THE parents of a Hampshire teenager who died on holiday in Turkey will never learn what killed him, an inquest has heard.

Craig Beston's mum and dad knew their son's cause of death would remain a mystery after agreeing to donate the 17-year-old's organs to save other lives.

Their decision meant doctors in Turkey were unable to conduct a full post-mortem that would have enabled them to work out exactly what killed the popular and talented' youngster.

However it also meant two other lives were saved after Craig's heart was donated to a 17-year-old Turkish boy and his kidneys to a 54-year-old woman who would have died within days without a transplant.

Yesterday as an inquest into the death was held in Winchester, Craig's mum Julie Beston told the court the sacrifice of not knowing exactly why he died was worth it because her son had helped save other lives.

But she also admitted not knowing the cause of his death had made grieving all the harder.

Craig, from Bishopstoke, died on October 17, days after being taken ill.

He was on a family holiday with his mother and her partner when he had a stomach complaint.

His family took him to a medical centre near Bodrum for treatment for dehydration but later the teenager developed severe head pains and was taken to hospital by ambulance.

On arrival, the former Eastleigh College student fell into a coma, from which he never recovered. Doctors treated him for gastro-enteritis.

His heartbroken family then made a decision to allow Craig's heart and kidneys to be donated for transplant.

Simon Burge, deputy coroner for Central Hampshire, told the family: "I think you were very, very brave in making that decision."

Mrs Beston said that not knowing the cause of Craig's death had made it even harder to come to terms with and added: "I just can't understand why someone so young and healthy could just die. It just doesn't make any sense. This is so incredibly hard without the fact that I don't know why."

She said that she had taken some solace from the fact that Craig's organs had gone to needy donors and added that she was touched to have received a letter at Christmas from the 17-year-old who was given Craig's heart. She said: "It gives me some comfort to know that boy has had his 18th birthday." An open verdict was recorded.