Amy Winehouse Cause of Death: Singer Died From Alcohol Poisoning
Singer Amy Winehouse’s July 23 death was a result of alcohol poisoning, according to an inquest ruling in London.
Winehouse, famous for her top-10 hit “Rehab,” had more than five-times the legal limit of alcohol in her system at the time of her death, according to reports.
Winehouse was 27-years-old at the time of her death. She was found in her home in London. Police recovered three bottles of vodka from the scene, according to a report in The Telegraph.
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Initially the cause of death was ruled inconclusive by medical examiners. But rumors quickly spread that her death may have mimicked the lyrics of Rehab, which reference drug and alcohol abuse.
Winehouse made no secrets of her former battles with drug and alcohol addiction. But family members maintained she had overcome her addictions.
No illegal drugs were found in her system, according to toxicology reports, but the alcohol levels were alarming.
“The unintended consequence of such potentially fatal levels (of alcohol) was her sudden and unexpected death,” coroner Suzanne Greenway said.
The high levels of alcohol found in Winehouse’s system could have stopped her breathing and sent her into a coma, according to reports.
The pathologist who conducted the post-mortem said that 200mg of alcohol per deciliter of blood could cause someone to lose control of their reflexes, while 350 mg is considered a fatal level.
Winehouse was found with 416mg of alcohol in her system, the coroner said at the inquest.
Winehouse flirted with death before.
The Daily Mail reports the singer overdosed in August 2007 after taking cocaine, ecstasy, ketamine and marijuana.
She also was hospitalized in 2008 after a fainting and later spent eight months on a Caribbean Island.
That same year Winehouse won five Grammy awards for her album Back to Black, which featured the hit-single, “Rehab.”
A verdict of misadventure was recorded at the inquest into the singer’s death.
