You can drink too much water

Question

Drinking water can cause overhydration which can affect your brain, muscles, and heart.

Comments

Yes, you can drink too much water. Consuming excessive amounts in a short period can dilute the sodium in your blood, leading to water intoxication or hyponatremia. This condition causes your cells to swell, potentially leading to symptoms like nausea, confusion, seizures, and even fatal outcomes in severe cases. It's rare for healthy individuals but is a risk for athletes, those with certain medical conditions, or individuals overhydrating rapidly. It's best to drink when thirsty and avoid forcing water beyond quenching thirst. For details, refer to the [Cleveland Clinic article](https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/water-intoxication).

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The claim “You can drink too much water” is true. When doing further research, I learned the negative effects of consuming too much of this beverage. For example, this can result in a dangerous condition, hyponatremia. This is where levels in the blood become diluted, which can ultimatlrylead to life-threatening situations (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2022). Other external sources also state other negative effects of through over consumption. These include, including headaches, nausea, swelling of some body parts, confusion, etc. Many of sources on the other hand can provide strong amounts of information for healthy consumption of water. The previosuly introduced MayoClinic Article states that 15.5 cups of fluids per day, while women should be trying  for around 11.5 cups per day (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2022). It is importnat to research different parts/sides to information, in this case, the healthy and unhealthy situations of water consumption.
Sources: 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.
https://www.webmd.com/diet/what-is-too-much-water-intake

Answer 1

You absolutely can drink too much water. Overconsumption can lead to your kidneys being unable to get rid of the excess water. This dilutes the sodium in your bloodstream, resulting in hyponatremia. Furthermore, water intoxication is another potential outcome (and one I've witness firsthand.) Symptoms include all the usual suspects; nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headache, drowsiness, bloating, and more! 

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

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.

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

Answer 2

This claim about drinking too much water is true but needs more background and information. First this article from the Mayo Clinic explains how you need about 8 cups of water a day to stay healthy and hydrated. This can differ depending on your day-to-day activities and you might need to consume more water than others. Additionally if you live in a hot and dry climate or an area with a higher altitude you might need to consume more water than someone living in a cooler climate. Overhydration can be something that occurs to anyone, while it is hard is possible but many athletes tend to drink lots of water as “an attempt to prevent dehydration during long or intense exercise.”(Mayo Clinic Staff) This can be dangerous because your organs can't process all of the water and the sodium in your blood can become depleted and result in hyponatremia, which can be life threatening.

If you are properly hydrated you should be using the bathroom about 4 to 8 times a day and your urine should be a light yellow color, “While you might think clear pee is good pee, it actually means your electrolytes are out of whack. As Murphy Richter explains, drinking too much water dilutes the concentration of electrolytes in your body — like sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, etc. — that is essential for regulating brain and nerve function.” (Steber) Similarly in an article from the Cleveland Clinic, they explained more of the effects of drinking too much water and what kinds of a result it can have on your body. Drinking too much water can cause your body's cells to swell and put pressure on your brain. This can cause you to have brain fog and can cause you to behave differently.

There are many signs of water toxicity: bloated stomach, vomiting, muscle pain, swelling, and even the color of your urine. While water toxicity isn't common, it is something that happens and can lead to serious issues like seizures, comas, or even death. However water toxicity can be treated by limiting your water intake and medications. As it has become more popular on social media to have lots of drinks, many people have an “ Emotional support water bottle” which leads people to be sipping on multiple beverages or water throughout the day. This is a good sign to have people stay hydrated however everyone needs to make sure that they are not doing too much and becoming over hydrated. 

 

Water: How much should you drink every day? - Mayo Clinic.

Water Intoxication: Toxicity, Symptoms & Treatment  https://www.bustle.com/wellness/can-you-drink-too-much-water?utm_source=google&utm_medium=h5d&utm_campaign=h_bu_00070&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23013150464&gbraid=0AAAAAqxUEyVNbkRATwD4NJkmMuMTdw73H&gclid=CjwKCAjwpOfHBhAxEiwAm1SwEk23pzNr6lAl78DYrJp6777y1q1kGHUS5u2virgJofZ-q4jplLgpYhoC4eQQAvD_BwE

Answer 3

This claim that you can drink too much water is true. Drinking too much water can be just as bad or even worse than being dehydrated (University Health, 2024). You can get headaches, nausea, muscle cramps, and brain frog from drinking too much water (University Health, 2024). Drinking too much water can overwhelm the natural process that the kidney functions and this can unbalance the kidney (University Health, 2024). The sodium content in the body also needs to be regulated and from too much water, the amount of sodium within the human body can be messed up (University Health, 2024). 

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

Oregon Health Authority also wants that over hydration can lead to a life-threatening drop in your blood sodium, especially if it's drank in a sort period of time. They also said that the early symptoms of like are cramps, confusion, fatigue, and nausea, which can then lead to seizures and coma when sodium becomes too diluted (Oregon Health Authority, 2023). They say that it is important to hydrate according to your own thirst rather than forcing large amounts of water, especially in the heat or during exercise.

https://www.oregon.gov/oha/ph/Pages/index.aspx