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| Thursday, March 13 Updated: March 18, 2:17 PM ET 'Significant amounts' of supplement in pitcher's system Associated Press |
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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- A coroner blamed ephedra for contributing to the heatstroke death of Baltimore pitcher Steve Bechler, renewing debate about the safety of the diet supplement.
Consumers Union said the autopsy report in Bechler's death was the latest reminder that ephedra is dangerous and should be removed from the marketplace. Montreal manager Frank Robinson said the herb should be banned from the major leagues.
But the diet supplement industry defended ephedra as safe, and neither the players' union nor commissioner Bud Selig took a position on whether it should be banned for big leaguers.
"We remain prepared to discuss the issues raised by Mr. Bechler's tragic death with the Players Association,'' major league baseball said in a statement.
Toxicology tests confirmed that "significant amounts'' of an over-the-counter supplement containing the herb led to Bechler's heatstroke, along with other factors, Broward County medical examiner Dr. Joshua Perper said Thursday.
The coroner's report closed the investigation into Bechler's death, but that was little consolation for the Orioles.
"If people are waiting for an answer and this is an answer for them, then it's closure,'' catcher Brook Fordyce said. "But we lost a teammate. I don't know how you put closure on that.''
Bechler was taking the supplement to lose weight at the start of spring training when he collapsed Feb. 16. The 23-year-old pitching prospect died the next day after his temperature rose to 108.
Perper said the toxicology analysis revealed significant amounts of ephedrine in Bechler's blood along with smaller amounts of two other stimulants, pseudoephedrine and caffeine. That's consistent with taking three or more tablets of the weight-loss supplement Xenadrine, Perper said.
Cytodyne Technologies, which makes Xenadrine, said the coroner rushed to judgment.
"The fact that the medical examiner found traces of ephedra in Mr. Bechler's system does not mean that Mr. Bechler died from ephedra. He died from heatstroke,'' said Shane Freedman, legal officer for the manufacturer.
The Ephedra Education Council, an industry group, also disputed Perper's conclusions.
"Health policy concerning ephedra should be based on scientific evidence,'' the council said in a statement. "The current science supports the safety and significant weight loss benefits of ephedra when it is used according to industry standards.''
Perper said he couldn't say whether Bechler would have died if he hadn't been taking ephedra. Among the other factors the coroner listed as contributing to the heatstroke:
"It is my professional opinion that the toxicity of ephedra played a significant role in the death of Mr. Bechler, although it's impossible to define mathematically the contribution of each one of the risk factors,'' Perper said.
Bechler's father, Ernie, reached at home in Medford, Ore., declined to comment on the coroner's report.
Ephedra, which has been linked to heatstroke and heart trouble before, is already banned by the NCAA, NFL and International Olympic Committee. After Bechler died, Selig banned players with minor league contracts from taking ephedra, and the players' union urged players not to use the substance.
"It should be banned,'' Expos manager Robinson said. "Anytime something is harmful like that, and the (autopsy) report says it contributed to the death, it needs to have a long look taken at it.''
The Bush administration began building the case toward a possible ban last month by proposing strong new warning labels that the substance can cause heart attacks and strokes or even kill. Such labels, blocked until now by the dietary supplement industry, could be on every bottle by year's end.
The Food and Drug Administration says at least 100 deaths have been linked to ephedra, but it remains available without a prescription in diet supplements. |
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