Water Intoxicaton -- How Much Water Is Too Much?

"My sister who lives in Indiana was pronounced dead yesterday afternoon."

"Her brain swelled to the point that it cut off the blood supply to her brain. All this happened apparently from water toxicity."

"On the Tuesday she drank a lot of water [at one point four bottles in fewer than 20 minutes]. All this caused her brain tissue to start swelling."

"By Tuesday evening she was unconscious in the hospital and never woke up again."

Brother of Ashley Miller Summers

Ashley Summers, of Indiana   (WLFI)

It is called water toxicity, alternately, water poisoning. And relatives of Ashley Miller Summers, 35, a mother of two, claimed that she died of water toxicity after she had consumed too much water including about two litres [four standard 500-mL bottles] within a twenty minute time-frame. When too much water is released from the kidneys diluting electrolytes in the body, it leads to water intoxication which may cause hyponatremia or low levels of sodium present in the blood.

 

Hyponatremia symptoms are inclusive of nausea and vomiting, low blood pressure, headaches, confusion or disorientation, fatigue and muscle cramps. Over the July 4 weekend, the young woman had been out boating, soon becoming severely dehydrated. Which led to a series of events described by her brother, leading her family to the conclusion she had overdosed as it were, on water.

Two months after her death, a report was issued from the Tippecanoe County Coroner that ruled Ashley Summers' death wasn't attributable directly to water toxicity. Carrie Costello, County Coroner, wrote her decision that laboratory tests and analyses along with a forensic autopsy led her to conclude that the young woman died as a result of a combination of heat stroke, alcohol intake, and an electrolyte imbalance. 

"Cerebral edema and herniation with anoxic brain injury due to electrolyte imbalance" described the unfortunate cause of death officially. Drinking too much water in too short a time frame can cause an electrolyte imbalance. However, in Ms. Summers' instance that was demonstrated unequivocally not to have been the cause of her death, the coroner ruled.

The amount of water people require to function in good health on a daily basis varies by individual and in any given situation. Citing research by the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, the Mayo Clinic suggests 3.7 litres for men and 2.7 for women of water intake on a daily basis. The recommendation, it should be noted, is inclusive of fluid derived from a day's food, including any type of drinks as well as plain, potable water. 

Two litres per day is held to be a reasonable goal for most people, under ordinary circumstances.

"Someone said that she drank four bottles of water in that 20 minutes. And I mean, you know, average water bottle is, her bottle of water is like 16 ounces."

"So, that was 64 ounces that she drank in the span of 20 minutes. That’s half a gallon. That’s what you’re supposed to drink in a whole day."

Devon G. Miller

Ashley Summers was on the lake with her husband and two daughters when she began feeling ill. New York Post