There have been questions about what happens when one is on Hydroxycut. I started taking it about a week ago and I've noticed the following.

1) My heart rate has increased slightly (about 5-10 BPM).
2) My appetite is reduced.

Now, I don't know about the benefits of the former as 5-10 BPM seems pretty minor. However, the reduction in appetite is probably more counterproductive than productive. On it I have a hard time eating 1200 calories in a day because I have to choke down every meal I eat. I'll probably lose weight at a greater rate because of the bigger calorie deficit, but at what cost?

I'll finish the bottle because I spent the money on it, but once it's gone I'm going off of it.

About 3 years ago I begin taking Xenadrine-RFA (the one with Ephedra). I was working out every day and eating very little because I had no appetite. I lost weight unbelievably fast. Three months later I tried to stop taking it and got the worst headaches ever. I think they were from caffiene withdrawal. So like an idiot I kept taking it. I noticed my heart would beat really fast when I was trying to sleep at night. Finally I decided enough was enough. I stopped taking it and dealt with the headaches. My appetite came back fiercly. It was hard to eat healthy sized portions because I was so hungry. I was still working out (harder than ever) yet I begin putting on weight. Eventually I got so discouraged I gave up on working out all together. I put all my weight back on and felt terrible. Overall, the initial weightloss was great, but did not outweigh the side effects. Putting the weight back on was a horrible feeling and it was hard to resist taking it again. I was never a believer that ephedra was extremely dangerous until someone I know who was taking it ended up in the emergency room from chest pain at 3 am. I haven't touched it since and wouldn't bother. I can understand you wanting to finish the bottle since you paid for it. Just be careful and listen to your body, because it could hurt you in the long run. :gl:

I have taken Hydroxycut around 4-5 years ago.... (Note to self.... I'm getting old) It was great, I couldn't complain about the results that I achieved. However my last cycle, I had constant nose bleeds and some twitching, which led me to stop.

I'm not sure what Hydroxycut contains, but this is a exerpt from a blog entry I made a while back. It was written to vent on advertising, but it has some pearls in there about ephedra and those so called energy boosters:

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It's been very obvious lately that Stacker 2 has been dumping quite a bit of money into advertising centered around NASCAR, including television commercials and team sponsorships. If your not familiar with Stacker 2, it's a 'fat burning and energy booster' pill with ephedrine compounds as one of its major ingredients. I have a major problem with the gratuitous and unregulated advertising of these types of products. Take a look at this article in Consumer Reports (http://www.consumerreports.org/main/detail.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=59279&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=18151&bmUID=1016906224918) about the dangers of 'sports-supplements'.
One of the many commercials that have been in heavy rotation stars broadcaster and former crew chief Jeff Hammond, drivers Elliot Sadler and Kenny Wallace and his new Stacker 2 sponsored race team. In it, Wallace and Sadler talk about the fat burning and energy boosting qualities of the little yellow capsules, during which a time warped pit crew changes tires, while the jack man lifts the back of the car without the aid of a jack. Here is an exerpt from the Stacker 2 website:

Imagine a Fat Burner that guarantees you'll feel the effects in just 45 minutes! Stacker 2 "The Worlds Strongest Fat Burner" may well be the most powerful energizer available to date, without a prescription. Stacker 2 has the potential to help you experience more productive workouts by increasing both endurance and mental focus. Stacker 2 "The Worlds Strongest Fat Burner" may easily assist you in changing your body composition by helping to create an increased metabolic response while suppressing the most ravenous appetite. Take one little yellow capsule after your meals and feel the result. What could be easier? One of the core ingredients in this type of product is Chinese Ephedra (Ephedra Extract (supplying 25mg ephedrine alkaloids). According to the article linked above, it has been linked to deaths and permanent injuries, including heart attacks and major heart valve problems. An ephedrine alkaloid is a compound, according to the FDA, that is strikingly similar to illegal amphetamines or 'speed', but is not regulated because it is derived from 'herbal sources'.

I have had a slight brush with one of those experiences myself. I have a friend who drives in the Hooters Pro Cup series (a series similar to NASCAR but sponsored by Hooters) and his jackman passed away a few months ago. This is how the story was relayed to me....



The team was racing at Myrtle Beach Speedway one weekend. The jackman was in his mid-twenties, in good health and working out all the time trying to build strength so he could get better at his job. He had been complaining about feeling a little under the weather that day. Decling to go out with the rest of the crew after the race, he opted to head for home. When he arrived home to his fiance later that night, he had a difficult time sleeping, so he went to the couch and fell asleep. The next morning when the fiance went to wake him, she found him dead.According to his teammates, he had been taking the TwinLab product Ripped Fuel, which contains ephedrine. He had been known to take as many as 6 pills a day, which is at the high limit of the recommended dosage. The autopsy ruled the cause of death a heart attack, and according to the information available at this point, there is no conclusive evidence that points to the use of these products as a contributor to his death. I find it quite a coincidence that these products have been blamed for many similar deaths around the country, and that a strong, young and seemingly healthy man would suddenly have a heart attack. I'll venture that the Stacker people never thought about the jackman in their commercial dropping the car, keeling over and dying. I find it ironic that the commercials featuring pit crews promoting these products could, in reality, be seling a product that could actually kill the pit crew members their trying to pump up.

Now don't get me wrong. There are the same potential problems when other seemingly harmless drugs like Nyquil, or asprin are taken in the wrong way. It is ultimately up to the user to make sure that anything they take wouldn't hurt them. The problem that I do have with this line of advertising and marketing is that these companies are promoting the products as fix-alls and 'magic pills'. While this may be true, in their commercials they make absolutely no effort to warn people of possible problems, or even attempt to tell them to consult a doctor before starting any type of program that includes taking their product. In defense of TwinLab, they do provide warning information on their web site, but Stacker 2 makes no mention of any possible problems and further reinforces the 'magic pill' mantra.

Many of these products are being sold at the registers of convenience stores and gas stations next to candy, bubble gum, beef jerky and other impulse items. I wonder, how many people, that buy these pills as an impulse item, actually think about consulting a doctor before they hop in their big rig, pop a few pills, and tool on down the road?

The FDA needs to step in to regulate these products. They need to be held to the same starndard as any other over the counter drug. The excuse that these are 'herbal supplements' is a red herring. You can claim the same thing for asprin, whose original formula came from the bark of the willow tree. Yet it remains regulated by the FDA. There needs to be constistant, standard warnings in commercials and other advertising. Stacker should be held to the same standards of labeling and warnings as any other drug company. They are inadvertently killing people and the marketing and advertising borders on deceptive. How many more fit and healthy people need to die before someone takes real notice and does something?

We are all ultimately responsible for every single thing we knowingly put into our bodies, but it is up to the manufacturer to make a good faith effort to fully warn someone of the potential risks involved if they choose to do so.

Here are a couple of links for some interesting FDA documents on the use of ephedrine alkaloids:
www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/hhsephed.html (http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/hhsephed.html)
www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/tpephedr.html (http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/tpephedr.html)
For more information consult the FDA website. (http://www.fda.gov/)
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Just my 2 1/2 cents....

Hydroxycut, at least from what I've seen, is ephedra-free. The main ingredient is caffeine.

Hydroxycut, at least from what I've seen, is ephedra-free. The main ingredient is caffeine.

I think there are two different versions. One with Ephedra and Ephedra-free. I don't know if you can even buy the stuff with ephedra anymore though. Anyway if it lists the ingredient "Ma Huang", this is another name for ephedra.