You can drink too much water

Question

It has been found that drinking "too much" water can actually be just as bad for you or arguably even worse than being dehydrated. Drinking too much water can cause Headaches, Nausea and vommiting, Muscle cramps, and brain fog.Drinking too much water unbalances the kidney and overwhelms to natural process the kidney functions. The sodium content in the human body also needs to be regulated and drinking too much water messes up the amount of sodium within the human body.

Comments

Good fact-check! You’re right that drinking too much water can be harmful, but the article doesn’t really prove it’s as bad as or worse than dehydration. Severe dehydration can be deadly, while water toxicity is rare and usually happens from drinking extreme amounts too fast. According to the Mayo Clinic, water toxicity (or hyponatremia) typically occurs when a person drinks a large amount of water in a short period, which is uncommon for most people (Mayo Clinic). Also, healthy kidneys can handle a lot of water unless someone has a medical condition. It would help to find a source that explains how much is actually “too much.” Your point is good, but it might sound scarier than it really is. A little more detail or another source could make it even better!

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This fact-check does a great job of highlighting the potential dangers of drinking excessive water, such as hyponatremia, which can disrupt electrolyte balance and cause serious health issues. While it's true that overhydration can be harmful, the article could have provided more context on how common this issue is compared to dehydration, which is typically more dangerous. Additionally, since a person’s ideal water intake varies, it would be helpful to include guidelines on what constitutes “too much” water, especially for those at higher risk. Overall, the explanation is solid!

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This claim is well informed and backed by information that is researched by professionals, according to the link attached to the post. What is not proven however, is "Overhydration can be more harmful than dehydration." After cross analyzing between the two linked sources, Dehydration and Overhydration dangers revolve around heat and difference in intake of water. In other terms, dehydration and overhydration are both equally dangerous due to changes in heat and the level of water intake. Adding this small detail prior to posting about the dangers of overhydration and comparing it to dehydration, its important to identify how related the two symptoms are.

Sources: https://www.outsideonline.com/health/nutrition/is-overhydration-more-dangerous-than-dehydration/
https://www.skratchlabs.com/blogs/science-products/is-overhydration-more-dangerous-than-dehydration#:~:text=The%20long%20story%20short%20is,deaths%20from%20hyponatremia.

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I believe that excessive water intake is bad, but maybe include any studies that show why. It also varies depending on people’s water intake and how much they are able to drink.

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Yes this claim is true. Water in excess amounts can be deadly according to plenty government websites. There have also been people who have died from drinking too much water, this term is called water poising, according to many reputable news sources.

Answer 1

This is true. Overhydration occurs when "Your body’s water volume becomes too large for your kidneys to excrete," which can lead to the body's electrolytes such as sodium to become too diluted. This usually occurs in athletes who drink too much water before or after an event, or in people with certain medial problems or who take medications that make them extremely thirsty.

https://www.healthline.com/health/overhydration#causes

Comments

This factcheck is excellent. Well done for making the extra effort to locate an article that substantiates this assertion. It's also crucial, in my opinion, to remember that each individual has a distinct threshold for how much water they can handle before it becomes harmful.

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This is a great fact-check! Great job going out of your way to find an article that accurately supports this claim. I also think it’s important to note that the amount of water a person can consume before it becomes harmful varies from individual to individual.

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This is a good factcheck, I think you could provide a little more detail or explanation from the article, but overall the article was a very good and trustworthy source regardless. I think it would also be beneficial to add that the amount of water intake varies from each and every person, since this argument is important to understanding it would take a high amount of water intake to reach a worrying level.

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This fact check is good and reliable in regards to drinking "too much water" and how it can be harmful. The inclusion of how the body responds when one drinks too much water and what demographic of people tend to experience this is insightful. To strengthen your fact check I think you should include a more credible article like the one attached. The Cleveland Clinic states this could pose to be fatal in the most extreme cases similar to dehydration. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/water-intoxication

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This is a good fact check, but quite short. Other sources to back your claim should be provided and further explained. Also, I'm unsure if it's just my device, but your provided article from Health Line leads to a not found error, it is best to provide a secondary source to help back this claim in case of something like this happening.

