Elgin Baylor

Baylor ranked #11 on SLAM Magazine's Top 75 NBA Players of all time in 2003. In the 1994 FIFA World Cup, the Argentine footballer Diego Armando Maradona tested positive for ephedrine in a doping control for using one dietary supplement product containing the substance. In 1977, Baylor was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame and in 1980 he was named to the NBA 35th Anniversary All-Time Team and again in 1996, he was named to the NBA 50th Anniversary All-Time Team. However, as of July 2005, diet supplement manufacturers, including the very company that challenged the ephedra ban in court, are still reluctant to reintroduce ephedra into their product lines. In 1986, Baylor was hired by the Los Angeles Clippers as the team's vice president of basketball operations, where he still is today. On 14 April 2005, this ban was struck down on procedural grounds by Utah federal judge Tena Campbell [2]. In 1974, Baylor was hired to be an assistant coach and later the head coach for the New Orleans Jazz, but had a lackluster 86-135 record and retired following the 1978-79 season. Several states have enacted their own laws regarding the sale of ephedra and ephedra-based products, some stricter than the non-statutory FDA regulation.

He finished his career with an astonishing 23,149 points, 3,650 assists and 11,463 rebounds over 846 games. Bulk ephedra herb (such as that used in traditional Chinese medicine) not specifically marketed for human consumption is not under the jurisdiction of the FDA and is therefore unaffected. Second, the Lakers went on to win the NBA Championship that season, something that Baylor never achieved. Synthetic ephedrine is still available as an ingredient in some over the counter (OTC) medications that are clearly labeled in accordance with FDA regulations. First, the Lakers' next game after his retirement was the first of an NBA record of 33 consecutive wins. On December 30, 2003, the US Food and Drug Administration announced a ban (effective from 12 April 2004) on the uncontrolled sale of supplement products containing Ephedra, citing "an unreasonable risk of illness or injury" from the use of the drug. His retirement resulted in two great ironies. Health food store GNC banned ephedra-containing products in June 2003, and the National Football League banned players from using it as a dietary supplement in 2001.

Baylor finally retired during the 1971-72 season because of his nagging knee problems. Critics maintain, however, that there is anecdotal evidence that the use of Ephedra can cause tolerance and dependence. During Baylor's career, the Lakers were a consistently powerful team, but were continuously overshadowed by the Boston Celtics dynasty of the time. However, many advocates of Ephedra maintain that it is safe when used as directed, and continue to regard it as a dietary supplement rather than as a drug. Baylor began to be hampered with knee problems during the 1963-64 season and, while still a very powerful force, was never quite the same player, never averaging above 30 points per game again. According to the FDA, 155 deaths can be blamed on Ephedra, most of them related to cardiac problems and strokes. Baylor was a 10-time All-NBA First Team selection and went to the NBA All-Star Game 11 times. Sympathomimetic amines such as ephedrine raise heart rate and blood pressure and can be particularly hazardous to those with pre-existing cardiac problems.

In 1959, Baylor won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and from the 1960-61 to the 1962-63 seasons, he averaged 34.8, 38.3 and 34.0 points per game, leading the Lakers to the NBA Finals eight times (although never winning). Ephedra was found in many popular weight control products, some of which the FDA believed may be hazardous. Following his junior season, Baylor joined the Minneapolis Lakers for the 1958-1959 season and moving with them to Los Angeles in 1960. As Ephedra is a herb, products containing it were marketed as dietary supplements and therefore were exempt from FDA regulation in the United States. Elgin Baylor played college basketball at the College of Idaho and Seattle University, leading the SU Chieftains to the NCAA championship game in 1958 (where they lost to the Kentucky Wildcats). Beginning in the 1990s, concerns about the safety of Ephedra and Ephedra-based products began to be publicly raised. Elgin Gay Baylor (born September 16, 1934 in Washington, DC) was one of the most graceful and acrobatic forwards to ever play the game of basketball playing 13 seasons for the NBA's Minneapolis and Los Angeles Lakers. Ephedrine is considered a performance-enhancing drug and is prohibited in most competitive sports.

Ephedrine constitues 40-90% of the alkaloid content, with the remainder consisting of pseudoephedrine and the demethylated forms of each [1]. sinica, has a total alkaloid content of 1-3% by dry weight. Some species in the Ephedra genus have zero alkaloid content and are therefore essentially inert, however the most commonly used species, E. The alkaloids ephedrine and pseudoephedrine are the active constituents of the plant.