From controlling body temperature and flushing out toxins, adequate hydration plays a vital role in our general health and well-being, water is a life essential. However, while dehydration garners significant attention, overhydration, or drinking excessive amounts of water, is a condition that can have serious and sometimes fatal consequences.

Although it may sound bizarre since drinking water is said to be the solution for most health related problems it is important to recognize how much water is considered "too much" or the risks involved with being overhydrated can maintain a healthy balance.

What Is Water Intoxication?

Water intoxication, also termed hyperhydration, water poisoning or water toxemia, develops when an individual drinks much more water than the kidney can excrete. The main function of the kidneys in the human body is the processing and excretion of excess water. However, the human kidneys can process only up to 0.8 to 1.0 liters of water at a time. Drinking an amount that exceeds this may overwhelm the kidneys and put the electrolyte balance out of sync in the human body.

Electrolytes, especially sodium, are essential in maintaining fluid balance within and outside cells. Hyponatremia is the condition when sodium levels fall below 135 mmol/L, resulting from excessive water intake. This causes water to shift into cells, swelling them. In the brain, this can cause severe complications, including coma or even death.

Symptoms of Water Intoxication

The symptoms of water intoxication vary from mild to severe. Early symptoms are often similar to dehydration, which makes self-diagnosis challenging. Common symptoms include:

• Headaches
• Nausea and vomiting
• Muscle cramps or weakness
• Fatigue or drowsiness
• Confusion and disorientation

In more serious cases, water intoxication can cause seizures, loss of consciousness, or swelling in the brain. These complications can be fatal if left untreated.

A notable case occurred in 2007 when a woman participating in a water-drinking contest tragically died after consuming nearly two gallons of water in under two hours. More recently, actress Brooke Shields experienced a grand mal seizure attributed to excessive water consumption.

Causes of Water Intoxication

Water intoxication is rare, but certain scenarios can increase the risk:

1. Sporting Events and Endurance Training

These endurance athletes are prone to water intoxication, especially if they drink large amounts of water without replacing lost electrolytes. Hyponatremia usually happens during long races or marathons as individuals mistake fatigue and muscle cramps for dehydration and continue drinking water in excess.

2. Military Training

Overhydration among military personnel is usually due to severe physical activity in extreme environmental conditions. The total number of hyponatremia cases documented from 2007 through 2022 for the active duty in the United States exceeds 1,600, with a note to this problem on exertion-related overhydration.

3. Mental Health Conditions

Compulsive water drinking, known as psychogenic polydipsia, is linked with some mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and psychosis. People with these conditions tend to drink too much water, causing a hazardous electrolyte imbalance.

4. Drug Abuse

Drugs such as MDMA (ecstasy) raise the body temperature and make people thirsty, and at times, some people tend to drink excess water at events like music festivals. MDMA also leads to urine retention, thus exacerbating the dangers of water intoxication.

How Much Water Is Too Much?

The exact amount of water that causes intoxication varies from one person to another. However, drinking more than 1 liter of water per hour for several hours raises the risk. For healthy individuals, the risk of overhydration is low unless taking part in extreme physical activity or ignoring thirst cues.

Certain medical conditions, such as kidney or liver disorders, can impair the body's ability to process fluids, and even moderate water intake may be harmful. Similarly, certain medications, such as diuretics and antipsychotics, can affect the perception of thirst or fluid regulation.

How Much Water Is Enough?

The widely touted recommendation of eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day has little basis in fact. According to the National Academy of Medicine, a daily total fluid intake is about 15 cups (3.7 liters) for males and 11 cups (2.7 liters) for females, from beverage sources and from food. Usually, about 20 percent of daily hydration comes from foods such as fruits and vegetables.

A better rule of thumb is to listen to your body and drink water based on thirst. Use the color of your urine as an indicator:

• Light yellow urine indicates proper hydration.
• Dark yellow urine may indicate dehydration.

Older adults, whose thirst mechanisms may decline with age, should be proactive about maintaining hydration, especially during illness or hot weather.

Water Intoxication vs. Dehydration

The symptoms of water intoxication—such as headaches, fatigue, and muscle weakness—are similar to those of dehydration. If you are unsure which condition you are experiencing, seek medical attention immediately rather than self-treating with more water.

Preventing Water Intoxication

To avoid the dangers of overhydration:

• Drink water gradually throughout the day rather than consuming large amounts at once.
• Replace lost electrolytes post high-intensity exercise or heavy sweating.
• Consider using sports drinks or salty snacks to help replenish sodium.
• Keep track of fluid consumption during long-duration activities, and do not consume more water than the body is losing in terms of electrolytes.
• If on medications or have specific medical conditions, check with your doctor regarding the safety of drinking water.

For signs of severe water intoxication-including confusion, drowsiness, seizures, and loss of consciousness-customer is advised to seek medical assistance immediately. In the meanwhile, a salty snack would help to temporarily correct low sodium levels.

