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The death of a British backpacker at a hostel in Cambodia was caused by liver damage, an inquest has heard.
Natalie Seymour, 22, from Shefford, Bedfordshire and Canadian friend Abbey Gail Amisola, 27, were found dead at a hostel in the city of Kampot, Cambodia, in 2017.
The hearing was told they had bought an unknown over-the-counter drug to treat severe sickness and diarrhoea because there was no hospital nearby.
Ms Seymour fell ill within hours of arriving in the remote region and was taken by a local to a doctor but was unconscious by the time they arrived so they returned her to the hostel.
She had messaged her mother in Britain to say she was not feeling well and had looked online about stomach cramps and chest pains from vomiting so much.
They were found dead by hostel staff hours later.
The coroner was told when the inquest was first opened in 2018, the cause of her death could not be determined.
Dr Rajiv Swamy, who carried out the post-mortem examination, told Tuesday's inquest there was evidence of liver damage that was sometimes caused by taking medication like paracetamol or anti-convulsants.
Natalie had flown out to Cambodia to meet up with Abbey in November 2017. The pair had reportedly met on a previous trip to Bali a year earlier.
Natalie had been in the country for six days when the two women were found dead at their hostel. Natalie’s body was brought back to the UK where Hertfordshire found no evidence of “ foul play”.
In an interview with the Sun, The mother of Natalie Seymour is warning others about taking over-the-counter drugs after her daughter was taken back to the hostel and left to die. “All I would say is to be very careful when buying over the counter medication.
"I’ve been told that out in Cambodia and places like that many of the drugs and medication on sale are made in China and are not regulated like they are back here. I’ve been contacted by backpackers who have told me that often the medication contains opioids. Whenever they are buying medication over the counter they should check what the ingredients in it are.
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