Answer 2

The claim states that it is possible to drink too much water. After further review of the article provided and other resources I have concluded that this claim is true. The provided source states “Drinking excessive amounts of water can overwhelm your kidneys and dilute the sodium content of your blood. The condition is sometimes called water intoxication or hyponatremia”. This source did a good job of explaining why people might drink too much water and what goes on inside someone's body who does drink too much water. The next source I found comes from mayo clinic. This article talks about why drinking water is good and how to stay hydrated. One thing I liked from the second source was how it mentioned that “Drinking too much water is rarely a problem for healthy, well-nourished adults.” Overall the claim is true, even though it’s not a very common occurrence. 

https://www.uhhospitals.org/blog/articles/2024/01/can-you-drink-too-much-water

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256#:~:text=When%20you%20drink%20too%20much,it%20can%20be%20life%2Dthreatening.

Comments

Your specificity in this comment was really helpful, especially the final statements, where you bring up the fact that this may not usually be a problem for most people. Also, the scientific aspects of the comment made it clear that there is a definite problem according to concrete studies.

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Both sources used in your fact check were from real hospitals/ clinics in the US. I did a little more research from different websites, and the journalists gave real life examples from people this has happened too, so yes over hydration is able to happen, just not very often. the sources gave great examples and criteria to know how much water at a time is enough.

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You did a great job on fact checking this claim. The sources provided are good and reliable and you had a good, detailed analysis. You also used multiple sources to find information. Great job on this and great specifics.

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Hi, This is a really good factcheck. I liked how you had evidence from a reputable source and that you included the link to it as well. I also liked how you directly quoted the article but also found a quote that you liked and added to the points you were making. Overall this is a great factcheck!

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This is a great fact check, and you even used a reputable source. The Mayo Clinic's article on the matter does great at explaining how hydration works generally and stating that it also varies from person to person, and also provides examples of how much water, or foods and liquids that contain water, that a person should intake.

Answer 3

It is possible to consume too much water, according to the claim.  According to” “https://www.healthline.com/health/overhydration#causes”, over hydration happens when "Your body’s water volume becomes too large for your kidneys to excrete," which can cause the body’s electrolytes, including sodium, to become overly diluted. Athletes who consume excessive amounts of water prior to or following an event typically experience this. Excessive water consumption throws the kidneys out of balance and interferes with their normal processes. Additionally, the human body has to manage its sodium content, and excessive water consumption alters this balance.

https://www.uhhospitals.org/blog/articles/2024/01/can-you-drink-too-much-water

Comments

While the claim is true and you do a great job further explaining why it is true, there are a couple things you could do to better your fact checking. For one you could look into the reliability of the articles. What makes the article you cited specifically reliable? While the overarching claim is true, are the specific quotes and details they state true? For instance, the article you cite recommends drinking 78-100 oz of water a day. Where does this statistic come from? Health professionals? You could look at other trusted articles to corroborate this fact.

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Although your claim is correct, this response could have been stronger with a little more detail and a more reliable source set. I think it might be helpful to look into more health professional guided websites rather than something where non-professionals can give information.  It also might be helpful to have these questions aid in a response to add more detail: What information did your source add to the claim to make more concrete evidence? What differed from the original claim? Can I find mutiple sources to back up this reasoning, or is only one source getting to this conclusion?

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I agree with your statement, I wish that you found more sources to also back up your claim. I think that would further solidify your statement and can help find other angles to back up the claim. Despite the source being the only one, there is potential that it could be wrong. So, I think for the future finding other credible resources that could further supplement the claim would help.

