Drinking too much water can be dangerous, as it can lead to health conditions that make the body retain too much water. Overhydration, also known as water intoxication, occurs when there is an excessive intake of fluids, leading to an imbalance in the body’s electrolyte levels. Overhydration can cause symptoms ranging from mild and slightly annoying to life-threatening. To determine if you are drinking enough water, monitor the color of your urine. If it is dark yellow, it is a bad sign, meaning you are dehydrated. Ideally, your pee should be light yellow.
Overhydration, or water intoxication, occurs when there is an excessive intake of fluids, leading to an imbalance in the body’s electrolyte levels. When overhydration occurs quickly, vomiting and trouble with balance develop. If overhydration worsens, confusion, seizures, or coma may develop. Blood pressure can also rise when overhydration occurs.
When doctors treat the cause of overhydration, they may limit the amount of fluid you drink, often less than 4 cups (32 ounces) a day for several days. Overhydration due to drinking too much water causes water toxicity, an electrolyte imbalance that can cause symptoms ranging from nausea and vomiting. There are many reasons why you might develop diarrhea after drinking water, such as sulfate contamination, IBS, overhydration, or malabsorption.
Symptoms of overhydration include cloudy thinking, nausea and vomiting, muscle weakness, spasms or cramps, and headaches. Drinking too much water can lead to water intoxication, which can be fatal but is rare. Overhydration effects include blurred vision, diarrhea, fatigue, headaches, high fever, increased saliva in the mouth, mental changes, and dark yellow urine.
| Article | Description | Site |
|---|---|---|
| Instant Diarrhea After Drinking Water: Causes and Treatment | There are numerous potential causes of diarrhea following the consumption of water. These include sulfate contamination, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), overhydration, and malabsorption of a substance. | www.healthline.com |
| Overhydration: Types, Symptoms, and Treatments | Overhydration, or the consumption of an excess of water, has the potential to result in fatal consequences. The following section will present an overview of the causes, symptoms, treatments, and other pertinent information related to this condition. | www.healthline.com |
| What are the signs of overhydration? : r/HydroHomies | In the event of water toxicity, the following symptoms are likely to manifest: nausea and vomiting, as well as a headache caused by pressure on the brain. | www.reddit.com |
📹 What Happens When You Drink Too Much Water
We couldn’t live without water. But if we drink too much, it can wreak havoc on our brain and body. Drinking more water than your …
How do I know if I drank too much water?
Clear or colorless pee may indicate you have too much water in your body. Stop drinking if you feel nauseous, bloated or have a headache. These are early signs that you drank too much water.
What are the symptoms of water intoxication?. Water intoxication symptoms may include:
- Nausea and vomiting.
- Bloated stomach.
- Headache.
- Drowsiness.
- Muscle weakness.
- Muscle pain.
- Muscle cramps.
- Changes to your mental status, including confusion, irritability and dizziness.
- Swelling ( edema ) in your hands, feet and belly.
How do I know if I drank too much water?. It isn’t easy to know if you drank too much water. But the color of your pee can tell you a lot about your health. If you’re properly hydrated, your pee will be light yellow, like the color of light straw or lemonade. You may be drinking too much water if your pee is colorless or clear.
Why do I get Diarrhoea after drinking a lot of water?
Nausea or vomiting. The symptoms of overhydration can look like those of dehydration. When you have too much water in the body, the kidneys can’t remove the excess liquid. It starts collecting in the body, leading to nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.
All the body’s cells need water to function well. But if you drink too much water, you can become overhydrated, which can be a serious condition.
There’s no single formula to find out how much water you should drink daily. If you drink when you are thirsty and your urine is pale yellow, you are probably getting enough fluids. You can also follow the recommendation of eight glasses a day. You can then adjust your intake around this amount depending on your environment, exercise regimen, overall health, and conditions such as pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Your brain cells are the most likely to be impacted by swelling or low sodium levels. If you are slightly overhydrated, you may have no symptoms, have mild fatigue, or feel distracted. If you don’t drink too much water too quickly, the brain cells can adapt to the extra fluid in your body.
Can overhydration cause diarrhea?
There are many reasons why you might develop diarrhea after drinking water, such as sulfate contamination, IBS, overhydration, or malabsorption of a substance like lactose.
