Water - Can you drink too much?

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Jhimmer1995
Jhimmer1995 Posts: 3 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Is it possible to drink to much water? I average about 120-130 ounces of water a day. I am 5'4" is this too much water?

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  • ldalbello
    ldalbello Posts: 207 Member
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    They say you should drink half your body weight in ounces.
  • TankGirl71
    TankGirl71 Posts: 241 Member
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    Yes. Look up hyponatremia.
  • bbbgamer
    bbbgamer Posts: 582 Member
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    Looks like its possible but it may be rather difficult...
    primary polydipsia (where the amount of urine solute required to excrete huge quantities of ingested water exceeds the body's ability to produce it; this typically occurs when 12 or more litres of water are ingested per day)
  • purpleipod
    purpleipod Posts: 1,147 Member
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    Yes, it's entirely possible to drink too much water, and it can kill you. It's not very easy to do though. I drink about 125 oz. / day.
  • aWashCloth
    aWashCloth Posts: 198 Member
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    I played beer pong with water so I had 25 cups in one night.. I felt like I had a hangover the next day... Recommendation: Don't do that.. specially with hard water.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,025 Member
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    They say you should drink half your body weight in ounces.
    Half my body weight would be about 100lbs, so your saying I should drink 1600 ounces. j/k
  • IvoryParchment
    IvoryParchment Posts: 651 Member
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    There are a lot of old wives' tales about water consumption. Yes, you need the equivalent of 6-8 cups a day, minimum. But
    1. those are 8 oz cups, not 12-16 oz tumblers
    2. that counts all fluids like juice, soda, and soup, not just plain water
    3. that counts moisture in your food, so unless you're eating ashes, you're also getting water that way. Remember that if you're 70% water, so is the cow. Vegetables and soft foods like ice cream and gelatin are even higher in water content.

    It is possible to drink too much. In order to do it, you have to drink it faster than your kidneys can eliminate the excess (so your blood sodium is diluted too much, a condition called hyponatremia) and faster than your stomach can empty (so you don't get such a strong aversion to water from the hyponatremia that you refuse to drink any more). People who chug large amounts can do it, as can people who are mentally ill.

    When you dilute the sodium in your blood, it is out of balance with the sodium level in your cells, which responds more slowly to the change. The water then is drawn into the cells, which swell from the volume. You can suffer very serious permanent brain damage and end up completely paralyzed or dead.

    But as I said, unless you're trying to drink large volumes quickly, as soon as your sodium drops, you won't want to even look at any beverages.
  • IvoryParchment
    IvoryParchment Posts: 651 Member
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    They say you should drink half your body weight in ounces.

    I think that's supposed to mean that if you're 150 lbs, you drink 75 oz of fluids. That's not unreasonable.
  • CanuckLove
    CanuckLove Posts: 673 Member
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    I drink too much water. Probably double the recommended and I'm still kickin'
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
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    That's how much fluid your body needs, not how much neat water you should drink.

    It's a common misconception.
  • Maryfullofgrace
    Maryfullofgrace Posts: 342 Member
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    Yes, you can drink too much water. It can result in coma, and death.
  • StepBoomer
    StepBoomer Posts: 23 Member
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    on a us radio morning show, they had a contest who could drin the most water without going pee.
    a girl drank alot ( not sure the amount) and died in hospital from water intoxification. ( some of her vital organs shut down.)
  • karleen
    karleen Posts: 260
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    on a us radio morning show, they had a contest who could drin the most water without going pee.
    a girl drank alot ( not sure the amount) and died in hospital from water intoxification. ( some of her vital organs shut down.)

    it was the hold your pee for a wii contest!! only remember cause the name of the contest was so catchy

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