Can Overconsumption of Water be Harmful to Our Bodies???

Question

Experts Recommend drinking at least 6-8 glasses of water per day. Can water guzzling be harmful to our bodies by flushing out vital minerals and vitamins that would 'normally' stay in the body to utilize to certain organs. I agree most healthy people do not drink enough water, but when is enough too much???

I have heard that, too, I notice when I drink several glasses of Iced water during the day, I become lethargic, weak, and like she said, light headed.

Okay, So with all these wonderful answers, what is suggestions for individuals who are on diets? What else can they drink that is low on calories, no caffeine or sugar, etc. I have recieved really great answers, keep it up!

Answer 1

Taking in too much water can be harmful to your body. The mechanism behind this is not so much that your end up flushing out minerals and etc, but what you end up doing is diluting your electrolytes. The main regulator of plasma volume in your body is sodium. Wherever sodium goes water follows. Your body uses this property to its advantage in order to control your blood pressure and blood volume. When you drink too much water, pressure receptors send signals to the kidneys to excrete more sodium leading to increased urination in order to keep the blood pressure at normal levels.

However if you continue drinking absurd amounts of water eventually you can overcome your body's ability to urinate out the extra. Also while this is happening the overall concentration of your body's main electrolytes (sodium, potassium, bicarbonate, chloride). When these electrolytes are too low (sodium and potassium in particular) you start to have major issues like seizures, heart arrhythmias, and even coma.

Now that you've heard the worst of what can happen you can stop worrying. Eight glasses of water/day is exactly how much water you should be drinking. What they don't explain to you is that there is also a lot of water within the foods that you eat as well, which may eliminate one or more of those glasses of water throughout the day.

However drinking 8 glasses of water cannot hurt you. To get any of the dangerous symptoms that I described above you would have to drink an absurd amount of water. This would be something along the lines of about a gallon of water per hour for many many hours.

The take home message is to drink your 8 glasses of water per day, I promise you won't flush out all of your electrolytes.

Answer 2

Overconsumption Of Water

Answer 3

Yes, you can die of water intoxication. On January 12, 2007, Jennifer Strange, a 28-year-old woman and a mother of 3, from Rancho Cordova, California, was found dead in her home by her mother hours after trying to win one of Nintendo's Wii game consoles in KDND 107.9 "The End" radio station's "Hold Your Wee for a Wii" contest, which involved drinking large quantities of water without urinating. However, no criminal charges were pressed. Water intoxication (also known as hyperhydration or water poisoning) is a potentially fatal disturbance in brain function that results when the normal balance of electrolytes in the body is pushed outside of safe limits by a very rapid intake of water.[1] Normal, healthy both physically and nutritionally individuals have little to worry about accidentally overconsuming water. Nearly all deaths related to water intoxication in normal individuals have resulted either from water drinking contests, in which individuals attempt to consume several gallons over the course of just a few minutes, or long bouts of intensive exercise during which time electrolytes are not properly replenished, yet massive amounts of fluid are still consumed.

Answer 4

You can actually become intoxicated on water. When water is drank in overabundance (large excessive amounts) the body actually reacts to the excessive water the same way as it reacts to alcohol and you will exhibit some of the same symptoms of inebriation. Dizziness, lightheadedness, balance problems, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, etc. This is seldom a problem. Usually this is caused by kidney disease that causes water retention. But in answer to your question, yes it is possible; but isn't common. Drink water in measurable amounts throughout the day instead on large quantities all at once.

Answer 5

Guzzling lots of water can result in water intoxication, but usually athletes and infants are the ones at most risk for this. Here's some more info:

http://chemistry.about.com/cs/5/f/blwaterintox.htm

Also, you can have problems if you have kidney failure and drink too much. You usually have to go on fluid restrictions when you have kidney failure. Your body is unable to handle large amounts of water and fluids with that because your kidneys are not functioning well.

Answer 6

Recently some friends of mine were fired from a radio station in Austin Texas after a woman died from drinking too much water during a promotion to win a Wii game system. It was how much can you Wee for a Wii...the woman drank too much water and ended up dying. True story...

Answer 7

Yes -- actually even before the "flushing". If you drink too much water too quickly, you can dilute your blood past the point where it can sustain your body -- too low a level of salt and other minerals. I believe it actually does a nasty osmosis, pulling these needed minerals OUT of your cells instead of putting them in.

An example: this past January there was a highly publicized incident where a radio show had a contest to win a game system, by drinking large amounts of water, and one of the contestants died from water intoxication. Other instances include marathoners (sweating loses more electrolytes), people attempting extreme water-based weight loss programs, and hazing incidents.

Answer 8

It is called 'water intoxication' and it has to do with too much in too short a time. It can be fatal. Check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_intoxication for more information.

Answer 9

People who plan their weekly meals tend to be successful at losing weight than people who don’t. Plan your dishes to add healthy carbs such as lovely potato and wholegrain pasta, vegetables and lean proteins, buy each of the ingredients in advance and don’t be tempted to enjoy out or order in.

Answer 10

Suck the item in. Consciously hold in and contract your abdominals while you’re walking, sitting your desk or making the meal. This will help to strengthen your abdominal muscles and your core, and create for you one step closer to some sort of flatter stomach.