Dealing with edema (fluid retention)

I’ve been feeling pretty swollen over the last few days. Honestly, I think my body is just holding onto way too much water.
I’m drinking about two liters of water a day, keeping the coffee to a maximum of two cups, eating healthy, and running regularly. Weight isn't an issue, my blood pressure is fine, and it’s definitely not PMS...

Could this be caused by a vitamin deficiency or something similar?

Why don't you go get your kidney function checked out for once?

Stop drinking two liters of water every single day. 😵

It’s just one of those tired myths pushed by every "lifestyle magazine" out there. Sure, the human body needs hydration, but people always seem to forget that we get a significant amount of our fluid intake from food—between the water content in what we eat and the metabolic water produced during cellular energy reactions. It's basic biology.

Also, maybe go get your kidneys checked out as a precaution. 🙂

Walter Fowler6 said:I've been feeling pretty swollen lately. I honestly think my body is just holding onto way too much water.
I'm drinking about 2 liters of water a day, maybe two coffees tops, eating healthy, running regularly—it's not like I'm struggling with weight or high blood pressure, and it definitely isn't PMS...

Could this be caused by some kind of vitamin deficiency?

Keep up with the water intake but try cutting out the salt... seriously, ditch anything salty because sodium is notorious for making you retain fluid... and honestly, you should probably get your kidneys checked out too... though, I have a feeling even your bladder would be acting up if the kidneys were the culprit here. Look, sometimes the body holds onto water simply because it feels like it needs more 😁... just keep drinking that water...

Walter Fowler6 said:I’ve been feeling pretty swollen over the last few days. I have a hunch my body is just holding onto way too much water.
I’m drinking about two liters of water a day, keeping the coffee to a maximum of two cups, eating healthy, running regularly, and I don't deal with weight issues or high blood pressure—plus, it's definitely not PMS...

Could this be caused by some kind of vitamin deficiency?

Are you on any birth control? That could definitely be one of the culprits, along with some kind of hormonal imbalance.
But honestly, the other option—which might even be more likely—is something involving your kidneys.

Thanks for all the input 🙂
I've always drank water in these amounts; my body just demands it.
I'm not on any birth control.
It really could be my kidneys, though I don't typically deal with pain and my urine looks fine... 🤷

Walter Fowler6 said:Thanks for the input. 🙂
I've always drank this much water; it’s just what my body demands.
I don't take any birth control.
It really could be kidney-related, though I don't have any pain and my urine looks normal enough... 🤷

Try taking some Bayer Aspirin. It thins the blood, which improves circulation, and better circulation means better lymphatic drainage. You can pick it up over the counter. It runs about $6.75, and you should take it after lunch so it doesn't hit your stomach as hard as Aspirin. My late mother was constantly dealing with edema, and that was the one thing that actually helped her.

Walter Fowler6 said:I've been feeling pretty swollen lately. I think my body is just holding onto a lot of water.
I drink about two liters of water a day, limit myself to two coffees max, eat healthy, run regularly, and I don't have issues with weight or high blood pressure. It's definitely not PMS either...

Could this be caused by a vitamin deficiency?

I've noticed the exact same thing... my ankles were especially swollen this past Sunday and Tuesday. My inflammation markers are up, and there's some bacteria in my urine, so I'm just waiting on the culture results now to see what's going on.
Could the changing weather be causing this?😕

Honestly, we really need some actual moderators on health forums to step in and stop the spread of total misinformation... Like that nonsense about drinking too much water. 🙄 Look, just remember—you can't really drink too much water. In plain English: your kidneys will just flush out any excess immediately. There’s basically no such thing as a water overdose (unless you're running something like the Boston Marathon and chugging more than 3 liters mid-race).

As for "water retention," you've always got to check your liver and kidney function first. If those look good, then you can move on to other stuff.

Here are the tests I’d suggest:

For the liver: total blood proteins (albumins, globulins, etc.), plus AST, ALT, ALP, and GGT.
If someone is paying out of pocket and trying to save a buck, just checking albumins, AST, and ALT is usually enough to get a baseline.

For the kidneys: microalbuminuria (from a 24-hour urine sample) and creatinine clearance. Those are pretty much the gold standard for accuracy.

If any of those markers are off, that's when you dig deeper. I recommend these specifically because they give a doctor (who actually knows what they're doing) a ton of useful data, and all in all, they're cheaper for the patient. For instance, a standard lab test for protein in urine—which is what most general practitioners run—won't catch microalbumin, which is often one of the earliest warning signs for diabetes or kidney failure. An incompetent doctor won't even think to order a microalbuminuria test until things have already gone south.

Now, if the liver and kidneys are totally fine, and you're staying active (or at least walking a lot) and eating right (plenty of fruit, veggies, and water), then the issue is likely vascular—basically, weak vein walls. That's usually treated with high doses of bioflavonoids (like Daflon—you might have to hunt that down since it isn't always sitting on the shelf at your local CVS). It's all-natural, and honestly, it's the top recommendation for basically any kind of chronic venous insufficiency, whether it's hemorrhoids, swollen legs, or whatever else.

p.s. I'm a med student.

^^Look, there’s actually a real risk of water intoxication out there. You have to drink an insane amount—like, way too much. It messes with your electrolytes and can literally kill you. It's happened before. But honestly, trying to pull that off is pretty difficult.

