Actually, you will eat far less food if you drink a lot of water. All your stomach knows is that SOMETHING is filling your belly, making you desire less... it doesn't care if it is water or donuts.
And the idea of thinking you may drink "too much" water is almost ludicrous. I sometimes drink two to three gallons a day. Most people drink a measly three or four glasses, at the most. One of the best things you can do for your health is to drink plenty of water.
According to webmd.com AND other medical websites, its NOT ludicrous. Here's an article from webmd, proving my point that too much water CAN be fatal for you.
You've heard it a million times. When it's hot outside or you're exercising, drink lots of water. It's how your body stays hydrated.
But can there be too much of a good thing? In rare cases, drinking an extreme amount in a short time can be dangerous. It can cause the level of salt, or sodium, in yourblood to drop too low. That's a condition called hyponatremia.It's very serious, and can be fatal. You may hear it called water intoxication.
How much would you have to drink? An enormous amount. Gallons and gallons of water. "These are very isolated cases, and this is extremely rare," says Sharon Bergquist, MD. She's an assistant professor of medicine at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. "More people by far and away are dehydrated, [rather] than having a problem with over-hydration."
[h=3]What Is Water Intoxication?[/h]If you drink a bottle of water here and there when you
exercise or when you're hot, you’ll be fine. Where you run into problems is drinking way too much too fast. "Young, healthy people don’t normally [get hyponatremia] unless they drink liters and liters of water at once, because your
kidneys can only [expel] about half a liter at most an hour," says Chris McStay, MD. He's an emergency medicine doctor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. "You're drinking more than your
kidneys can pee out."
[h=3]Causes[/h]The issue boils down to sodium levels. One of sodium’s jobs is to balance the fluids in and around your cells. Drinking too much water causes an imbalance, and the liquid moves from your
blood to inside your cells, making them swell. Swelling inside the
brain is serious and requires immediate treatment. Sometimes babies can have issues. Their bodies are so tiny that they can't handle lots of water. That's why doctors say infants should drink only milk or formula.
Then there are the cases like hazing rituals and publicized contests where people drink large amounts on purpose.
[h=3]Symptoms and Treatment[/h]The warning signs of hyponatremia look a lot like the symptoms of
heatstroke and exhaustion. You might be hot, have a
headache, and just feel crummy. Other early symptoms can include
diarrhea,
nausea, and
vomiting. "If you see someone like that, pull them aside, put them in the shade, and talk to them," McStay says. It’s often hard to tell the difference, he says, between water intoxication and
heat exhaustion, “unless you know they drank 6 gallons of water."
If you don't get help right away, the condition can quickly lead to swelling in the
brain,
seizures, and
coma. Get to an emergency room as soon as you can. Doctors there can inject concentrated salt water to ease swelling and reverse problems.
[h=3]Advice and Prevention[/h]The best way to prevent hyponatremia is to make sure you don't drink way more than you sweat out. But that's hard to measure.
Experts say drink until you don't feel thirsty, then stop. Or check things out when you go to the bathroom.
"I tell people to look at your pee," McStay says. "If it's dark, you're probably dehydrated, and you should drink. But you wouldn’t want to be peeing, peeing, peeing, and it's clear. Then you're peeing out almost clear water and you have a problem." Sometimes, it helps to have sports drinks instead of plain water if you know you'll be working hard. Sports drinks have sodium and other
electrolytes. But too much liquid of any kind too fast can cause issues.
We’ve always been told to stay hydrated while exercising, Bergquist says. “But there's a fine line. It's important to listen to your body. If you're pushing fluids beyond the point it's comfortable, it's a sign it's time to stop drinking."