Answer 4

This claim is correct according to various reputable sources online, that support that claim that your body and kidneys can process about 1 liter of water a hour. So anything above that is risky and some people including athletes and people who suffer from kidney/liver disease are at risk for over hydration. Supported by the article "Water: How much should you drink every day?" by Mayo Clinic, "When you drink too much water, your kidneys can't get rid of the excess water. The sodium content of your blood becomes diluted. This is called hyponatremia and it can be life-threatening." Highlighting the risks of drinking water too much and too fast. As well as that water is healthy, but like eveything in moderation. Proving the claim to be correct and sourced reputably.

Comments

You did well with your fact check by proving why the original claim that drinking too much water can be risky is true and you backed it with providing another source to help support your claim.

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I like how you went into further detail in elaborating how much and how it can affect your body, but you could have linked the articles you used. Other than that you did a good job!

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I think that this is a really good fact check and you used a very reliable source with the Mayo Clinic, but it would be very helpful to include the link of the article that you read from the Mayo Clinic about over hydration.

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This is a really good response! I recommend adding a link to the article you used to further back your argument, though. Other than that, I agree!

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I agree, moderation is key drinking too much water too quickly can lead to dangerous health risks.

Answer 5

Yes, it is indeed true. After examining a number of articles and studies such as the ones from Mayo Clinic, Healthline, and Cleveland Clinic which all have reputable histories in the medical industry with Mayo and Cleveland Clinic being incredibly reputable. They have all done a number of studies surrounding this topic and have come to the same conclusion of too much water can overload your kidneys and can lead to negative results. So overall your claim is correct and all the evidence seems to be accounted for and credible. 

Comments

I like how you mention multiple highly reputable and credible organizations that are well known for providing health-care related information. I appreciate how you state the numerous amount of studies regarding to "drinking too much water" and how that acts as evidence to support the claim being made. Great job.

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Good job answering this claim. You did well at citing which websites you used to research and how reputable they can be. You also answered the claim very directly without having to overstate anything. One thing I would recommend is maybe be more specific with the science part of your answer. Breaking down what the kidneys do could help us understand a little more.

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like how you mention the multiple articles to fact check this. with the cases and these studies it really does prove that drinking to much water can be dangerous

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I really like how you used more then one credible source to back your argument, which gives your statement more depth and reasoning behind whatever claim you are speaking on. I appreciate you mentioning that the sources have all done studies on the subject, but you should speak about those studies and what results came of them. Using specific quotes is also a good way to prove your point, so add some quotes next time to strengthen your argument. Overall, good job.

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Thank you for your extensive research. providing multiple articles that support this claim is very helpful to proof this is true factor. You are correct in discovering that all of these healthcare companies did accurate studies in this field. Water intoxication follows the saying, "it's healthy for you unless you take too much of it."

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This is an amazing response! I like how you stated facts while also adding all the sources you used. You are correct with your information, and I agree with you!

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While I fully agree with your fact-check and applaud your ample variety of sources that come to the same conclusion, you should embed a quote or information from the sources you reffered to so your claim has specificity with its credibility. For example this quote from Mayo Clinic includes the parameters of drinking too much water: "Drinking too much water is rarely a problem for healthy, well-nourished adults. Athletes occasionally may drink too much water in an attempt to prevent dehydration during long or intense exercise".
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256#:~:text=When%20you%20drink%20too%20much,it%20can%20be%20life%2Dthreatening.

Answer 6

Your claim ‘You can drink too much water’ is true. Fact Checking, the source supporting this claim is legitimate, as it is a University of Hospitals article. Among research, I found out University of Hospitals is “one of the nation's leading healthcare systems” made up of renowned experts- obviously a source knowledgeable on the subject at hand. The article uses actress Brooke Shields as a case study, stating she suffered a seizure from drinking too much water. After researching, I found this to be confirmed in an article from theconversation.com, chronicling her experience with hyponatremia. An NBC news story corroborated the second case study mentioned in this article- a woman who died after a water drinking competition in 2007. Furthermore, this article is also valid among the specific facts. Mayo clinic, a site dedicated to helping diagnose and treat medical challenges, confirms the University of Hospitals article. It explains how when you drink too much water, your kidneys can not get rid of excess water, resulting in diluted sodium contents. In the end, the claim is true and the article is a honest source. 

