Correct ephedrine dosage guidance is critically important if you decide to supplement with ephedrine so it pays to get good advice.
This article explains the correct dosage for ephedrine supplementation so you can be sure you aren’t increasing the risks associated with ephedrine.
Before we delve into the specific dosage recommendations it’s important that you understand what you are taking. As with all supplements there are risks so it’s important you understand what you’re getting yourself into. You can then make an informed decision.
Understand the difference between ephedra and ephedrine, the safety and legality of each and also whether or not science supports their use for weight loss by reading these articles:
Ephedra vs Ephedrine Part 1
Ephedra vs Ephedrine Part 2
Do your homework, understand and assess the risks, then if you still wish to supplement with ephedrine then this guide will help you to get the right dosage.
General Ephedrine Dosage
Common dosage guidance tells dieters to supplement with 20-25mg ephedrine coupled with 200mg
caffeine
three times per day.
For people who haven’t used ephedrine before its recommended you build up to the full dosage rather than dive straight in.
Usually half a tablet which equates to 10mg ephedrine is taken and then you slowly work up from half a tablet per day to the full three per day.
This is especially important as it’s difficult to know how much ephedrine is in each tablet despite the label telling you.
Scientific studies into ephedra and ephedrine supplements found vast differences in the amount in ephedrine products.
The study tested the same brands more than once and some of them had ten times as much ephedrine as another batch!
Start slowly!
Why is 20mg Ephedrine/200mg Caffeine The Right Dose?
The reason the general ephedrine dosage recommendation is 20mg ephedrine coupled with 200mg caffeine is due to a series of studies which tested a number of combinations to determine the best dosage.
For those of you interested, the authors were Arne Astrup et al and the studies can be found here:
Thermogenic, metabolic, and cardiovascular responses to ephedrine and caffeine in man
Thermogenic synergism between ephedrine and caffeine in healthy volunteers: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study
The acute and chronic effects of ephedrine/caffeine mixtures on energy expenditure and glucose metabolism in humans
In summary, the studies looked at a range of caffeine with ephedrine dosage combinations and tested how much of a thermogenic (calorie burning) effect they had compared to ephedrine or caffeine alone.
Ephedrine dosage combinations tested were:
- 10mg ephedrine/200mg caffeine
- 20mg ephedrine/100mg caffeine
- 20mg ephedrine/200mg caffeine
The outcome was that the 20mg ephedrine/200mg caffeine combination outperformed the others by far and was recommended as the best dose.
The studies themselves were only completed on six healthy, normal weight subjects of both sexes; this means it’s unclear how the combination would effect obese individuals.
Also, there has been no further studies on the best combination of ephedrine and caffeine since those above so this is where the 20mg/200mg combo came from.
With that said, a later study on obese participants over 50 weeks happened to use 20mg/200mg and it demonstrated good results.
Summary
There have been only a handful of studies which looked at the best combination from a dieting perspective and the result was 20mg ephedrine/200mg caffeine was best.
Later studies on weight loss using this dosage demonstrated good weight loss and anecdotal feedback from dieters confirms this.
So whilst there is no medically recommended dosage and we have to make assumptions, we can do so knowing that others before us have done the same and its worked out just fine for them.
Return from Ephedrine Dosage to Best Diet Supplements
Return to Free Workout Plans For Busy People