Can You Drink Too Much Water ? How much water should i drink daily ?

Drinking Too Much Water Can Be Deadly

You’ve heard it a million times. When it’s hot outside or you’re exercising, drink lots of water. It’s how your body stays hydrated.

But can there be too much of a good thing? In rare cases, drinking an extreme amount in a short time can be dangerous. It can cause the level of salt, or sodium, in your blood to drop too low. That’s a condition called hyponatremia. It’s very serious, and can be fatal. You may hear it called water intoxication.

Earlier this year, a 28-year-old California woman died after competing in a radio station’s on-air water-drinking contest. After downing some six liters of water in three hours in the “Hold Your Wee for a Wii” (Nintendo game console) contest, Jennifer Strange vomited, went home with a splitting headache, and died from so-called water intoxication.

Water is a key chemical of the body, which is why it needs to remain within a healthy range in order to balance the body. The human body loses water every day through breathing, sweating, urinating, and having a bowel movement, according to the Mayo Clinic. In order to replenish the body with enough water without overwhelming the cells, the Institute of Medicine determined the ideal amount is approximately 16 8-ounce cups (3.7 liters) for men and 11 8-ounce cups (2.7 liters) for women.

For athletes or anyone about to engage in a physical activity that will make you sweat, drink 1.5 to 2.5 extra cups of water to compensate for the fluid loss. Because sodium is lost through sweat perspiration, drinking a sports drink that contains sodium will help replace and balance out the increased water intake while reducing the chances of developing hyponatremia.