban ephedra was “based on the best possible scientific evidence.”

A General Accounting Office report found that many people who said they had problems with ephedra had followed the label’s instructions.

The government zeroed in on ephedra days after it was blamed in the death of a professional baseball player. Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler died of heatstroke in February during spring training in Florida while trying to lose weight.

Post-mortem toxicology tests showed ephedra was in the 23-year-old pitcher’s system. Medical examiners in Broward County who performed the autopsy identified dietary supplements containing ephedra as a key factor in Mr. Bechler’s death.

His father, Ernie Bechler of Medford, Ore., yesterday told Reuters news agency that the ban is “the only thing that could make my wife and I be happy.”

Mr. Thompson and Dr. McClellan used their joint news conference yesterday to issue a consumer alert about the dangers of ephedra and to announce that they have sent letters to 62 companies that market dietary supplements containing ephedra and ephedrine alkaloids, telling them to stop selling them.

In a statement yesterday, the FDA said ephedra is “an adrenaline-like stimulant that can have potentially dangerous effects on the heart.”

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