TCM Ephedra extensively used for the purposes of libido boost

What is ephedra or Ma Huang?
Medicinally it refers to the herbaceous stems of Ephedra sinica Stapf, Ephedra intermedia Schrenk ex C.A.Mey, or Ephedra equisetina Bge., which is a plant in the family Ephedraceae. It is mainly produced in Xinjiang, Hebei, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Gansu and other places. It is usually collected during autumn. After the harvesting, it needs to remove the woody stems, residual root and impurities, and then cut into sections. It is usually used raw, stir-fried with honey, or smashed.

Ephedra plant is a perennial herb, 30 to 50 cm in height. Needle leaves, usually about 1 to 2 millimeters thick, grow upward directly. The color of leaf is always changing according to the seasonal variation – green in summer, yellow in autumn, withered and yellow in winter, and tender green mixed with pale yellow in the following spring. Ephedra fruit turns red and sweet when ripe. Since it is edible and with high nutritional value, people love to pick and eat it when the fruit season comes. But eating too much of it may lead to dizziness. After the fruits are rife enough to fall into the soil or sand, it will sprout and grow in the coming year.

Ephedra sinica stem contains 1% to 2% alkaloids, which consist of 40% to 90% l-Ephedrine, d-pseudoephedrine, and traces of lN-methyl ephedrine, dN-methyl-pseudoephedrine, l-Norephedrine, d-Demethyl-pseudoephedrine, and Ephedine. Besides, it still contains 6% of catechu tannin, volatile oils, flavonoids, organic acids, etc.; Ephedra equisetina contains 1.15% to 1.75% alkaloids, mainly ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. And it still contains tannins, flavonoid glycosides, dextrin, inulin, starch, pectin, cellulose, saccharides like glucose, oxalic acid, citric acid, malic acid, fumaric acid and other organic acids; Ephedra intermedia contains large amounts of ephedrine. Besides, it still contains tannins, flavonoid glycosides, dextrin, inulin, starch, pectin, cellulose, glucose, etc. The above-mentioned 3 species have similar chemical constituents. But in terms of alkaloid content, the highest one is ephedra equisetina, followed by ephedra sinica and ephedra intermedia.

Ephedra health benefits
Ephedrine and pseudoephedrine are the main active ingredient in many anti-tussive, anti-cold and intranasal compound preparations. Unlike its traditional use in China, this herb is extensively used for the purposes of weight loss, bodybuilding, and libido boost. Common brands include Stimerex with ephedra, Xenadrine with ephedra, Metabolife with ephedra, Lipodrene with ephedra, and so on. Besides of ephedra pills, you can also buy ephedra products such as ephedra tea, extract, supplements, etc. It is used as diet pills because it can induce perspiration, promote diuresis, and improve basal metabolic rate; it is used as stamina and sex enhancer because it can increase myocardial contractility, enhance cardiac output, and stimulate central nervous system. In addition, it is considered that the reason why it can help lose weight is based on its effect of suppressing appetite, which results in reduced calorie intake and thus burn off the fat for the energy needed.