Hydration is important to health, but overhydration can be a serious risk; the secret is in finding a balance. Drink enough water to satisfy your body, but not so much that it overwhelms your system. Remember, water is life, but moderation keeps it that way.

Hyponatremia (low sodium level in the blood). National Kidney Foundation. 2023.

Water Toxicity. NIH. 2023

Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia: 2017 Update. Front Med (Lausanne). 2017

Update: Exertional Hyponatremia Among Active Component Members of the U.S. Armed Forces, 2007–2022

Heart clips—also referred to as heart valve clips—are part of a minimally invasive medical procedure known as Transcatheter Edge-to-Edge Repair (TEER). Designed to repair leaking heart valves without open-heart surgery, this advanced treatment restores proper blood flow, relieves debilitating symptoms, and helps patients return to their daily lives.

Understanding Valve Leakage and Symptoms

The heart's valves rely on thin flaps of tissue called leaflets to regulate blood flow.

• The mitral valve (located on the left side of the heart) typically has two leaflets.

• The tricuspid valve (located on the right side of the heart) usually consists of three leaflets.

When a valve is leaking, the leaflets fail to close completely, leaving a gap. Blood leaks backward through this opening toward the lungs, increasing lung pressure and directly causing chronic breathlessness and fatigue.

Also read: 100% Blockage At 18, 25% Patients Under 40: On World Heart Day, Cardiologists Reveal An Alarming Heart Attack Pattern

How the Clip Repair Procedure Works

During a Transcatheter Edge-to-Edge Repair, cardiologists repair the valve using a tiny clip delivered through the vascular system:

1. Catheter Access: Guided by continuous echo imaging, doctors insert a catheter into a blood vessel in the groin and navigate it directly to the heart.
2. Targeting the Valve: The catheter goes to the left side of the heart for a mitral valve repair or to the right side for a tricuspid valve repair.
3. Identifying the Leak: Imaging pinpoints the exact spot where the leaflets fail to seal.
4. Deploying the Clip: The doctor positions and deploys the clip across the leaking gap, grasping the two opposing leaflets and pulling them closer together.
5. Evaluating the Seal: Before releasing the clip completely, doctors perform an echocardiogram to confirm that the clip is strongly anchored, that the backward leak is fixed, and that the risk of clip detachment (embolization) is negligible.

Immediate Relief and Long-Term Healing

Once the clip brings the leaflets together, backward leakage stops immediately, allowing the entire volume of blood to pump forward as intended.

• 24-Hour Recovery: Pressure inside the lungs drops rapidly once the leak is sealed. Many patients notice a dramatic improvement in their breathing within 24 hours of the procedure.

• 3 to 6 Month Integration: Over a period of three to six months, surrounding heart tissue naturally grows over the clip (endothelialization), permanently integrating it into the heart structure.

Smooth Hospital Stay and Recovery

Because the procedure is catheter-based rather than open-chest, patient recovery is remarkably swift:

• In-Room Extubation: Patients are taken off the ventilator right on the procedure table.

• Minimal Closure Site: The groin entry point is closed cleanly using specialized sutures (such as ProGlide or a figure-of-eight suture).

• Quick Discharge: Patients typically spend just one day in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) before moving to a standard room, after which they can return home and resume normal daily activities.

Frequent cannabis use may worsen epilepsy-related symptoms, new research. It discovered that raised that people with drug-resistant epilepsy who used cannabis often had more frequent convulsive seizures and sought advanced epilepsy care much sooner than non-users.

Published in Epilepsia, the study analysed health records of 64 adults with drug-resistant epilepsy. It found that frequent cannabis users reached an intensive epilepsy monitoring stage an average of five years after their first seizure, compared to 18 years reported among non-users.

The difference of 13 years is attention-worthy but it must be noted that the study shows an association, not proof that cannabis worsens epilepsy.

Seizures Doubled In Cannabis Users With Epilepsy

Researchers compared 22 people who used cannabis at least 20 days a month to 42 people who did not.

The frequent users reported to have a heavier burden of seizure, one of the symptoms of epilepsy. They had more than twice as many convulsive seizures per year than non-users.

About 91% of frequent cannabis users experienced convulsive seizures, compared to roughly half of the non-users.

Seizures involve stiffening and jerking of the body and loss of consciousness. They constitute medical emergency as they are associated with sudden death in epilepsy.

Also read: Does Cannabis Really Help You Sleep? Experts Say It Is Complicated

What Does Drug-Resistant Epilepsy Mean?

Epilepsy is considered drug-resistant when seizures continue despite appropriate treatment with two antiseizure medications.

People with drug-resistant epilepsy may need to visit specialised epilepsy centres, where doctors can monitor them and recommend changes in medication, surgery, or other treatment options. In this study, frequent cannabis users reached this stage much earlier.

