I thought osmosis was the only cause for concern with regard to excessive water intake. Now I hear about hyponatraemia, which is apparently a lot easier to get. So I don't know what the recommended water intake for me is?

I am 5ft, around 55 kilos [haven't weight myself in forever] and not all that physically active. I drink about 3 litres of water a day, sometimes 3.5. I have no idea if this cause for concern.

Some of you may be laughing at my paranoia, but I seriously don't know what volume I should be drinking!

Also, does diet play a role with hydration? Like if you eat a lot of high water content foods such as certain fruits or more processed high sodium food should that influence how much water you should drink?

Thanks heaps in advance and apologies in this question is really dumb! haha.

This isn't very scientific, but I'd say to just keep water with you and drink a bit when you start to feel thirsty. If you're not sweating a lot, you're not losing a lot of salt, so I wouldn't worry about it. Just don't drink a large amount just for the sake of drinking if you're not thirsty. On the other hand, don't wait; as soon as you start to feel thirsty, drink something.

Hyponatremia is a result of osmosis. (/geek)
Anyway, basically do what the previous post suggests. Unless you're sweating a lot and/or doing physical work, losing electrolytes probably isn't a very big problem. I'm no doctor, however, so you can take that with a grain of salt. No pun intended.

From trail and error I have found the in any case of what you eat a good standing point is about 1.0 to 1.5 gallons from the time you get up until right before you go to bed, usually an 18hr time span. I know it seems like alot but believe it or not you can be dehydrated on 1 gallon a day depending on your daily activity level of course. People are different but I have downed enough water to drown an entire state and never had a problem exept a full stomach. Sodium absolutely will have a great effect on your hydration. Never ingest refined table salt! Although I do feel that taking in some sea salt every other day is a good thing. A good way to check is that when you go it should be clear not hazy, dark or yellow. The chances of you getting too much water are very slim. A high magnesium mineral water is good too. If you keep up a good amount of water intake combined with your Veg habits your muscles should begin to feel more fluid and it's good to get you blood pressure down too. Mine is 106 over 50.

I would not be concerned unless you drink 5 full water bottles (80 oz.) in 5 minutes, then you should be worried, I did this and my serum sodium level dropped so low I almost went into shock and had to get my electrolytles fixed by an IV in the ER, but you will know if your electrolyes are seriously out of wacked, it is and incredibly crapy feeling, it is hard to think strait, you feel weak and like you will colapse.

3-3.5 liters/ day is not cause for concern.

excess water intake is usually the result of long term activity combined with water intake because you're sweating out salty water and your kidneys will often slow or stop activity.

or the situation that the above poster mentioned, which isn't very common.

I'm fairly inactive (shame on me :brood:) especially in my sedentary job, but I aim for 2 litres a day. I wish I could drink more actually but water makes me gag. This is 2 litres of filtered water, not including the additional 12-24oz of sodium free seltzer water I tend to drink during a day.

True at first it may be very hard to get the water down but eventually if you keep at it you want wanna be without a bottle at your side. It's being discussed about distilled and purified water absorbing minerals from your body. Pure water will extract minerals that it comes in contact with. As the water in the ground runs through it's pathways it leaches minerals and metals from the ground. It's why sodium levels drop from high water intake, salt "sodium chloride" is a mineral. Next time you purchase a bottle of distilled water in a white gallon container, pop the lid and smell the contents at first then after a few days with it 3/4 empty at room temprature smell it again. You will be able to smell the compounds of the plastic container being drawn out. Heat will amplify this process. Although you can use distilled for detoxing. Mineral water is very hydrating. Apollinaris is great and it has a high magnesium content. It's also very relaxing I think, mostly because of the magnesium. High calcium mineral waters, which most are, can cause a tensing reaction due to the 2:1 ratio of cal/mag. Mineral waters are very alkalizing too.

I would not be concerned unless you drink 5 full water bottles (80 oz.) in 5 minutes, then you should be worried, I did this and my serum sodium level dropped so low I almost went into shock and had to get my electrolytles fixed by an IV in the ER, but you will know if your electrolyes are seriously out of wacked, it is and incredibly crapy feeling, it is hard to think strait, you feel weak and like you will colapse.

This is very true - you'll know when you've had enough water. Your body tries to warn you ahead of time. Always pay attention to your body's signals, as each body is different and what's plenty of water for one person might be too much or not enough for another.

