For years there has been a preaching that we should drink, drink, drink! But suddenly researchers even warn against it? However, this statement has to be reduced to very special cases.
The dose makes the poison. Even water above a certain amount can be deadly. My old biology teacher already knew that when he told us the story of a woman who died from drinking too much water.
So nothing new and yet a warning from researchers at the renowned Harvard Medical School is circulating in the media. It actually draws attention to the danger of too much fluids, which can lead to kidney damage.
Normally, one and a half liters (after all, other foods, especially fruit and vegetables, also contain liquid) a day should be sufficient, although the need naturally increases with extreme heat or physical exertion.
On the other hand, it only becomes dangerous if a lot of liquid is consumed within a short period of time. And with too much, we're talking about enormous amounts like 16 liters in 2 hours - that's what died of a 17-year-old in the USA last year who brought down these large amounts of water during his football training session. In this case one speaks of water poisoning or hyponatremia, whereby the kidneys can no longer process the huge amounts of fluid and the sodium content in the blood is severely diluted. In addition, the cells expand throughout the body and also in the brain. Which in turn can lead to cramps or lung failure.
However, there are extremely few cases of this kind worldwide. Dehydration, on the other hand, is the order of the day, especially in the elderly in summer! Up to 3 or 4 liters of liquid spread over the day are definitely not a health risk, especially in hot temperatures. And then we treat ourselves to a large glass of cold water right now!
