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Water: How much is too much?

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Chris_B89
Chris_B89 Posts: 15 Member
I generally drink a lot of water each day - I don't like tea or coffee, and I don't drink alcoholic drinks. It's either squash or water.

I'm aware of the fact that too much water will lead to you flushing through too much, and getting rid of some vitims.

So, how many pints, litres, gallons or whatever your form of measurement is too much to be drinking over a 16 hour period? (I don't drink overnight, nor do I ever feel the need to)
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Replies

  • adreadrew
    adreadrew Posts: 15 Member
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    I once had ureter infection, and the doctor told me I had to drink at least 2 lt a day (which in that time I'm really not used to!). I now drink 1,5-2 lt of mineral watter a day to keep me away from ureter infection.

    If you're not above 40 or 50 you should be fine drinking 2 lt a day. But if you're above 40 or 50, too much watter will make your natrium low hence will feel moody and lethatgic.

    I don't know though about flushing your vitamin. Why it flush your vitamin? For what I know, water only dilute the minerals and vitamins in your blood. You don't urinate a lot vitamins and minerals unless you had a health problem.

    So good for you if you drink a lot of water! :smile:
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
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    It's individual, imo. I drink 3-4 litres a day along with 700 mL of diet pop. My pee is clear/barely yellow. My GP hasn't said anything to me about electrolyte imbalance and I haven't felt any symptoms.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
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    As above, it's going to depend on the individual, how much they sweat, etc. Obviously someone doing manual labor all day in a hot climate is going to need more than someone working in an air conditioned office, then sitting on the couch in an air conditioned house

  • BrooklynBooty
    BrooklynBooty Posts: 39 Member
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    I drink 6 litres of water each day. My sodium intake is higher to keep me from flushing out.

    I think it depends on your diet/excercise program.
  • fbchick51
    fbchick51 Posts: 240 Member
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    The bigger concern is actually drinking too much too fast. Most of us with healthy liver functions can drink about 5-7 gallons per day without issue. But you also don't want to drink more then .08-1 ltr per hour either, as the liver cannot excrete more then 1ltr per hour (regardless of health or activity)
  • Theo166
    Theo166 Posts: 2,564 Member
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    Your body would flush the excess vitamins regardless of whether you drank 1 or 4 liters of water
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,210 Member
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    fbchick51 wrote: »
    The bigger concern is actually drinking too much too fast. Most of us with healthy liver functions can drink about 5-7 gallons per day without issue. But you also don't want to drink more then .08-1 ltr per hour either, as the liver cannot excrete more then 1ltr per hour (regardless of health or activity)

    I think you mean kidneys. :+1:

    This is from Scientific American:
    Every hour, a healthy kidney at rest can excrete 800 to 1,000 milliliters, or 0.21 to 0.26 gallon, of water and therefore a person can drink water at a rate of 800 to 1,000 milliliters per hour without experiencing a net gain in water, Verbalis explains. If that same person is running a marathon, however, the stress of the situation will increase vasopressin levels, reducing the kidney's excretion capacity to as low as 100 milliliters per hour. Drinking 800 to 1,000 milliliters of water per hour under these conditions can potentially lead a net gain in water, even with considerable sweating, he says.

    While exercising, "you should balance what you're drinking with what you're sweating," and that includes sports drinks, which can also cause hyponatremia when consumed in excess, Verbalis advises. "If you're sweating 500 milliliters per hour, that is what you should be drinking."

    But measuring sweat output is not easy. How can a marathon runner, or any person, determine how much water to consume? As long as you are healthy and equipped with a thirst barometer unimpaired by old age or mind-altering drugs, follow Verbalis's advice, "drink to your thirst. It's the best indicator."
    https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/strange-but-true-drinking-too-much-water-can-kill/
  • blueeyessmiling2
    blueeyessmiling2 Posts: 2 Member
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    adreadrew wrote: »
    I once had ureter infection, and the doctor told me I had to drink at least 2 lt a day (which in that time I'm really not used to!). I now drink 1,5-2 lt of mineral watter a day to keep me away from ureter infection.

    If you're not above 40 or 50 you should be fine drinking 2 lt a day. But if you're above 40 or 50, too much watter will make your natrium low hence will feel moody and lethatgic.

