A diabetic woman died in agony within days of stopping taking insulin on the advice of an “alternative healer” at a retreat.

Danielle Carr-Gomm, 71, died from complications related to diabetes in 2016 four days after arriving at the Wiltshire retreat and announcing she had stopped taking insulin.

She had Type 1 diabetes, which meant she needed to take insulin every day to keep her blood glucose levels under control.

But, as a lifelong hater of needles, she sought alternative ways to bring the condition under control.

Mrs Carr-Gomm, from Lewes in East Sussex, was instead relying on a “slapping therapy” called paida lajin in which people slap themselves and others in the hope of expelling toxins from the body.

There is no scientific evidence that it can help with diabetes, but she attended a paida lajin workshop led by Hongchi Xiao, 61, of Cloudbreak in California in Bulgaria in July 2016.

Mrs Carr-Gomm believed it worked and delivered glowing testimonials before she actually stopped her insulin.

She went to another of Xiao’s workshops at Cleeve House in Seend, Wiltshire, in October 2016.

Xiao “congratulated” her on stopping the insulin.

Winchester Crown Court heard attendees, including Mrs Carr-Gomm began to fast, but she soon became “tired” and “weak and was “howling in pain” by day three.

The next day she died, with the cause of death given as diabetic ketoacidosis, the court heard.

Xiao was later arrested and charged with manslaughter by gross negligence.

A trial, the Jury was told the case depended upon whether he had a duty of care towards Mrs Carr-Gomm and whether he could reasonably have foreseen her death due to the circumstances.

Giving evidence, Xiao, a former banker, insisted he was not a doctor, had no medical training and did not provide health care.

He said paida lajin was a “self-healing” method, but he did not advocate people suddenly stopping the medication.

A key theme of the prosecution case was the previous experience Xiao had with diabetics who stopped taking insulin at his workshops.

Ms Carr-Gomm had previously stopped taking her medication at the Bulgaria conference in 2016.

On that occasion, she started vomiting but Xiao successfully persuaded her to restart insulin and she recovered.

The court also heard that a six-year-old boy died at one of Xiao’s workshops in Sydney in 2015 after his parents stopped giving him insulin.

Xiao was jailed in Australia as a result and banned from offering any medical treatment.

UK Prosecutors said this meant he should have been aware of the dangerous consequences.

The at Winchester spent 19 hours and 30 minutes deliberating before returning a guilty majority verdict of 11 to one yesterday.

He was remanded in custody to be sentenced on October 1.

Outside court Det Ch Insp Phil Walker said: “Xiao’s not guilty plea has only shown the little remorse he has over Danielle’s death and has made an already extremely difficult and upsetting process for Danielle’s family even more prolonged and distressing.

“Danielle was a mother and a grandmother who enjoyed life and had a love of travelling – her death came as a huge shock to her family and friends and our thoughts are very much with them at this time.”

Crown Prosecution Service’s Special Crime Division, Rosemary Ainslie, said: “Hongchi Xiao knew the consequences of Danielle Carr-Gomm’s decision to stop taking insulin could be fatal, he had seen it before.

“Hongchi Xiao was the man in charge, yet he failed to respond to Mrs Carr-Gomm’s worsening condition with tragic consequences.

“His failure to take reasonable steps to help Mrs Carr-Gomm substantially contributed to her death and amounted to gross negligence.”