A woman participated in a competition to drink as much water as possible. What happened to her?It's very difficult to consume too much water by accident, yet there have been reported cases of deaths due to this condition.

Many water intoxication cases have been reported in soldiers.

Also known as water poisoning, water intoxication is the disruption of brain function due to drinking too much water.

Drinking a lot of water increases the amount of water in your blood.

This water can dilute the electrolytes in your blood, especially sodium. When sodium levels fall below 135 mmol/L, it is called hyponatremia.

Sodium helps balance fluids between the inside and outside of cells.

When sodium levels drop due to excess water consumption, fluids shifts from the outside to the inside of cells, causing them to swell (2).

When this happens to brain cells, it can produce dangerous and potentially life-threatening effects.

Bottom line: Water intoxication results from drinking too much water. The excess water dilutes blood sodium levels and causes fluids to move inside cells, which then swell.

It's very difficult to consume too much water by accident, yet there have been reported cases of deaths due to this condition.

Many water intoxication cases have been reported in soldiers.

One report concerned 17 soldiers who developed hyponatremia as a result of excess water intake. Their blood sodium levels ranged from 115 to 130 mmol/L, but the normal range is 135-145 mmol/L.

Another report described how three soldiers died due to hyponatremia and cerebral edema. These deaths were associated with drinking 2.5-5.6 gallons (10-20 liters) of water in just a few hours.

The symptoms of hyponatremia can be misinterpreted as those of dehydration. One soldier, who was misdiagnosed as suffering from dehydration and heat stroke, died from water intoxication as the result of repeated oral hydration (3).

Water intoxication also occurs during sports, especially endurance sports. Over-hydration is common in these activities as a means to avoid dehydration.

For this reason, hyponatremia often occurs during major sporting events