Young woman's sudden death sparks online debate

A young bride-to-be died in her sleep after a long day of work on her online shop, triggering a heated public discussion on death caused by overwork.

The 24-year-old woman, from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, had run a shop that sold female clothing and shoes online since 2010, and had done well, with more than 200 orders filled in a recent month.

Neither her family nor the hospital would reveal her name because of privacy concerns.

In recent weeks the woman had been busy with the online shop, taking pictures of new arrivals, receiving orders and sending packages, and asking her friends late at night for advice on how to improve the business, according to her micro blog records.

The woman, who was supposed to get married in October, died suddenly early on Tuesday.

Li Hailin, a doctor from Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang province who had treated the woman, told China Daily on Friday that based on her family's description and her symptoms, the woman probably died of sudden cardiac failure, with overwork and an unhealthy lifestyle being important contributors.

The woman's death triggered an intense discussion online. By 4:30 pm on Friday, there were 377,865 posts related to the death on Sina Weibo, a major Chinese micro-blogging platform. Most of the netizens expressed their sorrow over the woman's death and reflected on their own lifestyles.

"I heard of her death, and was frightened because I have a lifestyle similar to hers," said Li Haimin, 23, who is also an online-shop owner. "Managing such a shop is exhausting and time-consuming."

Li said in recent weeks she has been making a big effort to promote her goods through various ways to lure customers.

"After spending more than 12 hours a day in front of the computer these days, I am extremely tired, but I cannot give up my shop. It's an important way to make money," she said.

The death of the 24-year-old woman is not the only case of sudden death among young people, and experts said such death is closely related to overwork or intense pressure.