They were also discharged from hospital after taking an average of 3.05 antiseizure medications, compared with 2.21 among non-users.

Also read: Why Can’t Millennials Sleep? The Crisis Keeping An Entire Generation Up At Night

Cannabis & Epilepsy

This was a retrospective study based on health records of a small sample size. There may be other differences between people who used cannabis often and those who did not that could affect the severity of the seizures.

However, researchers were able to establish the timing of cannabis use for 15 of the 22 users. All 15 had started using cannabis before their first seizure, making it less likely that they had simply begun using cannabis to cope with an already existing seizure disorder.

The researchers say larger studies can determine whether cannabis contributes to worsening seizures.

The association between cannabis and seizures is complicated as CBD (cannabidiol) is reported to have beneficial effect on severe epilepsy.

To understand the seeming contradiction, we must understand the distinction between cannabis and purified cannabidiol (CBD).

A purified form of CBD is an approved treatment for certain severe forms of epilepsy. CBD is different from THC, the psychoactive element responsible for the “high” associated with cannabis. Recreational cannabis products may contain high concentrations of THC.

According to the researchers, animal studies suggest CBD can suppress seizures, while THC may have the opposite effect.

Hence, evidence that a specific CBD-based medicine can help certain epilepsy syndromes cannot be used to conclude that recreational cannabis is an epilepsy treatment.

Researchers suggest that THC acts on receptors concentrated in brain regions involved in seizures, raising the possibility that cannabis could influence how brain circuits fire. But this is a hypothesis that needs further investigation.

A stroke changes the life of a person in an instant, making everyday activities like walking, talking, or even holding a cup difficult. But strokes do not always mean these challenges are permanent. Many people recover lost abilities and enhance their lives with timely treatment, proper rehabilitation and continued support.

A stroke occurs when blood stops flowing to the brain or a blood vessel in the brain bursts, cutting off oxygen to brain cells. It can cause weakness or paralysis, speech problems, poor balance, or memory issues, or trouble swallowing, depending on the part of the brain that is affected.

Tips to Support Recovery from Stroke

• Begin rehabilitation immediately after a stroke
• Attend Physiotherapy and speech Therapy sessions regularly
• Take prescribed medications as directed.
• Keep blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol under control.
• Have a healthy and nutritious diet to restore energy.
• Stay physically active
• Seeking emotional and psychological support

Also read: 100% Blockage At 18, 25% Patients Under 40: On World Heart Day, Cardiologists Reveal An Alarming Heart Attack Pattern

The Treatment Journey:

Timely Medical Care Makes a Big Difference

Patients who reach the hospital within a certain time may be eligible for clot-busting medications or clot removal procedures. These procedures restore blood flow, reduce brain damage and increase the likelihood of faster recovery.

Rehabilitation starts immediately after stroke

Stroke care extends beyond emergency treatment. Rehabilitation begins within 24 hours after a stroke when the patient is medically stable. A team of specialists, including neurologists, physiotherapists, and speech therapists, works together to help the patient regain function, rebuild confidence and return to everyday activities as soon as possible.

Physical Therapy to Rebuild Body Movement and Independence

When a stroke happens, muscles on one side of the body may become weak or paralysed, affecting the patient's strength, balance, coordination, posture, and walking.

Physiotherapy consists of a series of exercises, muscle training and mobility techniques that enhance mobility of the body and improve functional independence. Many patients can perform activities with greater ease with regular rehabilitation.

Also read: Weekend Workouts: Why Sudden Intense Exercise May Put Stress on Your Heart

Enhancing communication and cognitive skills

After a stroke, some patients have problems talking, speaking, swallowing, remembering or concentrating. Speech and language therapy are used to help with communication and safe swallowing, and cognitive rehabilitation is used to support memory, attention, reasoning and problem solving. These therapies assist patients in re-entering the workforce, social circles and independent living more smoothly.

Modern Rehabilitation Methods for Better Recovery

Advances in rehabilitation have expanded the range of therapies available to support stroke recovery.

Techniques like robot-assisted rehabilitation, functional electrical stimulation (FES), virtual reality-based therapy, constraint-induced movement therapy, balance training systems and computer-assisted gait training complement conventional rehabilitation very well. These methods provide repetitive, targeted exercises that promote functional improvement in the brain and body.

Managing Ongoing Challenges

After a stroke, some patients have muscle stiffness (spasticity), chronic pain or trouble walking or moving their hands. They are treated with medications, injections and continued rehabilitation therapy.

Recovery from a stroke is much better with proper rehabilitation. While some regain most of their abilities, others continue to need support, making patience and consistency just as important as medical help. The right care at the right time makes a big difference in rebuilding your life.

By Dr. (Lt Gen) CS Narayanan, VSM, Chairman - Manipal Institute of Neuro Sciences, Manipal Hospital, Dwarka, New Delhi