It is important to keep hydrated when running a marathon but did you know that too much water can be a bad thing?
A good rule of thumb is to drink about
one cup of fluid every 20 minutes during a marathon, anything more than that could be dangerous and could cause
hyponatremia — when you have low amounts of sodium in your body. It can be fatal if not treated immediately.
Staying hydrated when exercising in hot, humid weather is really important. However, if you are exercising, at a moderate level, for
longer than an hour you should probably reach for a sports drink.
Unlike water, sports drinks contain electrolytes and carbohydrates to help your body absorb and retain fluid lost during exercise.
Hyponatremia is a condition that occurs from drinking too much water.
Also known as
water intoxication, hyponatremia occurs when the sodium in your blood is diluted by excess water. The body's balance of electrolytes is pushed outside of safe limits, disrupting normal brain function.
While it seems like most of us have a hard time staying hydrated, there are serious, even fatal, side affects to drinking too much water. The condition is called
hyponatremia
Also known as
water intoxication, hyponatremia occurs when the sodium in your blood is diluted by excess water. The body's balance of electrolytes is pushed outside of safe limits, disrupting normal brain function.
