WORLD CUP USA ’94 / THE FIRST ROUND : Ephedrine Use Has Side Effect of Big Trouble : Drug: Swimmer DeMont lost a gold medal in 1972 for taking cold medicine.

It can lurk in the most innocent cold medicine, herbal tea or nasal spray. It is very common, but for an athlete subject to drug testing, it can be very dangerous.

Ephedrine is a component in many over-the-counter cold medications. It is classified as a stimulant and considered by the international governing bodies of many sports to be an illegal performance-enhancing drug. Increasingly, ephedrine is at the center of many thorny legal and ethical battles regarding drug testing and athletes.

Argentina star Diego Maradona has tested positive for ephedrine and faces a World Cup ban.

The problem with the drug stems from its potential for dual use: Taken as medically indicated, ephedrine is an effective antihistamine and can offer relief from some cold symptoms. Taken in large doses or in its pure synthetic form, ephedrine can act as a powerful stimulant that some sports officials believe can offer a competitive advantage.

Stimulants have long been on banned lists for Olympic athletes and FIFA’s list of prohibited substances is nearly identical to the International Olympic Committee’s. It was an Olympic athlete, Rick DeMont, who first brought the ephedrine problem to light.

DeMont, a U.S. swimmer in the 1972 Olympics, had taken asthma medication before one of his races. The medication registered as a stimulant during drug testing and DeMont was forced to give up his gold medal in the 400-meter freestyle.

In track and field, the problem resurfaced a few years ago. After a spate of random drug tests that revealed ephedrine, officials in the sport struggled to determine a mechanism that would separate “inadvertent use” by athletes treating colds, and deliberate use as a performance enhancer.

Track officials also considered the issue of whether ephedrine, even in large amounts, was truly a stimulant that would benefit an athlete.

Discussions are ongoing and little has been resolved. The most important point, officials say, is for athletes to consult physicians or call the U.S. Olympic Committee drug hot line before taking any medications they are unsure of or unfamiliar with.

Soccer, however, has seldom dealt with ephedrine and its sometimes confusing uses, although FIFA has a strong stance against drug use.

U.S. team physician Dr. Bert Mandelbaum experienced the minefield of potential drug conflicts when he sought FIFA advice on treatment for Eric Wynalda’s skin rash before the first U.S. game against Switzerland.

Mandelbaum said the first course of treatment he recommended involved a cortisone derivative, which appeared on the FIFA list of banned substances. He contacted the UCLA drug testing lab, which handles all World Cup drug tests, to determine if the cortisone would be allowed. Finally, Mandelbaum appealed to FIFA and was told, “No is no.”

He then turned to antihistamines to treat the rash and even then was mindful of avoiding over-the-counter medications that might appear on a test as ephedrine or other stimulants.

“I had bad dreams about the list and neglecting something,” he said.

Mandelbaum said the U.S. team has been undergoing drug education for about a year and the players have been periodically tested.

The medical staff has warned the players not to take any medications without first clearing them with team doctors.