Hyponatremia, the opposite of dehydratio n

“Don't drink toooo much water while exercising!

I seem to remember a woman dying from this a few years ago on the AT in the 100 mile Wilderness.”

“Its something you have to worry about in the desert...I learned about it a LOOOONG time ago. If you drink a lot of water you must also replenish teh electolites and salts”

“okay, biz!”

“just kidding! i know it's a real thing, but once biz started some thread on it and for some reason everyone made fun of her...so i just thought i'd throw that in there!”

“Oral rehydration therapy has been promoted for fluid replacement in cases of diarrhia and vomiting in 3rd world countries for years.
The idea is to balance essential salts with fluid intake.
http://rehydrate.org/solutions/homemade.htm
Ingredients:
one level teaspoon of salt
eight level teaspoons of sugar
one litre of clean drinking or boiled water and then cooled
5 cupfuls (each cup about 200 ml.)

Preparation Method:
Stir the mixture till the salt and sugar dissolve.”

“Damn! I just finished my 45th full Nalgene of water today.

I guess I should slow down. I will on;y drink 32 more for the rest of the day.

WOW! I really have to pee.”

“WK, have you considered catheterization? It will put an end to all those inconvenient trips to the restroom.”

“FUEGO!!!!!!!!!


Nawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww..
Just picking at you all. ;-)”

“I sorta wish that oral rehydration therapy had been around for my two great-uncles who died of dehydration from dysentery. Or imodium, for that matter.

Every time I take an Imodium, I can't help but think this little pill could have saved their lives.”

“I've seen a lot of this on psych units - I'm not sure why its such a problem there.”

“A woman died from this running the Chicago marathon a few years back. She apparently didn't like the taste of gatorade.”

“i thought this was called polydipsia?”

“I think it can also be called Water Toxemia? (Too much water in the system-- leading to low electrolytes).

My mother-in-law (Thinkbubelz's mom) passed away 8 years ago from (what the docs think was) water toxemia. Apparently, it can be due to an imbalance chemically in the body's sodium levels as well--such as caused by an interaction to a medication....

:-(”

“Potential cheap backpacking foods like ramens and dried soups always turn me off because of their high sodium content. Now I have a new way of looking at them.

Also, remember moderation, not too much water, not too little water.”

“You are right there wannabp-- either extreme is bad for the body!”

“I am one of those that either drinks too much or too little. While running I tend to drink way too much, especially during summer. Once in a while I drink a complete 2 liter bladder full of water, plus more in the car after. I get sick and feel sort of hmmm... hard to explain. Even in 100 degree weather I get goosebumps and a strange feeling, almost like I am cold. (not sure if that's too much water though or me just being cold blooded LOL)

So what is the exact amount of water? I think it's really hard to say as each one of us needs different amounts, some sweat more, some less, some weigh more, etc...

During summer I drink constantly. I have a bottle of water with me even in the bath tub. LOL”

“Saw alot of this on the 3 day breast cancer walk. For every two bottles of water have one bottle of gatorade or alot of salt snacks. It was a problem because of the long, back to back days in the hot sun and temps over 95°.”

“Under "normal" conditions one cannot drink too much water. Under laboratory conditions we diluted our blood by 1/3 with water.”

“Sassafras, 2 water 1 gatorade has worked pretty well for me in the past also.”

“A few years back a SUNY Plattsburgh student died from Hyponatremia. The student was pledging with one of the colleges fraternities and was forced to drink large quantities of water.”

“I've only had this problem once - on the PCT. We were descending into Cajon Pass. It was 23 miles between water sources. We had filled up our bottles at noon the previous day, then camped in a dry stretch of forest. All the next day we descended through desert - about 16 miles of excrutiatingly gentle switchbacks. There was no shade anywhere and no water, so we kept going. We arrived at the bottom, finally, about 2:00 where there was a large boulder that cast a tiny bit of shade and a faucet. The temperature was somewhere in the 90's. We sat at that faucet for about two hours, drinking and drinking. I reached a point where I was ready to throw up. So we just sat there, waiting for it to cool off so we could continue our trek across the windy pass. I remember how awful I felt. I guess I was lucky. We don't carry gatorade - too heavy - though we usually have crackers. After being so thirsty though, food was not appealing at that point.

Usually I have the opposite problem of borderline dehydration. I know those symptoms all too well. I always carry water, but I have the habit of holding on to it too long, just in case I really need it. I've had the problem too many times of reaching a water source and finding it dry or fouled. So I always arrive at the water source with enough to keep going to the next, if necessary. At the end of the day we rehydrate, with soup, soupy pasta and hot chocolate in addition to a couple of quarts of water. Makes for many trips out of the tent in the night. On the CDT and PCT we got in the habit of eating at the water source and then moving on afterwards, so the rehydration was done earlier - but with the frequent 20 mile stretches between water sources, we usually found ourselves mildly dehydrated anyhow, because we were so careful not to run out completely.”