Excessive consumption of Coca-Cola likely contributed to the death of a New Zealand woman who suffered a fatal heart attack two years ago.

30-year-old homemaker Natasha Harris would regularly drink over two gallons of Coke a day, according to her partner Chris Hodgkinson. "The first thing she would do in the morning was to have a drink of Coke beside her bed and the last thing she would do at night was have a drink of Coke," Hodgkinson said. "She was addicted to Coke."

A pathologist who testified at an inquest held yesterday said Harris's Coke habit likely led her to suffer from a condition called hypokalemia, wherein the concentration of potassium in the blood is dangerously low. Additionally, toxic levels of caffeine may have also played a critical role in her untimely demise.

Coca-Cola Oceania released a statement saying they concurred with the coroner's office assessment that "the grossly excessive ingestion of any food product, including water, over a short period of time with the inadequate consumption of essential nutrients, and the failure to seek appropriate medical intervention when needed, can be dramatically symptomatic."

[photos via AP]