Today it is in widespread use as a treatment for asthma, emphysema, sinusitis, bronchitis, whooping cough, low blood pressure, and circulatory insufficiencies. Most recently, however, a derivative of Ephedra has gained popularity in the battle of the bulge. Joint fir, Ephedra, part of a single plant. Its aerial stems are generally collected before the first frost in autumn when the alkaloid content is highest.
Alkaloids are a major class of natural products that have a physiological effect in other organisms.
They characteristically contain carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and in many cases, oxygen. Because of their potent pharmacological effects, alkaloids are the basis for many pharmaceuticals, both prescription and nonprescription. Ephedrine is categorized as a sympathomimetic agent, one that targets the sympathetic nervous system, the division of the autonomic nervous system that stimulates such physiological processes as heartbeat and respiration. Ephedrine can be obtained synthetically or extracted from one of two main species of Ephedra, either E. equisetina or E. sinica. As a bronchodilator used in asthma and related disorders, ephedrine relaxes the smooth muscle of the small bronchial tubes in the lungs, increasing their diameter.