Diarrhea is defined as passing loose and watery stool more than three times a day. Common causes include:
- Infections
- food intolerances
- gastrointestinal (GI) conditions like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
Drinking water is an uncommon trigger. There are several reasons why water might cause diarrhea, including:
- The water contains a substance that stimulates your bowels
- stretching of your stomach is triggering your gastrocolic reflex
- you’re drinking too much water
- your intestines can’t absorb the water
Is 4 litres of water a day too much?
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine of the United States determined that an adequate daily fluid intake for men is approximately 15. 5 cups (3. 7 liters) and for women approximately 11. 5 cups (2. 7 liters). However, any recommended amount must be adjusted for a variety of factors, health conditions, and nutritional needs. That said, the general rule for water consumption is eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day.
Hyponatremia is a condition characterized by low sodium levels, which mostly affects endurance athletes and physically active people. This is induced by consuming four liters or more water in a few hours (rather than the entire day), lowering salt levels to unsafe levels. Overhydration, if left untreated, can lead to confusion, muscle weakness, seizures, and, in the worst-case scenario, death.
What are the common factors that may influence water intake?
Is it normal to have to poop after drinking a lot of water?
Drinking more water can cause more bowel movements because the water helps to flush waste from your body. If you’ve started drinking more water, you’ll probably visit the bathroom more often.
Let’s be clear. There is no rule about how many bowel movements a person should have each day.
Some people poop several times a day. Others go every few days. “Normal” is something everyone decides for themselves.
But, if you suddenly find yourself going more often than usual for you, it could be the result of many different things:
What are the symptoms of being overhydrated?
For most people, dehydration is the much greater issue. However, if you suspect you may be overhydrated, look for symptoms like cloudy thinking, nausea and vomiting, muscle weakness, spasms or cramps and headaches. In severe cases symptoms could include mental confusion, seizures, unconsciousness and even coma. The first treatment is to stop drinking fluids which will help someone recover in a few hours. However, with more severe symptoms, immediate medical attention may be necessary.
To prevent overhydrating, use your thirst cues and urine color as a guide. Drink water when you are thirsty and until your urine is light yellow to clear. Avoid drinking more than 1 liter of fluid per hour which will allow your kidneys to get rid of excess water. If you are experiencing excessive thirst, tell your primary care doctor right away, as this may be a symptom of another serious health issue.
How to fix overhydration immediately?
How to Fix Overhydration ImmediatelyStop drinking water and other fluids. Rest and avoid physical activity. Eat salty foods or drink sports drinks to replenish electrolytes. Seek a medical consultation if symptoms persist or worsen.
Medically Reviewed by Dr. Sony Sherpa (MBBS) – July 17, 2024.
Water is vital for every tissue in the body to function properly. It helps control body temperature, aids digestion, and carries nutrients to our cells. We have all heard the advice to drink eight glasses of water daily, but can drinking too much water be dangerous?
In this article, we will explore the concept of overhydration, its potential risks, and how to prevent it.
How do you fix overhydration quickly?
Reducing your fluid intake may be enough to restore the body’s electrolyte balance in mild cases.
- Diuretics to help eliminate excess water
- Addressing underlying conditions related to overhydration
- Discontinuing medications that could lead to water retention
- Replenishing sodium and electrolytes in severe situations
In more extreme instances, the patient may require hypertonic saline solution administered intravenously with or without additional electrolytes.
Patients who are overhydrated for medical reasons, such as kidney failure, may need hospitalization and intensive care until they have fully stabilized.
Why do I get diarrhea after drinking water?
Drinking water with sulfate at levels exceeding 600 mg/L can cause strong laxative effects, such as diarrhea. However, some people can get used to higher sulfates concentrations in as little as one week.
How to fix mushy poop?
The BRAT diet may help firm up your loose stools. BRAT is an acronym for bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. A low fiber diet may also help firm up your stool. However, speak with a healthcare professional if your symptoms last longer than 2 days. Your loose stools may be caused by an underlying health condition that could require medical attention.
Loose stool refers to stools that are mushy, shapeless, soft, watery, and sometimes have a foul odor.
You may experience loose stools for several reasons. This may include food poisoning, eating certain types of food, taking some medications, or having an underlying health condition. Speak with a healthcare professional if your loose stools last longer than 2 days. They could provide a proper diagnosis and treatment plan for you.
Why am I having watery diarrhea every 10 minutes?
Watery diarrhea can result from infections, medications, or chronic conditions. Treatments may include drinking plenty of water, avoiding foods that make it worse, and taking medications to treat diarrhea or an underlying condition.
