The headline on the sports news dispatch read: “Bechler’s death should be a wake-up call for baseball.” Truth is, the fatality should provide a jolt to anyone who is overweight and chooses to try some “miracle” substance to take off pounds quickly.

Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler was 23 years old. He collapsed this week at a spring training camp in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and died at a hospital there. There is overwhelming evidence that the dietary supplement ephedrine played a role in the death of the young man whose wife is soon to give birth to their first child.

A toxicologist said more tests needed to be run on Bechler, but that the weight-reducing stimulant triggered several risk factors, including hypertension, known liver problems and lack of sufficient solid food. The player had been trying to slim down in a hurry.

Bechler stood 6-foot-2, weighed about 250 and was at least 10 pounds over the weight he wanted to achieve. His whole medical history opposed a weight-cutting stimulant’s use. Perhaps he felt young enough not to be vulnerable to the effects of ephedrine. He made a fatal error and at the same time sent a message not only to others in sports but to the general citizenry.

America plainly has a weight problem, or at least a surprising number of our people are too heavy. There is a tendency for many to seek short cuts to weight loss. Bechler obviously was among them, but in connection to his line of work rather than just appearance.

Bechler had been taking Senadrine RFA-1, an over-the-counter drug containing ephedrine, the active ingredient in ephedra. Bechler reportedly had taken three pills, one above the recommended daily dosage, before he became dizzy during workouts and died. His death prompted calls for a ban on ephedra use.

William Goldiner, Orioles team physician, says the call for a ban is valid but he adds that little is done to stop it because, in baseball, ephedrine is still legal.

“This is not just a problem for baseball,” he said. “This is a problem of over-the-counter supplements that are dangerous and unregulated. We’re at the point where we don’t even know what’s in some of these things.” Any message there?

Dangerous supplements and substances make no distinction for baseball, football, basketball and Olympic athletes nor do they focus on sports and give innocent ordinary citizens a free ride. At this moment, we can be sure that some nonathlete, probably in our own community, is trying some “wonder drug” to help cut weight or perhaps boost bulk and performance.

The same ailments that befall athletes can strike “civilians” with equal devastation. Not only should Bechler’s death be “a wake-up call for baseball,” it should sound the alarm, loud and clear, for anyone seeking instant slimness or a quick energy boost.