A 40-stone man has died in hospital aged just 25.

Chris Leppard, who suffered from Prader-Willi Syndrome, which meant he never felt full, suffered a heart attack just two weeks after being admitted to hospital at 11.45am today.

Chris, of Carpenter Drive, St Leonards, made the headlines after being sectioned under the Mental Health Act in 2003 for being too fat.

He was admitted to hospital two weeks ago by doctors who feared he had just weeks to live after he ballooned to just over 40 stone and had spent the last six months living in an armchair.

But despite the last ditch bid to save him, the wannabe chef suffered heart failure at the Conquest Hospital in St Leonards, just before midday with mum Anne by his side.

His mum Anne, 51, who was holding her son's hand as he died, said: "He was taken into hospital two weeks ago but it was all too little too late. His heart couldn't take the pressure of his weight.

"I cried and cried when he was taken into hospital but I knew it was his only chance of getting better.

"But at the weekend the doctors took me to one side and told me they didn't think he had long. His heart was too weak and it was just a matter of time before it stopped.

"Then he passed away. I was holding his hand and it was as peaceful as it could have been.

"I am absolutely heart broken. I would do anything to bring him back. I just cannot describe how it feels for him to have gone.

"This is my worst nightmare and I can't explain how much I will miss him."

At the height of Chris's illness he would consume nearly £10,000-a-year worth of food.

In an interview given just weeks before his death, Chris admitted he had given up on life but was looking forward to getting to heaven so he could "play football for Arsenal".

He said: "I don't want to die, but I can't go on living like this either.

"I wanted to prove that you could suffer with PW and live outside an institution. I actually think I've proved that, although what with the doctors now telling me I'm days from death, others might argue.

"But in my mind I've had a good life and I've spent it with friends and family around me.

"If I'd have spent the last 12 years in a hospital being fed diet food, I would have been miserable.

"I'm going to go to heaven to play for Arsenal. I'm going to date Anna Kournikova and feast on fry-ups for breakfast, macaroni cheese for lunch and steak and chips for dinner."

Chris was diagnosed with Prader Willi syndrome just after turning 13.

The condition, which means the brain fails to register when your stomach is full, then saw his weight creep up by a stone each year until his 18th birthday.

By 23 he was tipping the scales at 25 stone and made headlines when he was sectioned under the Mental Health Act in 2005.

His two-week stay in hospital failed to cure him of the disease, and after finally letting him return to the home in Hastings he shared with mum Anne he was so determined not to be sent back he dropped nine stones after taking up a strict diet and going to the gym.

But after a fall in October last year he developed Cellulitus, an infection in the fat under the skin, and he found it too painful to walk.

Within months his weight had crept up to a deadly 40 stone and he was left stranded in an armchair, moving only to make the short but painful walk to the toilet.

Anne added: "I wish he had been given the help when he was 13 years old. Maybe then he could have gone on to lead a relatively normal life.

"As it is I have out lived my son and as any other mum or dad will know, that is a parent's worst nightmare."

Lorraine Reid, executive director for Sussex Partnership NHS Trust, expressed her sympathies to the family of Mr Leppard. She said: "Our front-line staff had been involved with Mr Leppard and his family for several years, and recently helped arrange his admission to hospital. "We have been in contact with the family and we will continue to offer what support we can to them at this sad time. Our thoughts are with them."

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