THE family of a schoolboy who died from an allergic reaction to eating spaghetti on an Italian holiday had warned restaurant staff of his allergies, an inquest heard.

Cameron Wahid suffered anaphylactic shock from eating pasta made with milk at a restaurant in Ravello on the Amalfi Coast in 2015.

The seven-year-old, from East Grinstead, collapsed in front of his mother Cassandra, 43, father Rizwan, 43, and brother Aidan, before suffering a cardiac arrest.

Cassandra, a nurse, managed to give her son an EpiPen, but the schoolboy died in hospital three days later on October 30.

At an inquest in Horsham, Assistant Coroner Lisa Milner ruled Cameron died as a result of eating milk or a milk product.

"I'm satisfied that Cameron died on October 30 from hypoxic brain injury and cardiac arrest after consuming milk or a milk derivative,” she said.

"Prior to ordering, the family had made the restaurant aware of his severe allergy, but the meal contained milk or derivative which caused the brain injury and anaphylactic shock resulting in his death.”

The Argus: Cameron Wahid Cameron Wahid

Coroner's Officer Mel Doyle told the inquest Cassandra and Rizwan were aware of the severity of their son’s allergies and had informed staff at the restaurant.

"His parents told staff about Cameron's dairy allergy and were reassured there was nothing in their food that would affect him," Ms Doyle said.

"The staff spoke English and understood what the family were telling them.

"Cameron ate about four mouthfuls of homemade pasta with tomato sauce, then said he didn't like the taste. Within ten minutes he started complaining of feeling unwell.”

The family of four had been on a two-week holiday in Sorrento during half-term.

In September 2019, waitress Ester Di Lascio was found guilty of culpable manslaughter by an Italian court and given a two-year suspended jail sentence.

She was found to have not properly highlighted the possible allergic reactions caused by ingredients in dishes on the restaurant’s menu.

The pasta Cameron ate was served with a tomato sauce that had been prepared with milk by chef Luigi Cioffi, who was later cleared of any wrongdoing.

The manager of the La Margherita Villa Giuseppina restaurant, who was also charged, died before his case could be held.

The family were awarded £288,000 compensation after the incident.

Rizwan, who gave his son CPR before a doctor passing by stepped in, previous described the death of their son as the “worst day of their lives”.

He said the death was avoidable and called for lessons to be learnt and awareness of the seriousness of allergies.

“To see him going into anaphylactic shock and suffering like that was undoubtedly the worst experience of our lives,” he said. “He was such a lovely little boy, and always brightened up our days.

“We feel his death was avoidable and we are still struggling to come to terms with him not being here any more.

“Cameron’s allergy had always been severe, but we were so careful with him and scrupulous with what he ate.”

Since his son’s death, Mr Wahid has started working as an ambassador with Allergy UK, the UK’s leading charity providing support to people with allergies.

“We know nothing will bring him back, but we want to help stop others from suffering the pain we continue to feel,” he said. “People need to know how serious allergies can be.

“For us, everything has been about using the criminal trial process in Italy to ensure that justice was obtained for Cameron, which we have done, as well as to establish facts and ensure lessons are learned so that others don’t have to suffer like we have.”