Most cases of diarrhea in adults are not serious and resolve on their own in a few days. Home care can help with avoiding dehydration. However, persistent or recurring diarrhea could indicate another problem.
This article outlines some of the potential causes of watery diarrhea and the treatment options available.
📹 Drinking Too Much Water Will Do More Harm Than Good – Dr. Berg on Hyponatremia and Overhydration
Drinking too much water can cause serious health problems. Timestamps: 0:00 Drinking too much water is harmful; Find out why!
You hit the nail right on the head. I was advised during both of my pregnancies to drink 1 gallon of water a day! Didn’t happen. Why?? I WAS NOT THIRSTY! I did good to get 2 bottles in and as a result, I did not dehydrate, nor were my babies harmed. It’s bad enough you’re in the bathroom a lot during a pregnancy; why in the world would you even consider adding to it? LOL!! My husband and I highly support you, Dr. Berg; you’ve done nothing but help us, #1: Get healthy, and #2: Lose weight!! We are so thankful and obliged!
Thanks for this. A friend of mine almost died from a bacterial infection on his valves first (which the doctors later linked to his excessive water drinking), then three years on, developed severe cellulitis (the medical condition) due to excessive (and obsessive) water drinking. He would NOT listen to any reason, and would down three liters just during the main meal. I kid you not. It drove me nuts, and I think in his case it was not just a physical issue (perhaps prediabetes) but also some sort of mental disorder.
Amen brother! Pr Tim noakes is Da Man. He switched to low carb/healthy fat too, after being a proponent of high carb especially for athletes, for years! He is ran more than 70 marathons himself, using the high carb regimen. Until he got type 2 diabetes. Oops. Then, as any good scientist would do, he realised and acknowledged that his previous theory on sugar was not valid. So he moved, and, IMHO, rightfuly so, to the low carb/healthy fat side of the force. I love Tim Noakes. And yes, my personal experience shows that he is right. We need (and thrive on) less water than what people think. I moved from intermittent water fast to intermittent dry water fast (OMAD). So I eat and drink only in the evening. At first it was hard but with time, the thirst goes away, just like hunger. I even noted that if you exercise fasted, without drinking (e.g, in the morning) it makes the thirst go away later in the day even more. Just like if exercise increases your body’s ability to make water. And yes, our body knows how to make water from fat, sugar and proteins, just like camels, apes, well, all mamals in fact. And one of the byproducts of the krebs cycle, besides ATP is … water. So I guess it takes some getting used to. Just like for glucose, our body knows how to make water. But for that, we need to have a healthy flexible metabolism.
This article is so valid. Many people can learn alot from labor workers . They work long hours and barely drink water. They will on breaks and lunches but nowhere near these crazy recommendations that’s out there . I’ll tell you something …. since all this fitness stuff came about, plenty of people lost common sense . We have people doing exercises that apply to nothing in real life, they build all these muscles and then get a job that they can’t keep up with and they end up quitting or getting fired . Taking insane amount of supplements and now the water thing as well. I work dairy farming, sometimes up to 15 hours a day and never drink alot of water and I do this 6 days a week . I’m constantly lifting stacks of crates filled with gallons of milk, cheeses etc.. Pulling heavy pallets with hundreds of pounds of milk, yogurt, cheese etc… And I’ve been doing this work for years. I always have good bloodwork and am always working . Never missed a day of work in God knows how long . It’s been years.
Water intoxication only happens if you drink more than a gallon an hour and water goes TOWARDS salt. What happens is your brain is soaked in saline fluid so the water goes toward the salt in your head and causes swelling. You should have pointed that out. It’s not that it flushes salt out, it moves to your brain to create more saline to protect the tissue and in return the water follows.
My very visibly Insulin-resistant nutrition professor said “if you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated”…. I don’t think millions of years of evolution left us with a poor sense for hydration lol, your body can’t count, I preach this concept, drink when thirsty (and a couple 16oz servings upon waking up w/ salt) keep preaching the good stuff doc!
I am glad that you cited your source of the data. Much improved over previous articles on this topic. I am still more inclined to be a bit more proactive about my water intake. I handle the body’s water needs before thirst. You don’t wait until a plant starts to wilt to water it; you do it when the soil/dirt gets dry. Same with the body. It’s too easy to ignore thirst if you are busy doing something else. Then, you get dehydated. Or, get over-hydrated because you drink so much at once and bloat with water sloshing around in the belly later since it takes 30-45 minutes to re-hydrate when depleted.