    I don't know though about flushing your vitamin. Why it flush your vitamin? For what I know, water only dilute the minerals and vitamins in your blood. You don't urinate a lot vitamins and minerals unless you had a health problem.

    So good for you if you drink a lot of water! :smile:

    Hello adreadrew, If you drink too much water you are in danger of flushing Potassium and Magnesium from you system. My Dr told me to drink 64 ounces of water a day which equals 1.89 liters. I can have a little more but this is a good amount.
    I'm new to this site so please don't mind my way of replying. I couldn't find any other way to reply than to Quote.
  • brantlyv
    brantlyv Posts: 5 Member
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    Former trainer tells me half your body weight in oz is a minimum target.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    Too much water is more than a litre an hour.

    https://authoritynutrition.com/water-intoxication/
  • Macy9336
    Macy9336 Posts: 694 Member
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    brantlyv wrote: »
    Former trainer tells me half your body weight in oz is a minimum target.

    Is that body weight in pounds or kilos?
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
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    fbchick51 wrote: »
    The bigger concern is actually drinking too much too fast. Most of us with healthy liver functions can drink about 5-7 gallons per day without issue. But you also don't want to drink more then .08-1 ltr per hour either, as the liver cannot excrete more then 1ltr per hour (regardless of health or activity)

    5-7 GALLONS? That's over 20 liters.
  • DamieBird
    DamieBird Posts: 651 Member
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    Chris_B89 wrote: »
    . It's either squash or water.

    Not trying to be dim, here, but what is squash? Is this a typo? Are you getting hydration from vegetable squash? A local drink of some sort? It is delicious ;)?
  • tomteboda
    tomteboda Posts: 2,171 Member
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    Well, the LD 50 of distilled water is 1/2 your body weight in 24 hours. I'd personally stop long before the dose that kills half the population.
  • fbchick51
    fbchick51 Posts: 240 Member
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    fbchick51 wrote: »
    The bigger concern is actually drinking too much too fast. Most of us with healthy liver functions can drink about 5-7 gallons per day without issue. But you also don't want to drink more then .08-1 ltr per hour either, as the liver cannot excrete more then 1ltr per hour (regardless of health or activity)

    5-7 GALLONS? That's over 20 liters.

    Yes it is. Which is why MOST water intoxication is not from drinking too much over the course of a day, as it's extremely difficult to consume that much water. Most water intoxication occurs when someone basically chugs too much water in a short amount of time (think endurance runner trying to rehydrate who chugs down 2 liters of water in 30 mins, a shockingly common occurrence)
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
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    brantlyv wrote: »
    Former trainer tells me half your body weight in oz is a minimum target.

    Ask your trainer if that guideline applies equally to a sedentary office worker in Portland, Oregon and an outdoor construction worker during the summer in Phoenix, Arizona.
  • Mokabear78
    Mokabear78 Posts: 1 Member
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    DamieBird wrote: »
    Chris_B89 wrote: »
    . It's either squash or water.

    Not trying to be dim, here, but what is squash? Is this a typo? Are you getting hydration from vegetable squash? A local drink of some sort? It is delicious ;)?

    It's a British term for water flavoring. It is usually sold in a 1ltr bottle and you can add some to water to flavor it. Some are unsweetened and most are naturally flavored, such as lemon, peach, orange, etc...
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    edited May 2017
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    LD50: [Rat] - Route: oral; Dose: > 90 ml/kg

    If we can for a moment assume rat and human biology are comparable in regards of water consumption then if 100 people each weighing 150lbs drank about 6l of water in one sitting, around fifty of those would die, due to extreme hyponatremia

    There is no concrete data on human water toxicity for obvious reasons.
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
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    For thems that like this stuff....

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2564296/
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    DamieBird wrote: »
    Chris_B89 wrote: »
    . It's either squash or water.

    Not trying to be dim, here, but what is squash? Is this a typo? Are you getting hydration from vegetable squash? A local drink of some sort? It is delicious ;)?

    I've had such a tough time explaining what squash is to Americans. It's a fizzy drink, like coke, but lemon flavoured. Our lemonade is what you guys call sprite.

    Australian Lemon squash: