water... the silent killer

[Roderick Usher]

Woman Dies After Water-Drinking Radio Contest
January 15, 2007

A 28-year-old mother of three died from water intoxication after taking part in a water-drinking contest for KDND (The End)/Sacramento on Friday. The contest, Hold Your Wee for a Wii, involved drinking as much water as you could without going to the bathroom in order to win the much-coveted Nintendo Wii video game console. Contestant Jennifer Lea Strange died after drinking well over a half gallon of water during the Morning Rave program, said the Sacramento Bee.

As part of the contest, participants were each given eight-ounce bottles of water. They had two minutes to drink a bottle, waited 10 minutes, then drank another bottle. Some of them kept drinking for up to three hours. Another contestant, Gina Sherrod, said that a nurse was on the air warning that drinking too much water is dangerous. Sherrod told The Bee that a deejay rebuffed the nurse and that the contestants signed waivers that addressed only publicity issues and made no mention of health or safety concerns.

The CBS television affiliate in Sacramento reported that Strange called a co-worker shortly after bowing out of the contest. She was in tears and said that she felt ill and could not make it to work. Family members later found her unresponsive at home.

John Geary, GM of Entercom Sacramento, which owns KDND, sent an e-mail to The Bee saying, "We were stunned when we heard this news. We are awaiting information that will help explain how this tragic event occurred. Our sympathies are with the family and friends of Jennifer Strange, as they deal with circumstances that are so difficult to comprehend.":eek:

[the_real_linda]

OMG! i read this in the paper today....i didnt know what to make of it....how can they sue it was there choice...no way right but there choice

[XtRaVa]

The radio station should be shut down ;)

[the_real_linda]

i dont know how they could do stuff like that....is it just how far we can push it and be cool and daring...or so they think..........its always funny and cool till someone dies

[crabapple]

Same thing with "extreme" competition and "dare" TV shows...they'll be really popular until one horrible incident occurs. In a way, this is that incident, but it was for a radio show. I suppose pie-eating contests are out now, too.

[newb]

hmmm....a "Strange" case indeed.

very tragic

[XtRaVa]

hmmm....a "Strange" case indeed.


Badum tst! goes the drum kit.

[Roderick Usher]

Sounds like she had a faulty system to begin with. A half gallon of water killed her? Come on. A half gallon is 4 pints.

I'll drink four pints of beer at least once a week and have been known to double that from time to time and I rarely get hungover, let alone ill or close to death.

I understand that you can thin your electrolyte balance by overhydrating, but what was wrong with this woman before the competition started?

Is water that much worse for you than beer?

[BlackSunProductions]

Is water that much worse for you than beer?

Yes it is. :p

[crabapple]

Well, we've finally figured out what the main problem with beer is: It contains water! Too damn much water.

[X¤MurderDoll¤X]

Sounds like she had a faulty system to begin with. A half gallon of water killed her? Come on.

exactly. not the fault of the radio station.

[BlackSunProductions]

Well, we've finally figured out what the main problem with beer is: It contains water! Too damn much water.

Oh, and by the way... cigarettes don't cause cancer, water does :p .

[stygianwitch]

Found this info from a quick google search, first hit http://www.schizophrenia.com/sznews/archives/002417.html had this at the bottom of the page

"This is called hyponatremia and is common when symptoms are untreated or under-treated. To cause hyponatremia, the person has to drink incredible quantities of water, because even with large amounts of water, the body balances electrolytes and remains healthy. "

Although this guy was suffering from Schizophrenia and was on medication

[The STE]

In Advanced Bio for my final project I wrote an article about water, but only ever called it Dihydrogen Monoxide or DHM, and made the argument that it should be banned. Most people agreed.

Check it out:
Dihydrogenmonoxide (also called DHM) is colourless, odorless, has no taste and cannot be filtered. It is one of the most common chemicals used today. It is used in foods, power plants, and animal testing among other uses. It is an additive in sodas and other unhealthy junk foods. It’s even in the water you drink, and since it cannot be filtered, any water-filter device you buy will not get rid of it. It is used almost everywhere, and yet is responsible for countless deaths every year.
DHM is harmful and even fatal in many possibly unavoidable ways. For example, exposure to it in any form can cause severe tissue damage. Accidental inhalation can inhibit respiration and even cause death. Ingestion, too, can be hazardous. Signs that you have recently ingested DHM range from a bloated uncomfortable feeling, chronic urination, body electrolyte imbalance, nausea and even death. Symptoms vary depending on amount of ingestion. Also, once consumption has started, dependency is almost automatic. And once dependency has set in, a lack of DHM is fatal. It is also used illegally in conjunction to drug usage, such as ecstasy and in the growing of marijuana.
But the hazards of DHM are not just to people. Its ecological effects are just as varied and just as harmful. In every theory about global warming and the greenhouse effect, DHM is a major part. It is also a major component in acid rain. In the early 90’s there was an excess of DHM in some midwestern states. This caused damage to plant life, wildlife and property. It is also a major ingredient in harmful pesticides. Once produce has been contaminated by DHM, it is impossible to cleanse it of it. Property damage can range from rotting of wood, lawn damage, rust, and decreased effectiveness of automobile brakes.
But despite all the hazards of DHM, use, production and even selling it are still legal. The government sanctions its use in power plants, allows excess amounts of it to be dumped in rivers and oceans, and vast quantities of it to be stored for later use. When asked, officials said the continued legality of the chemical was for the ‘economical health of the nation’.
DHM should be legal no longer. DHM kills thousands of people each year in the United States alone. By voicing your opinion here, you can help support the banning of DHM.

[stubbornforgey]

It would be like she was drowing.
Understand that they had to hold all that water without going to the toilet.
As it stated ..a nurse warned of the dangers and was rebuffed by the deejay.
Excesive use of anything on a period of time is harmful for some.

[Roderick Usher]

It would be like she was drowing.
Understand that they had to hold all that water without going to the toilet.

Just read up on it and now I know that beer is waaaaaaaaay safer than water (just like every civilization believed up until the mid 19th century)

Death from too much water is about diluting the salt content of the blood. When salt levels fall in an organ, fluids are forced into the organ as an emergency measure, often swelling that organ. When the organ is the brain, trapped in a bony shell, there is nowhere for the tissue to go when it swells. The tissue literally crushes itself against the inside of the skull causing brian damage and possibly death.

[Amalthea_unicorn]

Yes, that should shut down that radio!

[Vodstok]

Yes, that should shut down that radio!

They talked about this on Opie and Anthony this morning. They said the DJs are SO fired, and they would know, because they have been canned twice before.

[Elvis_Christ]

Found this info from a quick google search, first hit http://www.schizophrenia.com/sznews/archives/002417.html had this at the bottom of the page

"This is called hyponatremia and is common when symptoms are untreated or under-treated. To cause hyponatremia, the person has to drink incredible quantities of water, because even with large amounts of water, the body balances electrolytes and remains healthy. "

Although this guy was suffering from Schizophrenia and was on medication

Cheers for that link, interesting reading. I wanted to do the test on there but it was offline.

[Vodstok]

I drink a ton of water in a day, but i also eat, AND i go to the bathroom fairly frequently (id say once every 2 hours or so)

Probably why i dont get sick very often...