I work in an office that is air conditioned and I rarely sweat all day, I feel like I don’t need to drink liters of water to stay hydrated and that is why I agree with this topic. I do believe there are many people who don’t drink enough and many who drink wayyyy more than necessary or even healthy. There are people here eating Burger King for lunch and then obsessed with staying hydrated because it’s the “healthy” thing to do. I used to work in a factory where it was 100 degrees in the summer everyday. I think I was dehydrated most of the time and that would have been the time for me to drink more. Everyone needs to be able to tell what they need, it’s on them and thankfully Dr. Berg can just explain some of the inconsistencies in the information we have been given the last 20-30 years.
i learned that the hard way a few days ago.. spent longer than usual at the gym and assumed i should be drinking a lot more water than normal to compensate..and have never felt so lethally ill in my life afterwards. a nasty headache, chest pain, nausea that genuinely scared me.. uh. chugging down 3L of water is maybe not such a smart idea after all people, I think ill stop listening to these “insta fitness influencers” for just a while :/
my blood pressure went way down when I decreased my water intake.. I used to drink half of my body weight in water bc that’s what I read was right, but I had to work hard to keep my BP down then.. I now take small sips throughout the day (no more guzzling), and my BP is lower than it’s ever been.. definitely something to this, thanks.
I stopped drinking to much water after perusal one of his other articles. When I was drinking to much water I was miserable. I too thought I had to just pound down the water all day. Its such a relief now, I drink when I get thirsty only. I feel fantastic! When I was a child I drank when I was thirsty too, we didn’t have “water bottles” we all lived thru it.
Adding that breast feeders need way more water than usual… I literally won’t make milk if I don’t almost over consume water. For me it’s more important than extra calories! (I don’t workout often, though) My supply has been steady after almost 10 months of BFing due in part to lots of water and healthy keto and IF!! Love the combo. Thanks Dr B!
That’s the way I usually do it and usually only drink about 48 to 64 ounces a day. I cannot even stand drinking water if I’m not thirsty. Unfortunately, as a diabetic, I do get thirsty more often than a healthy person would. However, another thing I’ve learned from other articles is that if your urine goes completely clear you’ve gone past the level of healthy hydration since it’s supposed to be a very pale yellow. That’s also usually when I start getting a bit of a headache. At that point, I will drink a Powerade Zero to replenish my electrolytes. No matter what, I try to make sure to get enough salt, potassium, and magnesium into my diet to make up for the fact that I crave more water than I would if I were not diabetic.
Sole water is pink Himalayan salt soaked in filter or distilled water got 24 hours after that add a teaspoon of the sole water in a glass of water. This sole water will give me the 84 valuable trace minerals for my busy day. Sole water is also recommend on the keto diet, thank Dr Berg for this enlightening information!!!!!!
I remember an advertisement stating we needed 8 glasses of water a day, it was for a bottled water campaign, I have learned when corporations advertise a health benefit that they are twisting actual facts to promote a product. I have never found the original source/study that is academically accepted that states drinking 2 litres of water or 8 8oz glasses of water a day is needed by each and every human, where did this ‘fact’ come from?
I read that the whole 8 glasses of water thing was started during WWII when a survey was done of Americans to ask how much fluid they had in a day, including coffee, soup, etc. The average was 8 cups. The survey was done to figure out how much water needed to be available to troops of soldiers on the move or stationed in areas where fresh water was not obtainable for them and the army needed to transport water to those troops. It was not based on anything other than that survey done in the 1940’s. The men were ordered to ingest that allotted amount of fluid daily in whatever form it was available to prevent dehydration and fatigue. They brought this information home after the war and told it to their families. It stuck and became the “norm”. It would be interesting to ask anyone you know still living from WWII if they remember being told this.
The pop message surrounding water intake is so misleading that it’s crazy to think how it got to such a point. I did my own experiment, adhering only to the two factual purposes of water, thirst and digestion, and the result amazed me. I only drank “1 Cup” of water if I was thirsty (which was very seldom, almost never), or when I ate a solid meal. With only two solid meals a day, that meant at least two cups of water. And, as part of my regular dietary approach, I drink half a cup of water when taking my morning supplements, and drink protein shakes throughout the day using milk or coconut ®milk as the base. The result astonished me. My urine had very little discoloration, a very light lime color most times, and many times, crystal clear. I would argue that the texture of my skin (face) improved, having a matt-like appearance instead of my usual oily look.
