“Gentle giant” Edward Gorecki, 32, was found unresponsive in the bath on Christmas Eve by his partner.
An ambulance was sent to his home in Ballards Road, Dagenham, but his life could not be saved.
An inquest at East London Coroner’s Court found Mr Gorecki had died of fluid on the lungs and heart disease.
But his death was contributed to by the “drug toxicity”, which had a “respiratory depressant effect”.
“Mr Gorecki regularly injected steroids and non-prescribed insulin as part of his bodybuilding programme,” said coroner Nadia Persaud.
He had also taken painkiller codeine and anxiety medication diazepam.
An inquest into his death was opened after toxicology tests showed traces of the latter two drugs in his blood.
On the day Mr Gorecki died (December 24), his partner of eight years found him in the bath.
He had previously reported “feeling unwell” with a sore throat and tooth infection, and was prescribed antibiotics for the infection whilst managing the pain.
His partner told the coroner that being in the bath was a regular habit of his, with Mr Gorecki having multiple baths a day to help relax his sore muscles.
His breathing had become irregular and an ambulance was called to the scene, with Mr Gorecki being pronounced dead shortly before 1pm.
A post-mortem exam confirmed that Mr Gorecki had died from an acute pulmonary edema (fluid on the lungs), due to heart failure as a result of ischemic heart disease – a condition where there is reduced blood flow to the heart.
The post-mortem revealed that Mr Gorecki had an enlarged heart.
The coroner concluded his natural disease was “exacerbated” by drugs, including prolonged steroid use to help increase muscles for bodybuilding.
Mr Gorecki turned to bodybuilding as a way to overcome issues with previous addictions, “rediscovering” a love for the gym in the three years leading up to his death.
He had been clear of alcohol or drugs for the past three years and regularly visited the gym on a daily basis as part of his newfound daily routine.
In the year leading up to his death, he visited the GP numerous times after experiencing issues with his physical and mental health.
In a mental heath review in September 2024, Mr Gorecki spoke of “hearing whispers” and having “fleeting” suicidal thoughts but with “no desire” to act on them, and was referred for ongoing care with the Barking and Dagenham Mental Health and Wellness team.
Following an assessment, Mr Gorecki was found to be presenting signs of anxiety, and was prescribed medication to deal with the symptoms and to help improve his sleep.
He visited the GP in October 2024 complaining of “tightness in his chest” and was referred to a respiratory team and provided an inhaler.
Additionally, Mr Gorecki was prescribed pain medications for exercise-related injuries, some of which he took regularly.
The post-mortem report concluded the cause of death was a “combination of ischemic heart disease and drug toxicity”, but Professor Mary Sheppard added that it was “difficult” to tell whether his heart problems were a result of family history with the disease or caused by steroid use.
However, the coroner concluded that the regular steroid consumption was “likely” to have been a factor in Mr Gorecki’s death.
Overall, she concluded Mr Gorecki’s death was “caused by a combination of underlying natural disease, which was exacerbated by drug toxicity.”
During the inquest, family members described Mr Gorecki as a “gentle giant” and “a really good boy who cared about his family.”
