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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 6 of 6. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Racer on July 4, 2004, at 14:10:32
OK, this is going to sound really nuts, but how much water is too much water to drink each day? I drink a lot of whatever is handy, both nervous energy and dry mouth. I also get hellacious constipation, so I try to make sure I'm fully hydrated.
A few weeks ago, though, I had a bad experience that I think might have been caused by drinking too much water and upsetting my electrolyte balance. My husband said something the other day about me drinking too much water, too. So, I'm wondering: how much is too much? Everything I can find talks about drinking "enough" water, and it lists 64 ounces per day as the target to shoot for. That's a fair amount less than I drink, although I don't drink a lot of other things, so it's not "64 ounces of water, plus [x] ounces of coffee/tea, plus [x] ounces of [whatever]..." It's more like, "[x] ounces of water, plus 6 ounces of fruit juice, plus 12(or 24) ounces of diet soda..." Can anyone tell me how much my little [x] should be set to as a maximum?
Thanks!
Posted by Cass on July 4, 2004, at 18:32:23
In reply to How much water to drink?, posted by Racer on July 4, 2004, at 14:10:32
Hi Racer,
The rule I learned is to drink half your weight in ounces every day. For example, if a person weighs 140 pounds, they should drink 70 oz of water a day. I find it pretty challenging to drink that much water, but I do try. I don't drink water with meals because I don't want to dilute my digestive juices, so I only drink water in between meals and when I arise. I also don't drink water too close to bedtime because I don't want to be up and down all night. That's my hydration routine.
Posted by Racer on July 6, 2004, at 13:46:48
In reply to How much water to drink?, posted by Racer on July 4, 2004, at 14:10:32
Just to clarify my question, I'm concerned about the *maximum* amount of water for me to drink each day, not the minimum, which I'm sure I already exceed.
Inquiring minds count on you, and rely on your good information. Thanks for providing such a great resource as your Great Brain. ;-D
Posted by Larry Hoover on July 7, 2004, at 10:05:52
In reply to Larry Hoover? Can you check in on this?, posted by Racer on July 6, 2004, at 13:46:48
> Just to clarify my question, I'm concerned about the *maximum* amount of water for me to drink each day, not the minimum, which I'm sure I already exceed.
>
> Inquiring minds count on you, and rely on your good information. Thanks for providing such a great resource as your Great Brain. ;-DYou don't *have* to ask so sweetly, but I don't *mind* if you do.
The issue is complex, so I thought I'd think it over some. My brain actually has a "run process in the background" function, just like Windows. My brain is now ready....
Your original post suggests that you might have experienced electrolyte imbalance from overhydration. I presume, then, that some symptoms of dizziness/lightheadedness and perhaps mild vertigo might have occurred. Those symptoms could be from acute over-exertion, mild heat prostration, postural hypotension, even a change in temperature environment (such as walking out of air-conditioning into hot humid sunshine). A lot of variables to consider, and no clear way to diffentiate between them.
One thing at issue is that pure water is not the ideal replenishment for lost sweat. The coach of the Florida Gators football team was distraught at the number of his players who became ill from the effects of exertion in the hot and humid climate, despite adequate water.....thus arose Gatorade. Gatorade pretty much mimics the content of sweat, including salt and sugars. Sports drinks are a better hydration source if sweat is a significant variable.
If you drink a lot to deal with dry mouth, you might consider trying sugar-free (diabetic) hard candies, or sugar-free gum, to promote saliva production.
Drinking water to hydrate the feces is far less effective than increasing intake of soluble fiber (i.e. fiber which swells and retains water, but is indigestible, e.g. Metamucil).
Your name, Racer, suggests that you might be into physical fitness/running? A very simple guide for water replenishment can be had by weighing yourself before and after exercise. An ounce of water volume weighs an ounce (that's the definition of both), so a loss of a pound from exertion requires sixteen ounces of fluid replacement. Not water. Water plus lost electrolytes. If you just drink the water, and only enough to replenish the weight, you can still have the effects of overhydration, but solely because your body is electrolyte deficient. You can buy oral rehydration salts at a drug store (e.g. Pedialyte), or you can make your own. Half a teaspoon each of potassium chloride (available as a salt substitute called NoSalt) and sodium bicarbonate, and a teaspoon of table sugar or corn syrup, in a quart of water. The sugar is essential, as sodium and potassium uptake is driven by glucose.
There is no magic number which is enough water, and another which is "too much". You have to figure that out in the context of your own body weight, physical exertion, exertion environment, local climate, and so on.
Lar
Posted by Racer on July 7, 2004, at 16:06:58
In reply to Re: Larry Hoover? Can you check in on this? » Racer, posted by Larry Hoover on July 7, 2004, at 10:05:52
Thank you. Your posts are almost always so educational for me, and that's why I always look forward to them.