Well, many people dont really get thirsty at all through many days and end up not drinking water, so the answer is probably not just that. Balance like in everything else should be the key. So my point is, even if you are not thirsty at all during the day you should definitely stand up and get a glass of water a few times a day.
Okay, i’ve been going to his articles to help guide me a bit more in my nutrition studies but this just has me doubting everything I’ve learned on this website. 8 cups of water is not going to lead to water toxicity. People dying from water toxicity are drinking water in the litres or gallons. In fact some people, especially in the U.S. should be drinking more than 8 cups. 8 cups was a general estimate given based on the average person’s weight. You should drink .5 oz of water per pound of your weight. No one is dying or overhydrated from 8 cups of water a day unless they have some medical issue or are at a very young age. There are many people who eat when they are actually thirsty, so they should make a point to drink water even if they think it is hunger before they decide to eat a meal.
However, it must be said that many people don’t recognize thirst, sometimes for hours. They recognize it when they become very, very thirsty. Some attentiveness is needed to create awareness. Water is needed for basic metabolic functions by the cells, and if you leave it totally up to people they will drive things toward a little too dry. We haven’t been taught that when we tired and sluggish drinking a glass of water will brighten us right up because we are thirsty and don’t know it. I don’t advocate downing a gallon of water a day, by any means, but I think the advice to only drink when thirsty also creates problems. There are people who will never drink water at all during a given day because they don’t think they are thirsty (but they are responding to thirst signals with coffee or with food, instead).
Disagree w/the dehydration statements. Dehydration is REAL and DOES cause many medical, both physically and mentally. I used to never be thirsty but that was causing me major issues. Now I drink abt 80oz of water a day. I feel better 🙌🏽. I do agree w/water retention, in my opinion that means that there’s something else going on as well.
We need a lot of water and we need salt and the best thing to do is to make sure you take both because I was very ill back in Jan drinking a lot of water and I did not take any salt at all, it was a wake up call for me that a lack of salt could make me so ill and since then I have taken both and find that helps and sea salt at that, sea salt is full of vitamins.
I drink a lot of water! There.. I said it. 😀 I use a 32oz mason jar as my “drinking glass” which I fill, throughout the day, to about 28oz. I don’t really know how many of these I drink a day but I would guess it’s about 7-10x including once for coffee. I’ve often worried about flushing out minerals/electrolytes with that amount of consumption but it’s become such a habit (for the past several years) that I don’t even think about it. I don’t have any of the symptoms listed and I don’t drink a lot during/after my workouts (maybe 2-4x drinks during a 90-120min session) and even during my normal, daily 15-22 mile bicycle rides I normally only drink 32-48oz of water. Last summer, 2020, I was fasting (18/6) 5 days a week and still doing 15+ mile a day rides. One day I rode onto a slipper section of pavement and went down quickly. I landed on my shoulder… didn’t hit my head nor hurt myself. But when I started riding again, I felt …. confused. No other way to describe it… I was having disassociated thoughts. My mind was racing from one thought to another and I couldn’t seem to focus on one idea. Things that had occurred just a few hrs before, I thought had occurred a day or two ago… or I couldn’t really recall it all. Scared my wife! She wanted to take me to the hospital. But I was pretty sure that my electrolytes were all messed up. I’d taken two long rides that day (when I normally only did one) and it was very hot w/ temps in the 90s. I was, as usual, well hydrated but I hadn’t added any salt/cream of tartar (potassium) to my water which I normally did when I was fasting and went riding.
I really hope you come across this comment.. I’m a new subscriber and i’m so happy to find you. Your content on IF is uncomparable. I have a question, Can i do IF everyday and not bring down my metabolism? I eat at my maintenance calories so i guess i should be fine, but i haven’t come across a article on this topic. Thank you so much.
I have heard this before and I actually had one doctor tell me I drink too much. The problem is that I AM thirsty, I have never had to force myself to drink. I also have fluid retention and in the night it’s a continuous waking up to go to the toilet, so I may be drinking too much, but it feels extremely unnatural for me to drink less…I would have to consciously try to do that, plus add some himalayan salt to my water (for the minerals) which is what another doc told me on another occasion…I realise that most info we learn about can up the info, and it is so on opposing sides…this for many issues around health and nutrition
Dr. Berg, every time you touch this subject, it makes me doubt about the rest of the information you provide. It’s widely known that people lose thirst sensation when they don’t drink water because the body adapts to this condition, but it doesn’t mean you don’t need it. My father’s health was deteriorating very fast when he turn 55. Never used to drink water and refused to drink it just because he wasn’t thirsty. But when he started drinking pure water, several aspects in his health got better. In my case, my digestive system works a lot better when I drink enough water, sometimes even more than 8 glasses a day. You may check Dr. Batmanjelidj’s book “Your body’s many cries for water”.
Ok so I’ll chime in my two cents. I had a kidney stone and had med (flow max). Guess how much water I drank? A lot never felt a headache or other symptoms. I think the stone came out. However I had a lot of gas. My gut flora had to be rebalanced due to the water flush ( probably fluoride in tap water did a number.) I know the statistics say 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. Best scenario I figure is drink more than 10 cups a day and about 14 per day (summer) depending on individual size and activity level possible more. Someone said two cups in morning to flush overnight toxin build up. I don’t know exact numbers just drink at regular intervals thru out the day breakfast break lunch break dinner snack that’s about the best advice I can give. Drink up ppl.
Thats great,but i have a Sjogren syndrome(autoimmune disease),which lead to dryness in my mout,nose and eyes and i often thirsty,so i drink a lot of water.After watch your articles about too much water i think i deplete my sodium level,because very often i feel week and i have brain fog,even i am on keto.
I honestly thought as a bodybuilder to drink more water throughout the day, so that nutrients and minerals are carried to the muscles more adequately, and water is the key benefactor to do that……so now NOT to drink water only when thirsty…dehydration would cause tiredness & lethargic reactions in the body?……..i’m confused!
I would like to know more about this, however I am not an athlete doing sports or endurance racing so reading the book is not going to be relevant to me. Are there any guidelines that you have for the average person following your keto and IF guidelines? I think this could be a potentially dangerous article as so many keto people suffer from dehydration so please do a article on this topic for your weight loss viewers.
I really enjoy your articles Dr. Berg, but your title should have read: DRINKING EXCESS WATER IN TOO SHORT A PERIOD OF TIME will do more harm than good. I think you should really have pointed out that hypernutramia happens when you drink too much water in too short a period of time. More people ARE TRULY dehydrated than they realize. That said, there was a contest back several years ago held by a radio station and the contest was called “Hold your wee for a Wii” when those game stations first came out. They had to see who could drink the most water (I think it was like a gallon??) at one time w/o stopping. The woman died because of the contest and the idiot radio station overseeing the whole thing didn’t do their research. Was all over the news and was horrible. That is an extreme example of hypernutramia. Drinking half your body weight in ounces is what several reputable “authorities” on the subject have also said in the last 10 years or more. You drink your water over the course of the day, not all at once. Good grief. Who even does that? Most people just drink pop and coffee anyway. You also need to pay attention to the color of your urine. If it’s too deep in color, you need more water. If it’s clear or not enough color, slow yourself down and/or stop for a while until you’re thirsty again. Urine should be “straw” colored. The whole “drink eight 8 ounce glasses of water a day” doesn’t even work for the average American. That formula works for a person that is 128lbs. LOL I completely disagree with the way you presented the information in this article, but —its your article.
I wish you would add more details in your articles, like you used to. It recently seems like the aim is in getting out as many articles as possible and encouraging the reduction in attention span by producing short and sometimes very short articles. I’d like to know more information not just a quick suggestion or tip.
That’s very intresting Dr. Berg. But what about keto/LC you usually suggest? I personally have serious issues with water intake cause I find myself always dehydrated and thirsty. Of course on those type of diet you should increase your water intake but as a matter of fact your kidneys are gonna work more. Do you think is there still a limit even on keto/LC where the hydration is even more crucial?
Most runners know drinking water alone is not good and you need to add Electrolytes. I have drank 4 Liters once ( Little more then a Gallon ) at a 3 hours-ish run/race in 30c (86F) degrees in full sun WITH added electrolytes. ( look op Fizz from Hammer or NUUN Tablets ). Great info though for the people who don’t know this.
Ice cold water is best in exercising and extreme hot summer or weather . Excessive water will cause you to throw up cuz it’s not cooling your body but not enough will cause cramps if your just eating carbs the sugars in your muscles will cause muscles to stick together and cause severe cramps in your hands and the muscles that are used often .
Maybe if were talking mild dehydration but moderate and most importantly severe dehydration can also cause swelling of the brain as well as organ failure namely with that of the kidneys and the muscles begin to spasm and contract as well as breathing to become very rapid and shallow and the heart rate to rise as well as blood pressure. Both are very dangerous when at their extremes but dont necessarily believe that overhydration is worse than dehydration especially since sodium levels are easy enough to replenish and the body can correct any overhydration issue with expelling fluids and pushing them where needed unless drinking over a liter per hour in which the kidneys wouldnt be able to filter that amount and would be very disruptive to say the least. But im still in the belief that severe dehydration and even moderate dehydration are alot more worrisome than overhydration as far as possible bodily damage but that is just my opinion on the matter and drawn from my own personal experiences with both conditions.
I have red a book by Dr. Batmanghelidj named something like Watercure or something like that about improving multiple body conditions with very slightly salted water, he promotes drinking quite a healthy amount of water BUT with each intake taking a tiny bit of sea salt which naturally contains a bunch of minerals. Have you red something from him Dr. Berg? There are articles of him giving lectures explaining it on youtube if you are interested. I know when I drink very small amounts of water, like under a liter a day, I can have a headache, ankle swelling, I can even feel my kidneys hurt a bit, I used to have kidney stones regularly many years ago, I don’t know exactly if drinking 2-3l a day had to do something with it or it was something else I have changed in my life but I didn’t have kidney stones about the same time as I raised my water intake.
I’ve commented before, but I’ll say it again. I have diabetes insipidus. Without my meds my body constantly creates urine, so I have to pee and replenish my fluids right afterwords, every 30 minutes. Typically, without my meds, I’m always thirsty. With my meds, my meds only lasted 2-4 hours for 2 years straight. I developed this condition in 2015. I just realized a month ago, about new years 2019, if I cut my sodium, my meds last longer. I can get my meds to last up to 20 hours. The whole time, I’ll only need about 32oz of water that’s from thirst, not forcing it. That’s because salt retains fluids. When I eat a fast food meal, I’ll drink about 4 glasses of water. This water dilutes my medication and it stops working. I’ve learned. Cut the sodium and only drink when thirsty. Let the minerals BUILD UP, let your hormones build up in the blood stream. Let your energy build up.
Yes, I’ve known this my whole life. All those times they told us as kids to “drink plenty of water”, I knew to only drink when I was thirsty. And I’ve lived in Vegas for almost 30 yrs now. I’ve adapted and now I’m like a human camel in the Mojave desert. I’ve worked in the solar fields out here and workers are constantly running to the bathroom because they drink way to much water. Those are the guys who always have no energy and fizz out quick throughout the day because they are depleting themselves of the body’s essential electrolytes. But it’s hard breaking it to them, because telling people to not drink so much water in 100°+ weather tends to get you some “this guy is an idiot” kind of looks and reactions…
I had a roommate that was such a believer in drinking 8 glasses of water a day, that her behavior carried over to her senior-aged dog. This poor animal had to endure her owner opening up a bottled water container, and holding it right next to the dog’s mouth, and letting the water pour out of it, with the intent being for the dog to lap up (drink) the water, which of course the dog didn’t do, because the dog wasn’t thirsty.
I Had problems with constipation and gerd when I went to one meal a day and cured the problem with your recommendation of taking Betain HCL with Pepsin. My wife has had rheumatoid arthritis for years. I have been looking into C60 as a possible remedy. Any word on this material and do you know if it would conflict with blood thinners or cholesterol medicine.
Im thirsty all the time, i keep drinking water yet end up feeling more thirsty, ive got clear urine, constant headaches, coated white tongue, liquid stool, cramp in my leg, stomach cramps/pain. I take it im over doing it, but the drink water when youre thirsty rule isnt applying very well to me, i just get more thirsty. Any advice would be helpful.. this is becoming a nightmare, especially at my waitering job. Ps im definitely not diabetic, doctors checked that, im in “athletic” shape
Dr. could you please tell me how much time will it take for the muscle cramps on keto and IF to go away? I am doing keto for about 1 month now but the cramps are not going away, I have bought a electrolyte, it has 153g of Potassium in the form of Potassium chloride. I couldn’t afford your electrolyte powder (college student, part-time job) Help!
but I rarely get the sensation of thirst. Even as a diabetic. I had to remind myself to drink or my indicator was dry throat. Even now, I went through a bout of the hershey squirts for 4 WEEKS, drank 2L a day and was still ill, racing heart, weak and tired so even with a lot of rest I drank nearly 3L to recover. A lot of bathroom trips for pee and cacas 😉 slowly recovering now though.
I’ll post my question here also incase you miss it in Twitter. Does this apply more to athletes, or to everyone, because I’m listening to a podcast of his right now and he seems to be talking about athletes regarding his beliefs with water? I’m not an athlete but I drink a fair amount of water each day because it makes me feel better health-wise… if I don’t drink alot I find I don’t feel as well…. my bladder doesn’t feel as good either. Do some people need more water than others maybe?
Candida in the blood seems to greatly limit the thirst and hunger sensations (and most body signals, really), so I have to force myself to eat and drink more than I am comfortable with. Otherwise I feel horrible and I have no idea why, then reach for sea-salted water and find myself drinking half a liter. It’s weird.
one would think athletes should be aware of new and cutting edge concepts such as this… but it’s hard (very hard) to believe drinking too much water is problematic for average sedentary individuals? i mean, by the time we are actually thirsty we have already become dehydrated and that in itself could be detrimental to our well being
ARIZONA HEAT!!! Please address hard working men who work out in the sun ALL day and sweat. (Gas company, pipeline workers, construction etc.) best method to stay hydrated and balanced salt, electrolytes etc. On a personal note I consume 1 gallon of water throughout the day. Been doing this for years. Is this bad and why?
Drink too much water and you pee more, drink too little water you get dehydrated (60% of the population is dehydrated). May strength increased 30% by drinking more water in the morning. Telling people not to drink 8 glasses of water is not just unhealthy, it is a primary driver for sickness. Salt and electrolytes paly a big role, but you need lots of water to stay balanced.
That’s cool but I have to drink enormous amount of water. Otherwise a range of symptoms increase. Muscle twitching, headache, feeling of hung over. But if I sip water all day, ending in 12 8 oz cups a day, I am right as rain. So there is a range, dear. I know you respect education. I have a masters in sociology/social services.
I dont feel thirsty, sometimes I go entire day without a single drop of water. My lips are mostly dry and only water intake I have is generally after single meal I have in a day so my guess is 250ml – 300 ml daily intake. Recently I started drining a lot of water and I was drinking nearly 3ltrs of water but it made me urinate a lot which was clear but It was very annoying to have to be urinating again and again and by the end of the night my lips were still dry.
Let me share some thoughts and you give me your opinion or knowledge on that. During exercise, especially intense exercise the glycogen from the muscle will broke down to glucose and at the same time water will be released. Is it a smart invention from mother nature to give the body necessary water for sweating to cool down without have to drink extra ounces of it ? (if this is for short period)
Idk i kind of disagree with this article drinking at least a gallon of h2o a day has been very beneficial for me speaking for myself i find that when i dont drink enough water i get a little constipated and dont produce a lot of waste regularly than when i drink enough also i get a little sluggish when i dont drink sufficient water AND its more difficult for me to lose weight which it means that drinking enough is very crucial to your overall health than drinking just a little water there’s been hundreds of studies supporting this claim just go by the color of your urine the lighter the better 3/4 to a gallon a day should be your goal
Dr why so many keto coaches out there recommend 2 littlers of water a day on keto is not possible how will you digest fat ? Doesn’t tomuch water alkaline the stomach i don’t trust most keto coaches out there no more is crazy in keto you need more hcl to digest fat and without hcl their wont be enough release of boil. And taking supplements to aid digestion will become pricey so people have to pay more money to be on a keto diet is just crazy healthy fats and organic meats are already so expensive.
Hi doc I tried Intermittent fasting 16/8 I lost 8 kilos in just 2 months and one day I have in my belly at the right upper side and in the back…I did the whole abdomen ultrasound and the result was so bad because I have FATTY LIVER..could you help us on this DOC ?WHAT HAPPEN thanks a lot…IM your ultimate FAN..FROM PHILIPPHINES…THANKS
The keyword here is EXCESSIVE! he makes it sound in the article that drinking anything can be dangerous or counterproductive. And excessive means drinking like 10 liters at once, thats when people can die. Drinking your bottle of water, maybe with some salt and lemon juice added is absolutly vital as well as refilling the fluid that you lose by sweating!