Brooke Shields has revealed that drinking too much water caused a terrifying seizure that left her foaming at the mouth.
When an excessive amount of water is consumed, especially over a short period of time, it dilutes the sodium in the blood ? in a condition called hyponatremia.
The lower salt content then causes the cells to start to swell. In the brain, this can lead to increased pressure on the skull and neurological problems such as seizures.
Drinking two liters of water a day ? about eight cups ? is essential for keeping the body hydrated (left). But running through this amount quickly could be fatal, experts warn. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) bosses recommend no more than 1.4 liters per hour, about six cups (right)
The 58-year-old actress was just days away from her Caf? Carlyle debut when she hit her head against the wall and suffered a grand mal seizure outside L’Artusi restaurant.
Dr. Stuart Fischer, an emergency room doctor in New York, said it’s possible for drinking too much water to trigger a seizure. Dr. Keith Vossel, a neurologist in California, said she would likely need to stay in the hospital for treatment for a few days
Dr. Stuart Fischer, an emergency room doctor in New York, told DailyMail.com: ‘Seizures can occur with a condition called hyponatremia, where the blood becomes too thinned.
“You wouldn’t drink a small amount of water to trigger an attack.”
‘It can happen on a very hot day, for example when someone is sitting at the table and drinking a lot of juice.
‘But this kind of attack is very rare and I have never seen it happen. These are really very rare.’
DailyMail.com revealed earlier this year how mThe other of the two Ashley Summers from Indiana tragically died after drinking two liters of water in just 20 minutes.
The 35-year-old, feeling dehydrated and wanting to quench her thirst, collapsed and never regained consciousness.
Dr. Keith Vossel, a neurologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, also told this website: ‘A seizure from drinking too much water is possible because it can lower sodium levels in your body. But this is very, very rare.
“You’d have to drink a lot of water to trigger it, probably for at least a few weeks.”
‘I wouldn’t put a number on it (how much water), but it’s recommended that pregnant women drink eight glasses of water a day ? and that’s the upper limit of what would be normal.
“The excess water can gradually lower sodium levels in the blood because there is a maximum amount the kidneys can filter each day (and may not be able to keep up if you consume too much).”
He added: ‘Some people think drinking more water is healthy, but they may drink too much when they aren’t thirsty and go too far. There’s no point in drinking too much water.’
Shields revealed that she was hospitalized in September after suffering a grand mal seizure, in which a person loses consciousness and falls to the ground before their body begins to convulse.
She was just days away from making her show debut at Cafe Carlyle when she “slumped her head against the wall” and suffered a seizure outside L’Artusi restaurant in New York.
Brooke said the grand mal seizure happened because she drank too much water and had low sodium levels. But after eating a lot of chips, she is back to her best
Brooke is now completely healthy again and stars on the digital cover of Glamor Women Of The Year
Speaking for the first time about the ordeal, she revealed that Bradley Cooper rushed to her aid and held her hand in the ambulance as she was taken to intensive care.
Dr. Fischer said she was likely kept in the hospital overnight while doctors checked her blood to make sure her sodium levels returned to normal.
He said it was likely they would wait for the kidneys to lower the water level in her blood rather than perform surgery.
Dr. Vossel said hyponatremia is treated by gradually bringing sodium levels back to normal over several days using an IV.
Both doctors said she was unlikely to suffer any long-term consequences from her ordeal.
Seizures are more common in people with epilepsy, who represent 3.4 million people ? or 1.2 percent of the population.
But they also occur in people who don’t have the condition, with the Cleveland Clinic saying they see about 100 to 200 patients with this every year ? usually between the ages of 20 and 40.
Grand mal seizures are usually caused by epilepsy, but can also be caused by very low blood sugar, low blood sodium, high fever, or stroke.
Doctors say that in most cases, patients who have them have no other disease and do not need treatment.
A grand mal seizure begins when patients experience visual disturbances, taste and smell differences, and feelings of anxiety or deja vu.
Patients then lose consciousness and their muscles stiffen, which can make breathing difficult. The body may then convulse rhythmically, usually for one to three minutes.
The patient then enters a period of confusion, exhaustion and disorientation.