Thanks everyone for your replies! I can be paranoid sometimes, lol.

I've heard about pure water being bad because of the mineral thing. I mainly drink tap water. Melbourne apparently has some of the best drinking water in the world so I'm fine with it.

Also, how much is a gallon? I'm from Australia and we don't measure in Gallons! Someone told me 1.5 litres and then I heard 4 litres. So I really have no idea.

Drink when you're thirsty. The end.

A gallon is just under 4 litres. :)

I've always been told you shouldn't wait until you are thirsty to drink. And I, like many others can easily mistake thirst for hunger. Drinking as much as I do now means I don't feel the need to eat as much as I used to!

Thanks vegankat

I've always been told you shouldn't wait until you are thirsty to drink. And I, like many others can easily mistake thirst for hunger. Drinking as much as I do now means I don't feel the need to eat as much as I used to!

Thanks vegankat

by the time you are "thirsty" you are already slightly dehyrated. 3-4 litres/ day is a wonderful amount. just drink regularly and you'll never feel thirsty.

and about the distilled vs. mineral water thing: the only time i would worry about electrolyte (mineral) imbalance due to that is if i were on a water fast. if you're eating a normal diet you'll be getting your salts/sugars from there.

When I go hiking I drink well over 3 liters a day. It really depends a lot on your physical activity, temperature, humidity, etc.

My doctor says you should drink half your body weight (in pounds) in ounces of water every day.I.e., I weigh 150 pounds, so I'm supposed to drink 75 ounces of water a day.

People generally only get hyponatremia if they are on a whole lot of drugs. It almost never happens otherwise.

As for your other question--yes, people who eat low-sodium diets with a lot of water-heavy foods (like fresh raw fruits and veggies) don't need to drink as much water as other folks.

Hmm...in most cases this is all true but I did experience hyponatremia once when I first started running several years ago. I have an extremely low salt diet, not intentionally, just as a matter of fact. I also run and drink a lot of water. I was not in shock but I had some killer painful muscle spasms, which apparently is the more mild manifestation of hyponatremia. I don't know if this always happens first when you have slower onset hyponatremia (as in, hyponatremia NOT a result of drinking 5 liters in 5 minutes!), but I don't think, in general, hyponatremia really sneaks up on you.

Hmm...in most cases this is all true but I did experience hyponatremia once when I first started running several years ago. I have an extremely low salt diet, not intentionally, just as a matter of fact. I also run and drink a lot of water. I was not in shock but I had some killer painful muscle spasms, which apparently is the more mild manifestation of hyponatremia. I don't know if this always happens first when you have slower onset hyponatremia (as in, hyponatremia NOT a result of drinking 5 liters in 5 minutes!), but I don't think, in general, hyponatremia really sneaks up on you.

how far did you run? were you drinking while running?

10 miles, only water. And that was on top of drinking a lot all day (4 liters). I didn't know much, only that people said you should drink a lot of water if you wanted to lose weight (which I did). Whoops. :)

My doctor says you should drink half your body weight (in pounds) in ounces of water every day.I.e., I weigh 150 pounds, so I'm supposed to drink 75 ounces of water a day.


If that's true, I'm drinking waaay too much water everyday, which could explain why I've been suffering from what I believe to be heat exhaustion lately. Does that also include other beverages, like juices or sodas? I've been drinking about 4 litres of water a day, plus watered-down fruit juices and the occassional diet soda, and I weigh around 110.

10 miles, only water. And that was on top of drinking a lot all day (4 liters). I didn't know much, only that people said you should drink a lot of water if you wanted to lose weight (which I did). Whoops. :)

most of the things i've read lately say you really shouldn't drink much, if at all, while strentuously exercising. if you do drink it would be better for it to be an isotonic solution (e.g. gatorade) than water.

To add on the questions--I get dehydrated really easily, and so used to drink gatorade when I was hiking (generally in a 2 nalgenes of water/1 nalgene gatorade ratio). Gatorade is full of gucky stuff & I was wondering if people know a good substitute.

I make a good homemade drink. You can sub anything you want for the flavored part.

8 oz. low-cal juice (I use light limeade or lemonade, usually)
12 oz water
a pinch or two of salt
lemon juice or sometimes a couple ounces of clear diet soda to cover up the salty taste