Comments

I appreciate how you found evidence from other sources confirming the cases used in the article. It would be helpful to link your articles so that, if needed, someone can access the same sources you used.

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I think this was a great fact check. It was really beneficial to read not only information from the source but also using information that you found related to the topic.

Answer 7

The source that you used to back the claim that you can drink too much water is reliable. It uses scientifically proven information to provide context to its claims. Upon doing my own research, I found this claim to be true as well. The short term affects of drinking too much water include headaches, nausea, and in some cases vomiting. The long term effect can be much more serious, as the kidney begins to be unable to get rid of the excess water. This causes the dilution of the sodium content of the blood. This condition is called hyponatremia and can lead to death. Overall this claim is true but is slightly misleading because you have to drink an extreme amount of water for any of these affects to take place. 

Comments

I agree, I didn't realize drinking too much water could become a dangerous issue. The examples of the radio show contestant and the actress dying from too much water was an interesting fact to add and I think hooks the readers from the beginning. I agree, the claim is true and backed up with many pieces of evidence... but is slightly exaggerated because in order to die from water intake you need to drink an abnormal amount of water.

Answer 8

Hello! After doing some research on this topic, I found that it is indeed possible to drink too much water to the point where its bad for your health. According to the Mayo Clinic, "When you drink too much water, your kidneys can't get rid of the excess water. The sodium content of your blood becomes diluted. This is called hyponatremia and it can be life-threatening." The Mayo Clinic is a very reliable source that only shares true information. With that being said, drinking too little and too much water is unhealthy for a plethora of reasons. Drinking 2.7-3.7 liters of water each day is a great way to stay healthy (Mayo Clinic). 

www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256#:~:text=So%20how%20much%20fluid%20does,fluids%20a%20day%20for%20women 

Mayo Clinic

https://www.mayoclinic.org › water › art-20044256

Mayo Clinic

https://www.mayoclinic.org › water › art-20044256

Comments

Great work! You used a very reliable source to back your claim which adds a lot of credibility to your own work and research. You also used quotes from the source that support your claim. I liked that you gave your take on the quote as well and left the reader with a recommendation on how much water to drink based on your research. Great job!

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I love that you wrote "After doing some research on this topic, I found that it is indeed possible to drink too much water". Because I think that this statement could really confuse some but after doing one's own research can find the truth in that statement. I am glad that you cited a reputable source to conclude to your answer.

Answer 9

This is accurate. Drinking too much water can be dangerous for your health due to a condition called water intoxication. When you consume excessive amounts of water, it can dilute the concentration of sodium in your blood. Sodium is essential for maintaining the balance of fluids in and around your cells. Excessive dilution of sodium can lead to hyponatremia, where sodium levels become abnormally low.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/water-intoxication

Comments

You’re right that water intoxication is a serious issue, but it’s really rare for most people. The body generally handles water pretty well, and you’d need to drink a lot in a short time to reach dangerous levels, like several gallons. Most cases happen with athletes who overhydrate without balancing electrolytes​.

Answer 10

You can drink too much water. Three to four liters of water, if drank in a short amount of time, can cause water poisoning. According to the article, "Water Intoxication" by the Cleveland Clinic, water intoxication can result in seizures, delirium, coma, and even death in extreme cases. If you can water intoxication, you can treat it simply by stopping your water intake, and in extreme cases, you may need diuretics or IV fluids. 

Comments

this comment is a good start, but could use some improvement as far as sources go. you have minimal data and no sources. this is all true after some further research but in the future it would be nice to see where you got this from.