A mother-of-two who was found dead in bed by her 16-year-old daughter was taking 'skinny drops' after she gained weight while fighting cancer, her family said.
Sarah Thompson, 34, had been looking forward to going to a concert and bought a new outfit before her sudden death in the middle of the night in September.
She had previously overcome throat cancer and in 2018 she had her voice box removed. This left her mute for eight months and it became difficult for her to exercise. Despite this, she was described as 'full of life' by friends.
However, she was tragically found dead by her teenager Paige days after she started throwing up. The cause of death for Ms Thompson, who is from Connah's Quay, North Wales, has not been revealed.
But her devastated family believe she died because she was taking weight loss drops, desperate to shed pounds and 'depressed' about how she looked.
She dropped 3.5 stone (49lbs or 22kg) within a month. This is compared the NHS recommendation of a healthy weight loss being 1 to 2lbs (0.5 to 1kg) per week.
Ms Thompson was feeling like she could 'take on the world', according to ITV.
Just days before she died, the mother called her sister Gabriella and was sick over the phone, unable to keep any food down.
Her younger sister, 26, wanted Ms Thompson to go to hospital but she thought she could 'ride it out'.
They had recently discussed their worries over the risks of taking the drops.
The grieving family said Ms Thompson didn't meet the NHS requirements for injections to help her lose weight so looked for a 'fat burning serum'.
Ms Thompson even bought a bottle for Gabriella, but she stopped taking them after getting body shakes and a racing heart.
She told ITV her sister had said: 'Gabby just ride through it, because in the end you'll be thankful for it'.
'No family should feel the pain we feel.'
ITV sent one of the bottles of the drops to get tested, which confirmed they contained Clenbuterol. This is a steroid-type Class C controlled drug.
The substance is sometimes used as a performance-enhancing drug to burn fat and increase muscle mass - but is banned for use by athletes.
In the UK, it is only available legally if needed medically and prescribed by a doctor - although it can be purchased online for research use only.
Speaking to ITV, Gabriella said: 'No, I don't think she did [know what was in them], because as much as she wanted be skinny.
'I don't think she would've taken them if she knew exactly what was in them and there was a risk of her never seeing her children again, I know she wouldn't have.'
Her mother Gail said previously: 'She was really popular and had a huge group of friends. We have had people lay lots of flowers outside the house, which shows how many people she knew.
'She absolutely loved going to concerts. There was time when I picked her up from a festival and she was there with four people she knew saying they needed a lift as well, she was always trying to help people out.
'She was due to go to one at the O2 Academy in Liverpool on Tuesday. She'd bought a new outfit for it especially.
'Sarah was a very bright woman, outgoing and bubbly. She was really generous, always lending people money when they needed it.'
