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Submitted by drsuji on 19 March 2016

Can we drink 1/2 liter of water at once many times a day? Will it cause kidney damage? Because one of my frnd said drink less amount of water many times a day, drinking about 1/2 liter may cause sudden increased work to kidneys and it may harm them!!!

Is this right?

If so i want reason in medical terms...

Dr S. Patel

Mon, 03/21/2016 - 12:34

Hi drsuji, usually drinking half a litre of water at one time is not known to cause any damage to the kidney. Water intake of 5 to 6 liters in one go is considered to be very damaging to the kidney and even be life-threatening.

As mentioned above, by Dr Shital, downing too much water in one go damages the kidneys. The kidneys cannot flush it out fast enough. The excess water will be drawn to the regions where salt is higher, leading to swelling.
Also consumption of fluids depends on how active we are. It differs from person to person (2 liters to 3.7 liters/day).
Drinking 8, 8 ounce(240ml) glasses of fluid a day is an easy- to - remember amount in terms of fluid consumption. It is not only water, all fluids count toward the total daily intake of fluids per day.

First a few questions:- Why do you want to take 1/2 L water at a time and several time? During summers, one can easily take such (5-6 L per day in outdoors), but in winter not really (1.5-2L/day). Reason is obvious. Thirsty/ dehydrated etc. If you want to force it down, then reason must be strong. Otherwise it is very fundamentally wrong. It is true that kidney handles water overload by excreting the excess in form of urine (hypovolemia causing vasopressin to subdue and creating diuresis). Kidneys are best known to handle large quantities of water, provided they are in normal state. Any dysfunction can lead to problems viz. oedema, water accumulation in lungs/ abdomen. so, know your reasons to take water in excess. Usual intake at a time is 250-350 ml which may be taken several times a day depending upon body requirements. Your body system (internal milieu) will dictate how much water you need). Hope this answers your inquisitiveness.