Imagine spending a scorching day at Lake Freeman in Indiana. The sun’s blazing, you’re with your loved ones, and you’re trying to stay hydrated. As the heat intensifies, you start to feel faint, your throat is parched, and you can’t seem to quench your thirst. You start guzzling water, bottle after bottle. Sound familiar? This was the reality for Ashley Summers, a mother of two, whose story serves as an upsetting reminder of excessive hydration’s hidden dangers.
As you gulp down water, you feel a little better, right? Ashley thought so too. However, upon returning home, she stumbled and collapsed in the garage. The alarm bells started ringing, and her family rushed her to the IU Health Arnett Hospital, but it was too late. Ashley never regained her consciousness and succumbed to a condition known as water toxicity.
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Her family was left shell-shocked. Is water toxicity even a thing? You might think, echoing Ashley’s brother Devon Miller’s sentiments. “It was a shock to all of us. When they first started talking about water toxicity. It was like, this is a thing? Someone said she drank four bottles of water in 20 minutes. I mean, an average water bottle is like 16 ounces, so that was 64 ounces that she drank in a span of 20 minutes. That’s half a gallon. That’s what you’re supposed to drink in a whole day,” Devon explained.
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Dr. Alok Harwani, a physician at the hospital, chimed in to explain this rare yet fatal condition. He explained, “It’s relatively rare. Now, what we are concerned about is just drinking too much water in a short period of time. Your kidneys can really only clear about a liter of water per hour.”
The medical expert recommended that if you find yourself outdoors on a hot day, it’s vital to substitute your water intake with foods or beverages rich in electrolytes, like fruit or sports drinks such as Gatorade. This practice helps sustain the balance of water and sodium in your body.
The doctor further cautioned that if you start to feel off - unusually tired or mildly fatigued, it’s time to take notice. “Sometimes patients feel like they’re starting to have a mild headache or are just feeling overall unwell. Those could be early signs of water intoxication ... So, if you’re really concerned that you or a family member is not acting right and you’re worried about water toxicity, don’t hesitate to call 911, don’t hesitate to go to the [emergency room].”
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Some people may also experience a slight headache or a general feeling of being unwell. These can all be preliminary indicators of water intoxication. Hence, if you worry about yourself or a loved one showing such symptoms suggestive of water toxicity, it’s crucial not to delay heading straight to the emergency room.
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When you guzzle more water than your kidneys can process, it drowns the sodium in your bloodstream, leading to a condition known as hyponatremia. Think of it like a seesaw; too much water tips the balance, causing your sodium levels to nosedive. What happens next? Your cells swell up like balloons - not a pretty picture, right?
You might wonder who exactly falls into the high-risk category for this bizarre condition. Life-threatening water intoxication often features in stories about hardcore physical activities, military boot camps or marathon runs. In other instances, it could be due to an underlying mental health condition or even a horrifying case of enforced water consumption.
The party drug MDMA is especially prevalent at music festivals. Nightclub-goers, especially those consuming substances like MDMA, can fall prey to this condition. This happens as they tend to sweat excessively and compensate by drinking water throughout the extended period of dancing. But MDMA also causes your body to hold onto fluids - you’re drinking loads of water but not urinating enough. This sets the stage for a water buildup disaster.
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It’s simple - don’t delay; seek medical help. As the excess fluid mounts up, your cells start to swell, with brain cells being no exception. Brain swelling can be a fast track to a coma, seizures, and even death if not treated asap. In the meantime, reaching for a salty snack might just be your lifeline, providing a temporary buffer while you wait for help to arrive.
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At this point, you probably want to know how much water is too much?’ It’s not that simple. There’s no set water limit that rings the water poisoning alarm. Instead, think about how much water you’re drinking per hour. Factors such as your age, gender, and overall health can tip the scales.
In the case of a healthy adult, the kidneys can flush out 20 to 28 liters of water a day, but they hit a speed bump at about 1 liter per hour. So, when you’re chugging more than a liter an hour, your kidneys might not be able to keep pace.
This race gets even trickier for older adults and children. Their kidneys can’t process water as efficiently, so their safe per-hour water quota might be a notch lower. That means water toxicity could be a quicker trip for children and older adults.
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The answer is, ‘yes!’ You’ve just got to keep a few things in mind if you often find yourself chugging down gallons of water in no time.
Just drink when your body cues you with the first signs of thirst, and once you feel satisfied, put the brakes on. Wait until the familiar thirst pangs strike again. It’s the body’s innate way of communicating to you when it needs more water.
Your second guide is the hue of your urine. Is it crystal clear? If so, it’s your body’s subtle signalling that you’re hydrated well enough. Clear urine isn’t a bad sign per se, but it’s your body’s way of indicating no more water is needed.
Are you gearing up for an intense workout session? Don’t just stick to plain water. Go for an electrolyte-rich drink that contains sodium, something like a sports drink. It’s your body’s buddy that’ll help balance out the water-sodium equation in your system.
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The big question remains - how common is death from too much water? Truthfully, it’s pretty rare. You’d have to drink an insane amount of water in a really short time frame, which, let’s be real, most people can’t achieve accidentally.
Fatalities due to water toxicity have been recorded in the past, occurring in a wide range of situations. As cited by Scientific American, instances of such fatalities span from a radio station’s live water-drinking competition to a fraternity initiation tradition at a university in California. The latter involved a student being made to drink large quantities of water while doing a series of push-ups.
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A chat with your healthcare provider can provide you with personalized advice. They’re the best source for diagnosis and recommendations that’ll consider your health, size, and other factors.
While water is crucial, balance is key. Don’t let the water tide turn against you. Remember these tips and steer clear from the stormy waters of water intoxication. Your body will thank you!
So, the next time you’re under the summer sun and reach for that water bottle, remember Ashley’s story. Hydrate, yes, but do it responsibly.
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