Brett Gardner and his son Miller. Photo:

Mike Stobe/Getty; New York Yankees/X

On March 21, Miller Gardner, the teenage son of New York Yankees player Brett Gardner, died unexpectedly during a family vacation in Costa Rica.

An official with Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigative Agency told NBC News on Monday, March 24, that the 14-year-old died by asphyxiation “after a possible intoxication after apparently ingesting some food.”

Although the toxicology test and official autopsy are currently pending, here’s more information on the teen’s preliminary cause of death.

Asphyxiation occurs when an individual doesn’t get enough oxygen, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Depending on the duration and severity of oxygen deprivation, it can have mild symptoms such as dizziness and confusion, or, if blood pressure drops and the heart slows down, severe consequences like loss of consciousness, brain damage, and death.

A common cause of asphyxiation is when a foreign object blocks a person’s airway, causing them to choke.

In Miller’s case, the teenager asphyxiated from suspected food poisoning, or food intoxication. Since vomiting is a symptom of food poisoning, and Miller’s parents said in a statement on X that he died in his sleep, it is possible that he asphyxiated on his vomit as he slept.

Brett Gardner in 2016; Brett Gardner with wife Jessica and sons Hunter and Miller. Elsa/Getty ; New York Yankees/ X

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The parents also shared in the statement that other family members fell ill.

Food poisoning is caused by an infection or irritation of the digestive tract from viruses, bacteria or parasites, according to the National Institutes of Health. In addition to vomiting, it can cause diarrhea, stomach pain or cramps and fever

The NIH reports that each year, about 48 million people in the United States have food poisoning. It also causes about 3,000 deaths in the United States each year.

Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigative Agency said that the preliminary cause of death could take two to three months to confirm.