A 92-year-old man has tragically passed away after accidentally eating a dishwasher pod. The incident happened in England.
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The dishwasher pod was filled with detergent used to clean dishes. On December 10, Leslie Frank Clifton passed away at Horton General Hospital in Oxfordshire, England, after complications from eating the cleaning pod.
The 92-year-old ate a dishwasher pod the day prior to his death. Coroner’s Officer Jerry McGlynn confirmed that he passed away from complications related to ingesting the pod.
Clifton was a “married male who was born on 07 December 1933 in Oxfordshire,” according to McGlynn. The 92-year-old was retired but worked for years as a truck driver. He lived in Chipping Norton. He was also married to Christine Clifton at the time of his death.
The coroner weighed in on the circumstances surrounding Clifton’s passing.
Ate Dishwasher Pod
“I understand the circumstances to be that on 10 December 2025 he died at Horton General Hospital,” McGlynn said. “It is reported he ingested dishwasher detergent [pods] on 9th December 2025 and subsequently died in hospital on 10th December.”
The coroner ruled that Clifton’s clinical cause of death was ruled as aspiration pneumonitis following ingestion of corrosive detergent. It was further specified as dishwasher detergent pods. The detergent caused swelling and inflammation of the lungs.
There’s questions that still remain in this story. But it’s likely that Clifton was confused when he ate the dishwasher pod. McGlynn reported that Clifton suffered from advanced Alzheimer’s disease.
He had also recently battled pneumonia. This likely contributed to his passing.
“The body of the deceased was identified to hospital staff by Sandra Richards (Daughter) at Horton General Hospital on 10 December 2025,” he added.
The story brings to mind stories of teens eating laundry pods as part of an online challenge a few years ago. Definitely keep those stored out of the reach of the vulnerable.