A superfit father died after accidentally making and downing a caffeine powder mixture as strong as 200 cups of coffee, an inquest today heard.
Personal trainer Thomas Mansfield ordered a 100g packet of caffeine powder to make supplement drinks at his family home.
Using the packet, the 29-year-old, from Colwyn Bay, North Wales, accidentally made a mixture containing seven times the recommended dose before ‘necking’ it.
His heartbroken widow Suzannah Mansfield said her ‘really healthy’ husband then began ‘clutching his chest’ on the sofa.
A post mortem found he had 392mg of caffeine per litre of blood – the equivalent of up to 200 cups of coffee.
An inquest into Mr Mansfield’s death heard how 78mg per litre of blood or higher can be fatal – meaning the personal trainer had nearly five times the lethal dose.
Today, at the inquest, Mr Mansfield’s medical cause of death was given as caffeine toxicity and his death ruled as ‘misadventure’ by a coroner.
Personal trainer Thomas Mansfield ordered a 100g packet of caffeine powder to make supplement drinks at his family home
But the 29-year-old (pictured here with wife Suzannah), from Colwyn Bay, North Wales, accidentally made a mixture containing seven times the recommended dose before he ‘necked’ it
The inquest heard Mr Mansfield had ordered the powder from supplement company Blackburn Distributions.
The recommended serving of the powder 60 to 300mg twice a day – but Mr Mansfield’s digital scale had a starting weight of 2g.
The inquest heard Mr Mansfield was ‘likely aiming for a mid range serving’ but instead drank up to 5g of the powder.
His wife Suzannah said she saw her husband frothing at the mouth just moments after drinking the solution.
She ran outside to get help from neighbours and nearby family members before an ambulance was called.
The inquest heard paramedics arrived within minutes to use a defibrillator due to Mr Mansfield’s ‘grossly abnormal’ heart rhythm.
The inquest heard Mr Mansfield, of Colwyn Bay, North Wales, had ordered the powder from supplement company Blackburn Distributions
The recommended serving of the powder 60 to 300mg twice a day – but Mr Mansfield’s (pictured) digital scale had a starting weight of 2g
The inquest in Ruthin heard he first took a sip of the mixture before he ‘necked the remainder of the drink’
He was rushed to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd hospital after going into cardiac arrest but he was pronounced dead at 4pm on January 5 last year.
Father-of-two Mr Mansfield, who also worked as a security guard, made the drink shortly after it was delivered to his address.
The inquest in Ruthin heard he first took a sip of the mixture before he ‘necked the remainder of the drink.’
His medical cause of death was given as caffeine toxicity. Senior coroner John Gittins recorded Mr Mansfield’s death as misadventure due to the unintended result in consuming the caffeine powder.
He added he had been ‘reassured’ that action had been taken by the brand to provide a measuring scoop and an A4 instruction sheet.
Mr Mansfield (pictured left and right with Suzannah) was rushed to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd hospital after going into cardiac arrest but he was pronounced dead at 4pm on January 5 last year. After his death, friends fundraised for the family including Mr Mansfield’s wife and children Tommy and Millie.
Father-of-two Mr Mansfield (pictured), who also worked as a security guard, made the drink shortly after it was delivered to his address
The inquest heard the instructions and warnings on the packet were not in breach of regulations at the time.
After his death, friends fundraised for the family including Mr Mansfield’s wife and children Tommy and Millie.
Writing on social media, wife Suzannah said she was ‘absolutely heartbroken’ by the tragedy.
She said: ‘He was my whole life I’ll never get over this. You were my life Tom.’
‘I’m missing you so much and trying so hard for the kids keep it together, I love you more than I could love anyone, I’ll always love you.’
Self-employed Mr Mansfield ran fitness classes with his personal training business and used the motto: ‘With you every step of the way.’
