Teen girl dies after ‘swimming on a full stomach’, here’s what happened |
Swimming on a full stomach could be one of the last things you do. Lucy Reid, 15, had just had a ‘substantial’ lunch of pizza and chips on June 23, 2023, while visiting Cleethorpes.The inquest heard that she and a pal then began swimming in the River Humber and quickly drifted away from the shore. After around 30 minutes of swimming, Reid tried to swim back to a point where she could stand, but not only did she end up vomiting her lunch, but she also inhaled the contents of her stomach and lost consciousness.While she was eventually rescued three hours later and taken to a hospital, she was tragically declared dead. According to the post-mortem report, Reid died from asphyxia after inhaling gastric contents.
A trip turned bad
Reid’s mom shared with the court how they had taken a day trip to Cleethropes and were due to leave via coach at 2:30 pm. After playing in the arcades, the group headed for lunch, where she urged Lucy to let her food settle down before swimming.However, Lucy wanted to swim before boarding the coach home and went bathing with her pal while her mum went for a walk.When her daughter didn’t show up at the planned meet-up point, the mum began searching the area before she was told to call the police. She rang 999 at 2:22 pm and the Coastguard was alerted at 3:15 pm.The emergency crew searched for Lucy for three hours before they found her further out in the river than she was believed to be.
Beware of swimming on a full stomach
A spokesman for The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said, “Incoming tides don’t just come in from out at sea – they can also sneak up behind you and cut off your exit route, leaving you stranded and in danger.“By knowing when it’s high and low tide, you can make sure you’ll get back in plenty of time without putting yourself at risk.”Paul Smith, Greater Lincolnshire senior coroner, ruled a verdict of misadventure and underlined the dangers of swimming after eating a substantial meal.“Lucy Alexandra Reed died on 24 June 2023 in the River Humber at Cleethorpes as a consequence of asphyxiation,” he said.“She had travelled to the coast for a day trip. She ate a substantial lunch and shortly thereafter went into the shallow water. The tide was falling, and they rapidly found themselves out of their depth and drifting away from the shore. Neither were strong swimmers,” he added.A study on ResearchGate tried to analyse what happened if one went swimming after eating. Participants were sent to swim immediately after lunch and 30 minutes after eating. The ones who swam immediately after lunch reported a significantly higher level of discomfort than those who went after 30 minutes.Thus, it’s better to let the food settle down and get digested a bit before heading into the water.
