Potomania Or Excessive Fluid Consumption

In general terms, it is recommended to ingest between 1 and 2 liters of water a day for the proper functioning of the body, although this is subject to multiple factors such as: metabolism, the amount of sport performed, the time of year, the life stage, the amount of vegetables and fruit eaten …

What happens when you drink more water than necessary? Read on to learn what potomania is. This pathology can condition the life of those who suffer it in a negative way, so an early diagnosis is necessary to solve it when before.

What is potomania?

Potomania is the desire to consume large amounts of fluids, such as water (polydipsia) or alcoholic beverages (dipsomania). This psychological problem is largely ignored for presenting symptomatic pictures similar to other eating disorders.

Water addicts drink up to 5-8 liters of water a day and usually drink without thirst. Apparently, compulsive water drinkers do not necessarily repeat the behavior based on health, but rather on the status they acquire as a “healthy person”. It is a habit present in societies that suffer from abundance.

There is also potomania with beer. It is an infrequent cause of potomania characterized by the consumption of large quantities of beer; typically more than 15 beers in a relatively short period of time.

In addition to being a new addiction that affects a significant segment of the population, the problem with this behavior is that it can affect health,  according to a study published in the journal Cureus .

Causes

The hypothalamus is a brain region that, among other functions, is responsible for maintaining the amount of water necessary for the body. Therefore, it is also in charge of warning of the lack of fluid and emitting the thirst signal.

An alteration in the working mechanism of the hypothalamus could cause episodes of potomania (neurological potomania). Experts agree that this is quite strange, which is why they associate the disorder with a psychiatric imbalance.

The factors that can trigger the appearance of this disorder are:

• Emotional disorders, such as anxiety disorders, personality disorder, delusions, and hysterical symptoms.
• Alterations in the functioning of the hypothalamus, since, as we have said, the hypothalamus is the part of the brain responsible for the perception of thirst.
• Chronic kidney disease
• Organic disorders or hormonal pathologies, such as diabetes insipidus, one of whose symptoms is precisely polydipsia or excess thirst.

Consequences

The human body tries to maintain constant the volume of water and the concentration of electrolytes necessary for the functioning of all organs.

Excess water causes the body to dilute essential minerals such as potassium, sodium, and magnesium faster than usual. This causes cramps, fatigue, and slowness in performing simple cognitive tasks.

If your water intake continues to increase, you are likely to see massive loss of potassium that will trigger mainly heart difficulties.

On the other hand, the kidneys are also organs affected by excessive fluid consumption. Taken to the limit, they can cause hyponatremia, as stated by research published in Nephrology . This pathology is characterized by the decrease in sodium levels in the blood, which can cause seizures.

Treatment of potomania

At first, diuretics can be administered to the patient. These serve to increase the excretion of fluid by the kidneys, which helps to increase the level of sodium and alleviate symptoms.

However, to eradicate the problem, the treatment must be different depending on the cause that originated it. It usually begins by restricting fluid intake to no more than a liter and a half a day.

In the event that it occurs due to mental illnesses, the treatment should be psychotherapy, accompanied, in some cases, by psychotropic medication.

If the disorder appears as a consequence of the use of drugs, these should be replaced by other drugs that do not cause this side effect and that demonstrate greater safety.

Therefore, if you feel a strong desire to drink, and especially if you are not motivated by thirst, heat or physical activity, you should consult with your doctor to find the origin of the problem and prevent it from going to more.

Potomania, a disease of excess

As you have seen, potomania is caused by a psychological or hormonal imbalance that conditions excessive fluid consumption. This situation can cause health problems when the minerals that are part of the human body are diluted. For this reason, an early diagnosis of the disorder is essential to prevent the progression of the disease. In this way, greater evils that could be fatal will be avoided.