Yohimbine
Yohimbine comes from the bark of
Pausinystalia yohimbe, a tall evergreen tree from Central Africa. The extract from the bark has the chemical action of blocking
alpha-2 receptors. When these receptors are turned on, they slow down
the sympathetic nervous system.
Blocking these receptors helps keep it turned on. Theoretically, this
would cause your body to burn more energy.
Three
studies on this supplement for weight loss have conflicting results.
Therefore, it is currently unclear whether yohimbine is effective in
weight loss or not.
Side effects include: fast heart
rate, high blood pressure, anxiety, panic attacks, tremors, water
retention, sweating, nausea, vomiting, and some others.
It is important you
discuss any weight loss or exercise plan with your doctor. Only you and
your physician can decide what is best for you. Some people have
certain conditions that prevent them from doing all exercises, and goal
body weights may be different for different people. You need to discuss
all these things with your physician before starting any weight loss or
exercise program.
This
article was written by
John
Vickery, MD.
References
Int J Obes (Lond). 2005
Sep;29(9):1030-8.
LexiComp Database accessed on 5/4/08
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