Yohimbine?

S

Shaz

Cathlete
I posted this in response to a question in the Ask Cathe forum, but thought it is more appropriate here.

Has anyone tried topical Yohimbine for reducing estrogenic fat, eg on women's thighs. It blocks A2 receptors, thereby stopping estrogen from binding.

Sharon.
 
I read the same things about yohimbine, specifically for the thighs and rear, so I bought some at our local health food store (in liquid form to apply externally). After about three days I couldn't sleep and I was using a very small amount! Sleeplessness and the jitters are potential side effects. I found out also that has been mainly used in the past to increase the male libido.

So, I decided I'd be better off just using heavier weights for my squats and lunges :7


Hope that helps somewhat.

Best,
Liz
 
Thanks for the response. I read about those side effects - yohimbine is a stimulant and the cream/gel can include caffeine as well, so sleeplessness would be expected. I believe the advice is to use it before a workout to reduce this problem. Also, using it earlier in the day might help.

Are you going to try it again?

I would love to get rid of the thigh fat! My weight is normal, so the fat left in my thighs seems impossible to get rid of!

Regards,
Sharon.
 
As a general matter, any claim that a supplement, stimulant, or exercise protocol can cause one to lose storage fat selectively, in a given area, is pure farce and fraud.

THAT one stores fat is caused by a combination of genetics and lifestyle. WHERE one stores fat is entirely genetically determined.

Please reconsider using yohimbine or any other supplement, "herbal" or otherwise. Seldom have any of these supplements been tested with any scientific rigor at all, frequently they have very negative side effects on their own of a short- or long-term nature (not to mention toxic interactions with other medications), and most of their "benefit" is derived from the placebo effect.

A-Jock
 
I agree with A-Jock. No amount of exericise, dieting, or supplements are going to guarantee that you lose any kind of fat in one area and not in another. This is just their claim, because, of course, we women want to get rid of fat in certain areas.

The only effect these supplements have is upping your metabolism the tiniest amount by overloading you with caffeine. You can get the same reaction with 20 cups of coffee. All of the caffeine may also help suppress your appetite for a time, or act as a diuretic, so that it seems as though the product is doing as it claims.

The most important thing, though, is what A-Jock mentioned about how most of these supplements are not tested adequately or approved. For your health, it is best to just eat well, exercise well, and accept that your body may not be exactly what you want. I know, it sucks for all of us x( . Please reconsider these supplements.

Sara
 
I used to be very much into herbs (in the 70's) and I recall that yohimbe was an herb that had some pretty dangerous potential side-effects.
 
I agree with the posts so far. As mentioned in other post, the only use I've heard of is increased blood flow to the genitilia...thus the potiential to increase sexuality. As a pharmacist, I rarely if ever recommend an herbal product. There's just so much that we don't know about them. It would help if the FDA put some regulation on them, but until they do, I just don't feel comfortable recommending them. One bottle of yohimbine may work wonders for one person, do absolutely nothing for another, or cause seizures/death in yet another person. There is little to no regulation on batch uniformity & herbals that have been tested have often been shown not to have the ingredients stated on the bottle.
I'm sorry if I sound pessimistic.

Melanie
Due 1/25/04

" Take care of your body like it will last a lifetime. Take care of your soul like it will last for eternity"
 
RE: Melanie -

You rock my world. Thank you for such an informative post, and from such a professional. I think a federal act back in the mid-'90's precisely took herbal supplements into a whole new category and effectively removed them from any federal oversight such as the FDA provides . . . thereby letting the horse out of the barn for specious products with specious claims.

Thanks for lending your pharmaceutical expertise to this thread, and congrats on your impending little one!

A-Jock
 
Thanks for all the responses. I agree that we have to be careful about side effects and consider that not all drugs have been rigorously tested. However, I must respectfully disagree that it is impossible to remove fat from a specific area. The science behind A2 receptor antagonists (eg yohimbine) is sound, and is even reported in respected journals.

The problem is that these drugs need to be tested for drug delivery, efficacy, side effects, etc in large controlled trials. This probably won't happen unless a drug company takes an interest. Since yohimbine is already widely available, a drug company would not be interested in spending money on such a trial. So, unfortunately, people have to risk trying them out for themselves.

Regards,
Sharon.
 
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