The incident that worried me did have a *lot* of variables involved: I had been to the dentist, so lots of dental distress (root canal), along with the vasoconstrictors and local anesthetic. Empty stomach, because my jaw was too torn up to eat. It was hot out, and I was driving a long time that day, there and back, with a quick window shopping trip added in. When I got home, I took a painkiller -- Percodan -- which was about two hours or so before I started getting sick. I ate a light meal -- mostly veggies -- about half an hour after taking the Percodan. "Sick" in this case means: vomiting, weakness (crawling out of the bathroom, since I was too weak to stand up), and then just collapsing on the floor when I couldn't crawl anymore. I tried to lift my arms, or my head, but couldn't do it -- my whole body felt as though it was vibrating a little bit, and I couldn't seem to move. The vibration sensation reminded me of how it feels when you donate platelets at the blood bank -- you know, the thing they tell you means "more Tums" -- so I kinda thought that it might be electrolytes.
As for why I drink water, mostly, I think, it's a case of nervous energy and habit. Not necessarily any good reason. (Although, as I was typing that first sentence, I grabbed the bottle for a swig and managed to squirt it all over myself -- so maybe it's a subconscious need to remind myself I can be a real dweeb?) It's mostly a case of "better to drink water than to smoke a cigarette or pop food into my mouth", with a side of dry mouth. (Metamucil actually seems to *increase* my constipation problem, by the way. I was taking it for that reason, but the problem got worse until I stopped. Now, not so much of a problem. Go figure...) And don't let the handle fool you: there is a reason for it, but nothing to do with *me* running -- although, that does depend on what's chasing me...
Thanks again, Larry, and I promise I'll remember next time to ask you sourly.
Posted by Larry Hoover on July 10, 2004, at 8:41:35
In reply to Thanks -- more info » Larry Hoover, posted by Racer on July 7, 2004, at 16:06:58
> Thank you. Your posts are almost always so educational for me, and that's why I always look forward to them.
>
> The incident that worried me did have a *lot* of variables involved: I had been to the dentist, so lots of dental distress (root canal), along with the vasoconstrictors and local anesthetic. Empty stomach, because my jaw was too torn up to eat. It was hot out, and I was driving a long time that day, there and back, with a quick window shopping trip added in. When I got home, I took a painkiller -- Percodan -- which was about two hours or so before I started getting sick. I ate a light meal -- mostly veggies -- about half an hour after taking the Percodan. "Sick" in this case means: vomiting, weakness (crawling out of the bathroom, since I was too weak to stand up), and then just collapsing on the floor when I couldn't crawl anymore. I tried to lift my arms, or my head, but couldn't do it -- my whole body felt as though it was vibrating a little bit, and I couldn't seem to move. The vibration sensation reminded me of how it feels when you donate platelets at the blood bank -- you know, the thing they tell you means "more Tums" -- so I kinda thought that it might be electrolytes.Wow! Your brain works differently than mine. ;-)
With all those other variables, I wouldn't have been thinking electrolytes, at all. Oxycodone (in Percodan) can alone do all you describe.
> As for why I drink water, mostly, I think, it's a case of nervous energy and habit. Not necessarily any good reason. (Although, as I was typing that first sentence, I grabbed the bottle for a swig and managed to squirt it all over myself -- so maybe it's a subconscious need to remind myself I can be a real dweeb?) It's mostly a case of "better to drink water than to smoke a cigarette or pop food into my mouth", with a side of dry mouth.
If you're urinating more often than every two hours (and you don't have a "nervous bladder"), then you're drinking too much fluid. That would be my guideline.
>(Metamucil actually seems to *increase* my constipation problem, by the way. I was taking it for that reason, but the problem got worse until I stopped. Now, not so much of a problem. Go figure...)
Eh? You be weird, honey. ;-)
Never heard of that before. OK, you're depressed, right? Peristalsis, the rhythmic contractions of the gut that move food along, depend on.....tada!....serotonin. There is more serotonin in your gut than in your entire brain!
Maybe you might feel better using tryptophan as a supplement? Take it half an hour before a good-sized meal. I get mine from:
http://www.buygpdirect.com/gpefeed.htmDon't be thrown by the veterinary aspect. People don't feed crap to expensive horseflesh. I use the ultra-pure (half-way down the page). It doesn't dissolve well, but a blender will mix it into e.g. fruit juice just fine.
> And don't let the handle fool you: there is a reason for it, but nothing to do with *me* running -- although, that does depend on what's chasing me...
Oh, but the fun in being chased is in getting caught, non?
I just think it's an extra bit of fun to try and figure out someone's pseudonym. I took all the fun out of it, eh?
> Thanks again, Larry, and I promise I'll remember next time to ask you sourly.I didn't say you had to be sour. I just said you didn't have to be sweet, but I didn't mind it if you were.
Lar
This is the end of the thread.
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