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Russian Roulette with Ephedra

Baltimore Orioles pitchner Steve Bechler died earlier this week at the tender age of 23. Bechler was taking Xenadrine RF-l, an over-the-counter diet supplement containing ephedra. More than $3 billion worth of ephedra products are sold in the United States each year. Ephedra likely played a role in the pitcher's death. Ephedra pills are marketed for weight loss, yet the overweight are the most vulnerable to side effects from the stimulant. The supplement industry, thanks to greedy lobbyists in Washington, remains largely unregulated.

Moral of the story: Wasting your hard-earned money on unproven and possibly dangerous diet supplements is even dumber than hiring Peter Bacanovic to be your stock broker.

May 24, 2003    8:13 pm
 
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