Metabadrine's formula with Ephedra includes Vitamin B5, which helps convert the calories from proteins, carbohydrates and fat into energy rather than having them stored as fat. Bitter orange, or the extract of bitter orange (and bitter orange peel) has been used in dietary supplements as a diet aid and appetite suppressant, although in traditional Chinese medicine, it is always prescribed in concert with other support herbs, not in isolation. Bitter orange contains synephrine, a drug similar to ephedrine. Synephrine acts as a stimulant and is included in Metabadrine Ephedra Products because it contains synephrine and octopamine. These chemicals affect the body in a similar manner as ephedra, so it enhances the metabolic stimulation of ephedra.

The effects of Metabadrine with Ephedra are greatest in persons displaying a low basal metabolic rate or decreased diet-induced thermogenesis. Thermogenesis is the term used for direct conversion of food that has been ingested into body heat. A lean person could display up to a 40% increase in heat production after a meal. On the other hand, an overweight person may only display a 10% increase in heat production after a meal. For an overweight person with decreased diet-induced thermogenesis or low basal metabolic rate, food energy gets converted to excess stored fat rather than being converted to body heat and usable energy. The sympathetic nervous system controls the degree of heat production in the body. Because ephedra activates the sympathetic nervous system, the metabolic rate of thermogenesis is increased and the result is weight loss.

Thermogenesis is becoming common for people to use to help control fluctuation in weight. Thermogenics work by increasing the body's core temperature by increasing its metabolism. Thermogenics are commonly made up of ephedra, bitter orange, capsicum, ginger and caffeine.
Bodybuilders are the most common users of thermogenics; however, they are entering the mainstream of the dieting industry.