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Can you Overwork your Kidneys by Drinking Too Much Water?

by Vinay Rawat Marketing Specialist

How does drinking too much water overload you?

Everything when it crosses the level “over” commences working opposite to its nature and causes problems. Similarly, giving your body too much water will not keep you safe and healthy for long. Overdrinking of water, mainly in kidney disease, is more perilous than the disease itself.

Every living being needs water for its body cells to function correctly. Unfortunately, too much water causes water intoxication and severe health consequences.

This blog covers the following topics to understand how drinking too much water overloads you.

Headline 1: What is overhydration?

What causes overhydration or who is at risk of developing overhydration?
What are the side effects of overhydration?
How can you prevent yourself from over drinking?

Heading 2: What is healthy water drinking?

What are the signs that your water intake is good?
What are the benefits of healthy water drinking?
How can you push yourself to drink enough water?

Let’s begin the blog with heading one.

What is overhydration?

Overhydration is a condition to describe that your fluid intake is more than your needs. This situation also defines that your kidneys are unable to remove the fluid. Drinking too much water or any obstruction in removing fluid can cause water levels to build up. Yes, you are right. This condition dilutes some essential substances in your body.

How does excess water in the body overload your kidneys?

Kidneys filter blood, maintain the fluid level and nutrients in the body. When drinking water in excess, you put pressure on your kidneys to work more efficiently. This pressure damages the kidneys and their nephrons. Then comes the problems like kidney malfunction, high creatinine, kidney pain, and kidney failure.

What causes overhydration or who is at risk of developing overhydration?

78–100 ounces means around 9–13 cups of fluids every day is enough for an average person. Yes, the need for water varies with age, sex, weather, activity level, and overall health. Hence there is no exact level of water your body needs. Your fluid intake also depends on situations like extreme heat, significant activity, and illness with fever.

Now, it’s your turn to know the causes of overhydration or who are at risk of overhydration.

People who run marathons and triathlons often drink too much water before and after the task.
People who eat sugar and extremely spicy foods also put themselves at risk of overhydration.
Athletes’ risks of overhydration are higher than an average person.
Some conditions and medicines are allowing your body to drink water more than you usually require.

No, it is not like the people connected to the above things are at risk of overhydration. The following are the health problems that put you in danger of overhydration.

Congestive heart failure (CHF)
Liver disease
Kidney disease
Anaemia
Insomnia

What are the side effects of overhydration?

What are the side effects or you can proclaim what are the symptoms of overhydration?

Here are some of the prevalent side effects of drinking too much water.

Nausea and vomiting
Headache
Confusion or disorientation

Uncontrolled overhydration is potent to perilously decrease sodium in your blood and cause the following severe problems.

Muscle weakness, spasms, or cramps
Seizures
Unconsciousness
Coma
Fluid retention
Kidney failure

How can you prevent yourself from overhydration?

Rules and regulations do not make you weak. But, they power your mind to neglect and perform the actions vital for your wellbeing. Here you will find the two tips to prevent yourself from overdrinking. Yes, you can apply these tips to prevent yourself from doing anything that causes harm to your body.

Make a list of what is essential or affordable to neglect for your health. For instance, if you can start your day without tea, it is good. Similarly, count how many glasses of water you finished per day. For that, consult a doctor, ask him questions related to your body’s fluid needs and importance. Then, make a list that in a day you can drink this many cups of water.
Buy a bottle, a bottle of aluminium or glass, try to carry it everywhere you go except for the washroom and bathroom. Before buying a bottle, measure how many cups of water it can hold. According to the number of cups of water you need in a day, estimate how many water bottles you should drink in a day.

Heading 2 — What is healthy water drinking?

Generally, from childhood, we heard from our parents, grandparents, some friends, or relatives that around 3 litres of water intake for a day is healthy. However, time has changed so do the people and their bodies. Now, we do 9 to 5 jobs, sitting jobs, which has made the organs vulnerable. In this case, new adults can hardly digest or adjust with 2.5 litres of fluids per day.

In addition, we advise you to communicate with a specialist to understand your body’s fluid needs. So, you can create a list of tools you need per day to fulfil your water intake task.

What are the signs that your water intake is good?

There is a thing that we have done to answer this question. The dustbin of a house indicates many things about the house owner or the person who lives there. Similarly, your urine is the dustbin that says a lot of things about your body.

For instance, foam in your urine indicates that you are passing much protein, and maybe you have any kidney disease.

Let’s learn this point with one more example: if your urine is dark red and you feel irritation in passing it, it indicates urinary tract infection. UTI is one of the signs and causes of dehydration and kidney infection.

If you are passing lemonade or pale yellow colour of urine, you are healthy. On the other hand, if your urine is darker, you need more water. On top of this, colourless urine is dangerous because it is a sign of an overhydrated body.

What are the benefits of healthy water drinking?

Support nutrients and oxygen to travel to the body cells
Require to eliminate bacteria from the bladder
Make the digestion easy and smooth
Keep the movement of waste from out of the body to prevent constipation
Very important to maintain the average level of blood pressure
Prevent palpitation, keep the heartbeat stabilized
Maintain the smoothness and life of the joints
Create a healthy circle around the organs and tissues to protect them
Regulate body temperature to prevent problems related to it
Sustain electrolyte (sodium) balance

How can you push yourself to drink enough water?

Here we will not use many words because the tips are straightforward and almost familiar.

Create a reminder on your cell phone to inform yourself that the body needs water.
Buy a water bottle and cry it wherever you go.
Try new drinks like lemon soda, cold soda, ice tea, strawberry shake, mojito, etc., to encourage your tongue to drink more fluid.
Remind the people who are close to you to remind you to drink water.
Make 8 points on your desk. Each point is for a glass of water. Each time you drink a glass of water, erase one point.

These are the tips you can use to stay hydrated or prevent overhydration. The last tip is one of my favourites because it’s unique and supportive.

Conclusion

Water is an essential part of the body. If we drink enough water then our body works well. In case our body water levels decrease and increase then we are facing a kidney-related problem in our life. In the above mentioned any problem, you have then consult your doctor or you can contact us. We are specialists in Ayurveda treatment for kidney problems.

Useful link related to CKD:

Can you Live With 10 Percent Kidney Function?

Can CKD Always Lead to Kidney Failure?

Ayurveda Treatment for Chronic Kidney Disease

What is an eGFR Blood Test?

What is Creatinine?

How is CKD Chronic Kidney Disease Diagnosed?

Is your Kidney Leaking Protein?

What Color is Urine When your Kidneys are Failing?

Management of Chronic Kidney Disease by Ayurveda

Kidney Disease N Treatment Information

Chronic Kidney Disease Treatment in Ayurveda