Chewing too much gum may have played a role in the sudden death of a Samantha Jenkins, 19, in Wales in June of 2011.
Jenkins was feeling ill in the weeks leading up to her death, when she collapsed and died after complaining about a headache.
Her mother, Maria Morgan, told Wales Online: "I then looked through my daughter's bags, drawers and bedroom and as a typically untidy teenager found hundreds of sugar free Trident wrappers and receipts."
Excess intake of aspartame and or sorbitol, two sweetener ingredients in sugar-free gum, may have interfered with electrolytes in Samantha Jenkins' body, causing her salt levels to drop.
Lumps of gum found in her stomach may also have affected the teenager's ability to absorb vital minerals.
Jenkins suffered a brain stem death due to swelling of the brain caused by convulsions from lack of salt, magnesium and calcium.
Jenkins was eating 14 sticks of chewing gum per day, which means she was consuming about 16.8 grams of artificial sweeteners, "a fairly substantial amount," pathologist Paul Griffiths told Swansea coroner's court.
The Carmarthenshire Coroner is set to open an inquest into Samantha's death next week.
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