How Safe Is Weight-Loss Supplement Xenadrine?

N E W   Y O R K, Nov. 21 -- In May 1998, best friends Kimberly Brooks and Monique Ishikawa were driving across the Canadian border when the car behind them hit their vehicle at 100 mph, turning it into a fireball.

Both Vancouver teens died at the accident scene. The driver who hit their car, Julia Campagna, was charged with manslaughter. But in September 1999, a British Columbia Supreme Court Justice ruled that Campagna was "not criminally responsible by reason of mental illness."

Campagna walked away from the charges scot-free. Her lawyers argued that the herbal weight loss supplement Xenadrine made her psychotic. Campagna claimed she was delusional, hearing voices from her car radio that were urging her to drive faster.

'A Speed Cocktail?'

Campagna and the families of her victims are now suing Cytodyne Technologies, the manufacturer of Xenadrine, claiming that the main ingredients in the capsules — ephedrine and caffeine — can be a dangerous combination.

"We believe that when you take an ephedra-based product, mix it with some other synergistic chemical like caffeine or other components of these products, you're in essence making a speed cocktail," said Mark Scheer, the attorney for the families.

Psychiatric journals have documented other cases of people who took ephedra and caffeine products, who showed symptoms of mental problems.

Cytodyne attorneys deny the product causes psychosis. The product's label warns, "do not use if you are at risk or being treated for psychiatric disease."

They also claim that Campagna had a history of mental illness and should not have taken Xenadrine.

"It is our view that no person who has a psychiatric disorder should take a stimulant without the advice of their physician," said Brian Malloy, an attorney for Cytodyne.

Health Complaints Made to FDA

Xenadrine is one of dozens of popular weight-loss products advertised nationwide that contain ephedra, caffeine and other herbal ingredients. Since 1994, the Food and Drug Administration has received 1,400 complaints of health problems —: high blood pressure, strokes and heart attacks —from people who claimed they took ephedra-based products.