Washington ? Food and Drug Administration investigators are looking into the death of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler as they try to decide just how dangerous the herbal stimulant ephedra might be and whether to ban it, the FDA’s new chief said Wednesday.

Ephedra may prove particularly risky for athletes, and settling the long-simmering controversy about the herb’s safety is a high priority, FDA Commissioner Mark McClellan said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Ephedra, an herb commonly used for weight loss and body building, increases metabolic rate and speeds the heart, he noted. Add strenuous activity, and “sports use is one area where I have got some particular concerns,” McClellan said.

His comments came after a Florida medical examiner said Monday’s heatstroke death of Bechler might have been linked to an ephedra-containing supplement found in the 23-year-old pitcher’s locker at the Orioles’ spring training camp.

Toxicology tests to prove if ephedrine, the herb’s active ingredient, was in Bechler’s body won’t be available for at least two weeks. But Broward County medical examiner Dr. Joshua Perper, who interviewed the player’s family and Orioles officials, said he was told Bechler took three pills each morning of Xenadrine RFA-1.

Perper urged baseball officials to ban use of the supplement, as football, college athletics and Olympics officials have.

Xenadrine’s maker, Cytodine Technologies, said in a statement that two capsules a day was the recommended dose, and that studies showed the product was safe when used as directed.

But ephedra has long been linked to heart attacks, strokes and other serious side effects — even at recommended doses, particularly if users have underlying heart trouble or certain other ailments. The FDA has reports of at least 100 deaths linked to use of the herbal supplements. A study published earlier this month found U.S. poison control centers reported 1,178 side effects among ephedra users last year alone, and critics have urged FDA to ban the pills.

Within a month, the FDA expects to receive a review of ephedra’s risks from the Rand Corp., hired to take an independent look at the controversy.

Also, FDA investigators are talking with the Florida medical examiner and will scrutinize Bechler’s toxicology tests, as another piece of evidence, FDA chief McClellan said.

“We are going to get the reports, look at all this evidence and take appropriate action quickly,” McClellan said Wednesday. “If there is a health risk, we need to be on top of it,” he said, adding that sports use may ultimately prove the area of most concern.

Is a ban possible? “That’s something we definitely are considering,” he said.