Excessive intake of water when sick is harmful, reveal doctors of King’s College Hospital

According to doctors at King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in London, drinking excessive amounts of water can negatively impact on health conditions. Common belief dictates that drinking fluids during sickness is good for the health. While rehydration is important, experts at King’s College Hospital warn that patients should drink only the necessary amount.

Conclusions were drawn after attending to a 59-year-old woman suffering from urinary tract infection. The patient was made to drink a lot of water to treat her condition. However, the woman consumed too much water and developed hyponatraemia. The sodium level in a patient's body drop when there is excessive water intake.

One of the woman's previous doctors recommended that she drink plenty of water in order to “flush out her system,” says the patient. However, consumed too much water, making her feel shaky, vomit a number of times and have difficulties in speaking.

The doctors were able to save the life of the woman but restricted her consumption of water to one litre for 24 hours. They reported a similar case when a woman suffering from gastroenteritis died after developing hyponatremia. According to AAP, the doctors mentioned that excessive intake of fluids can lead to "catastrophic outcomes."

Dr. Imran Rafi, chair of the Royal College of GPs Clinical Innovation and Research Centre (CIRC) said: “This case report highlights that excessive water intake can have important consequences for patients, and this is something that healthcare professionals, and patients, should be mindful of,” as reported by the Guardian.

Doctors recommend drinking six to eight glasses of fluids per day, not particularly limited to water.