Can you drink too much water? What will happen if you do? Are there certain symptoms to look for?

Answer 1

Yeah. Water intoxication can swell your brain and you'll have trouble breathing. You basically drown.

Answer 2

Hi,

Yes you can definately drink too much water...too fast. (It will become clearer later on)

Although it is important to keep hydrated there are a few people (especially athletes) that can drink to much without also ensuring enough electrolites are replaced as well.

The condition of Water Intoxication is called Hyponatremia.

Drinking too much water can lead to a condition known as water intoxication and to a related problem resulting from the dilution of sodium in the body, hyponatremia. Water intoxication is most commonly seen in infants under six months of age and sometimes in athletes. A baby can get water intoxication as a result of drinking several bottles of water a day or from drinking infant formula that has been diluted too much. Athletes can also suffer from water intoxication. Athletes sweat heavily, losing both water and electrolytes. Water intoxication and hyponatremia result when a dehydrated person drinks too much water without the accompanying electrolytes.

It's Not How Much You Drink, It's How Fast You Drink It!

The kidneys of a healthy adult can process fifteen liters of water a day! You are unlikely to suffer from water intoxication, even if you drink a lot of water, as long as you drink over time as opposed to intaking an enormous volume at one time. As a general guideline, most adults need about three quarts of fluid each day. Much of that water comes from food, so 8-12 eight ounce glasses a day is a common recommended intake. You may need more water if the weather is very warm or very dry, if you are exercising, or if you are taking certain medications. The bottom line is this: it's possible to drink too much water, but unless you are running a marathon or an infant, water intoxication is a very uncommon condition.

Yours in Health and Fitness,

James

Answer 3

Forgot what it is called, but YES you can drink too much water! Just read about a girl that died on a radio station while she was in a water drinking contest...You should drink 3 liters a day...yet be sure to space them out! I read that you should try to drink 8 ozs an hour...that will keep your bodies electrolytes at a healthy balance...drinking any more within a short amount of time will mess with your electrolytes. Some of the symptoms are light headness (spelling?), headache..drink water, just be careful about how much!

Answer 4

Yes it is possible that you drink too much water. See... our body works with a balance of electrolytes.. minerals and sodium... when you drink too much water, more than the recommended amount you literally wash your body from this elements we need... one symptom could be cramps... This is one reason athletes don't drink water, but Gatorade and water with electrolytes and minerals.... cause in their case it is possible that they get in a condition called hyponatremia, where they lose too much sodium and there's not enough for the body to work correctly, muscular work is compromised and let's not forget the heart is a muscle... many athletes have died this way. Endurance athletes even eat salt during competition to balance this... cause when you sweat you are also getting rid of these minerals.

Answer 5

Sure, it's called water intoxication and it's usually fatal.

By the time you have symptoms, you would be close to death.

On the up side, it's really hard to drink too much water. You really have to force yourself, or be exercising like crazy, like running a marathon.

Thirst is a poor indicator of dehydration. By the time you feel thirst, you are already dehydrated Urine color is better, should be pale yellow.

Answer 6

i heard in the news about a month ago that a woman die in a local radio station contest called "hold your pee for a wii" on which the winner had to drink as much water as he / she could. An the winner got the latest playstation: wii. Hoever this woman drank about galons (she did win the wii) but hours later after she got home she died. She started to feel bad, and became very pale.
So, now you know that anything on excess is bad for your health. Of course i don´t think anyone can drink so much water just because.

Answer 7

You can drink too much water and it will kill you. Can you believe this? Now on other hand if you dont drink enough, especially in hot weather, it can kill you too. Too much water will make you bloated, will make you pee a lot, you going to feel extremely tired. Dont drink too much. In really hot weather (trust me i know because i was to Iraq twice) 20 oz of water every 2-3 hrs is just right.

Answer 8

Water is the best thing you can get for your body. You cannot get too much water. You need at least 8 glasses a day to stay healthy. If you get more than 8 glasses its not bad for you, your body will just use what it needs, and get rid of the rest. If you drink more water then your body needs than it will just come out with your urine. If your urine is of a clear color that means your getting enough water, which is good. If your urine is of a darker yellow color you need to drink more water. It should stay at a more light yellow color.

I guess it can potentially be bad for you if you get too much in a short period of time, but that would be difficult to do , so I wouldn't worry about it.

Answer 9

Yes, you can drink too much water. In very rare cases, people have died from it. I wouldn't worry though. Here's some more information on the subject. It's called Water Intoxication & Hyponetremia.

http://chemistry.about.com/cs/5/f/blwaterintox.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6263029.stm

Very informative websites :)

Answer 10

Anytime you are taking in more water than you are putting out—like in excessive intake or decreased urination from kidney disease or other conditions you can get "water intoxication" which can be fatal because it messes up your electrolytes (especially sodium) and brain chemistry. Early symptoms are lethargy, changes in mental capacitites and confusion. These can progress to stupor, convulsions, coma and death..

Answer 11

Yes. Overloading on water can cause water intoxication. There are recorded cases of this happening. Eight glasses a day is what is recommended.

NREMT-P, CPC