he most popular fat loss supplements on the market today are those containing herbal ephedra and caffeine. These supplements including: Cytodyne Xenadrine, Twinlab Metabolift, and NVE Stacker 2 have helped millions of people lose weight. While proven effective for helping people lose fat, the medical community has long questioned the safety of these products. Recently published research proves that when taken in the proper dosages, herbal ephedra and caffeine supplements are both safe and effective for weight loss.

The study, published in the Journal of Obesity Research was performed using overweight volunteers who supplemented with either a placebo or ephedra/caffeine supplement for a period of six months. Results from the study found that the subjects supplementing with herbal ephedra/caffeine lost almost double the amount of bodyweight and body fat as the placebo group. Subjects in the ephedra/caffeine group also showed improved blood lipid levels while the placebo group showed no change. The only negative side effects the ephedra/caffeine group had were a slight increase in blood pressure and heart rate.

The take home message from this study is using am herbal ephedra/caffeine weight loss supplement is a safe and effective way for losing not just bodyweight but body fat. When combined with a diet and exercise program that includes strength training the benefits could be even greater than the results in this study. Although herbal ephedra/caffeine supplements were found to be safe in the overweight but otherwise healthy individuals in this study make sure to read to warning label before using any of these products and speak to your physician since it may still not be safe with people who have certain medical conditions.

Source: Boozer CN, Daly PA, Homel P, Solomon JL, Blanchard D, Nasser JA, Strauss R, Meredith T. Herbal ephedra/caffeine for weight loss: a 6-month randomized safety and efficacy trial. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 2002 May;26(5):593-604.