Such a thing as too much water?

Hey everybody,

I was curious to know if it's possible to be drinking too much water?  I know the recommended about is eight, 8oz glasses a day...but I drink about twice that, if not more.  My sodium intake is average too, but if I'm drinking too much water does it matter?  Will my body still retain all that water?  Aside from having to pee nearly every 30 minutes, I haven't noticed anything bad about it.  A few days ago I cut out all other beverages besides water, and I feel as if my headaches have gone away, I sleep better, and I'm less tired.  I'm also more efficient at working out (which I do a lot of).  And because I workout a lot, I figure that drinking lots and lots of water is a good thing.  Just let me know if I'm wrong!

it is very very hard to get too much water. basically, as long as you're letting yourself pee, you should be fine!

You can drink too much water, although if you're working out a lot then you'll need extra fluids to avoid being dehydrated.  8 glasses is an average for most people but for a very active one, 2 or 3 litres a day wouldn't be excessive.  If you're drinking a lot more than that you can start to experience problems.  There is a serious medical condition (admittedly quite rare) called hyponatremia which occurs when someone drinks too much water in too short a space of time.  It dilutes the salts and electrolytes in the body and this can lead to organ failure.

NB.  If you're drinking a lot of water because you're excessively thirsty & if you have to wake up a lot in the night to go to the toilet then you may want to mention it to your doctor.  A raging thirst is often a symptom of diabetes.

A note on hyponatremia - if you are a healthy person you really would have to force a whole lot of water into your system, LOTS of water, for this to happen, so don't let that scare you off of your new found benefits from hydration. Yes, you can die from drinking too much water, but the cases I've heard of were a frat hazing and a woman trying to win a prize on a radio show. They were force feeding themselves water and not allowing themselves to go to the bathroom.

Original Post by corduroyfirekills3:

A note on hyponatremia - if you are a healthy person you really would have to force a whole lot of water into your system, LOTS of water, for this to happen, so don't let that scare you off of your new found benefits from hydration. Yes, you can die from drinking too much water, but the cases I've heard of were a frat hazing and a woman trying to win a prize on a radio show. They were force feeding themselves water and not allowing themselves to go to the bathroom.

Yes, this is true, but going to the bathroom has nothing to do with it. It's the dilution of salts and electrolytes in your body.

Not only is there a dilution of salts and electrolytes in the body, but I've also heard that the brain swells as a result. Once, I had about 200 ounces of water in one day. I don't do that anymore, though. When I'm active, I have about a gallon a day.

I read on a website somewhere that if you pee a liter of clear or very light yellow urine, then you're well hydrated.

yes there is some thing called too much water

i read about a drinking water contast ...... a woman had won it after an hour she died .

and the body can keep the water it doesn't need , and that will have bad effect in your healt and your weight .

and the brain keeps the water too and cause proplems . 

I heard about that lady that died too, but she died because she was in a contest to see who could drink the most water without peeing.  That's what caused her to die.  And believe me, I let it all out...and nearly every 30 minutes to an hour.  I've cut back a little bit since writing this post, but it just seems that on days that I work out I drink not only like a fish, but a damn whale.

you look like you are drinking water like this for along time , if you didnt notice any thing wrong with you , then i dont think there is any thing wrong at all . but still i think you should take a professional's advice .