By Bill Carey
EMS1
MONTICELLO, Ind. — An Indiana family is talking about the death of a family member to help raise awareness of water toxicity.
Ashley Summers, 35, spent the July 4th holiday at Lake Freeman near Monticello with her husband and two daughters. Summers’ family said she was feeling dehydrated and acting like she could not drink enough water. They said she also felt lightheaded and had a headache, WRTV reported.
“Someone said she drank four bottles of water in 20 minutes. I mean, an average water bottle is like 16 ounces, so that was 64 ounces that she drank in 20 minutes,” Summers’ brother Devon Miller told local news. “That’s half a gallon. That’s what you’re supposed to drink in a whole day.”
Summers lost consciousness and was transported to IU Health Arnett Hospital where doctors said she later died from water toxicity.
“There are certain things that can make someone more at risk for [water toxicity], but the overall thing that happens is that you have too much water and not enough sodium in your body,” Dr. Blake Froberg, a toxicologist with IU Health, said.
Symptoms of water toxicity include feeling unwell, muscle cramps and soreness, nausea and headaches, Froberg said. He recommended people consume drinks that have electrolytes, sodium and some potassium.