So, I heard about this athlete who actually died from water intoxication. Basically, she was using performance enhancers and knew a drug test was coming up, so she tried to flush her system by chugging massive amounts of water... osmosis, electrolytes, all that science stuff... and it ended up killing her.

Don't go trying to scare us with all this water talk because those extreme cases—well, they’re just... extreme! It’s not like that happens to us regular "water-drinkers." I mean, I knock back about 2 liters of water on an average day, and even when I overdo it and drink more than that, I’m still perfectly fine... honestly, I just don't feel like it sometimes, you know? It gets a bit boring after a while, so what am I supposed to do?

Notable cases

* On January 12, 2007, Jennifer Strange—a 28-year-old mom of three living in Rancho Cordova, California—was found dead in her house. This happened just hours after she tried to win one of Nintendo's Wii game consoles in KDND 107.9 "The End" radio station's "hold Your Wee for a Wii" contest. The whole thing involved chugging massive amounts of water without being able to pee. No criminal charges were filed, but The Federal Communications Commission Has launched its own investigation to determine if The station violated The terms of its operating license.
* Back on October 12, 2002, little 3-year-old Rosita Gonzalez passed away from water intoxication. Her babysitter, Nancy Gayoso, had forced her to drink three quarts of water over a four-hour window as a punishment. Nancy Gayoso was actually arrested and charged with first-degree murder on March 10, 2003. She was deemed unfit to stand trial in both 2004 and 2005, but was finally found competent on March 26, 2007.
* Then there was Leah Betts[10], who died on November 16, 1995. She took an ecstasy pill at her 18th birthday bash and ended up drinking way too much water. It was a huge story across the United States, though most people focused on the dangers of ecstasy and totally missed the fact that water intoxication was the real killer.
* In a really high-profile fraternity hazing incident, four guys from the Chi Tau (which used to be Delta Sigma Phi) house AT California State University, Chico, pleaded guilty to forcing 21-year-old student Matthew Carrington to gulp down massive amounts of water. They made him do it while he was doing exercises in a freezing cold basement as part of their initiation rites on February 2, 2005. Sadly, he collapsed and died from heart failure caused by water intoxication.
* On September 12, 1999, Michael J. Schindler, a basic trainee in The Air Force, died from heat stroke, which was made much worse by water intoxication. This happened just two days after he fell seriously ill during a 5.8-mile march. Because of this tragedy, The Air Force actually changed how they train recruits.
* There are a few other notable deaths linked to water intoxication, including Andy Warhol, Anna Wood, [13] 2002 Boston Marathon runner Cynthia Lucero, [14] and Washington, D.C. police officer James McBride.[15]

copperrider20 said:Notable cases

Look, we're talking about EXTREME scenarios here...
Honestly guys, just drink your 2 liters of water DAILY and you'll be totally fine...
..1.. don't go chugging it every single hour..
2. Or, you know, just go pee when you gotta go—don't try to hold it in...
3. And most importantly: skip the EX, then you won't even have to worry about overdoing the water intake every sixty minutes.
..thanks

Walter Fowler6 said:I've been feeling quite bloated over the last few days. I suspect my body is just retaining a lot of water.
I drink about two liters of water a day, limit myself to a maximum of two coffees, eat a healthy diet, run regularly, and don't have any issues with weight or high blood pressure. It isn't PMS either...

Could this possibly be caused by a vitamin deficiency?

Dear Walter Fowler6, you didn't mention how old you are. Personally, I don't think age necessarily has anything to do with fluid intake. For my part, I have been struggling with these exact sensations since I was twenty-five, which means I've been dealing with this for over a decade now. In my case, it isn't just swollen joints; it's my stomach and this overwhelming sense of total bloating. I have sought out all sorts of specialists and undergone countless tests because it can make me feel absolutely miserable, especially during PMS or when there is a full moon, yet doctors can never find a physiological cause or any underlying disorder. On ultrasounds, they often note "some free fluid in the abdominal cavity," but it never seems to look like anything clinically concerning. I feel terrible, even though the doctors insist nothing is wrong. I suppose I've just learned to live with it, treating it as my version of a normal state. It used to torment me for years—suddenly feeling completely swollen, as if my body were expanding and trying to burst out of its own skin. It’s entirely possible that it's something psychosomatic. Interestingly, over the last few years since I gave birth, both the frequency and the intensity have diminished significantly. It still happens, but not nearly as much as before. I must admit, I haven't found a cure...

This could actually be heart-related, so you should definitely get your blood pressure checked. If your pressure is running high, there's a good chance it's your heart acting up.

Coincidentally, taking medication for hemorrhoids actually helped me because they have a slight diuretic effect. That ended up lowering my blood pressure and helping with the swelling automatically. Once I stopped taking them, the symptoms came right back... at the end of the day, it's likely your heart—everything stems from that—or maybe your kidneys.

Look, "fluid in the abdomen" is often the first red flag for some really serious issues, like liver cirrhosis or even certain types of cancer that might take a year or two to fully manifest. Pay the money for a specialist and go get a THOROUGH medical workup. Trust me, nobody just has "random fluid in their belly" out of nowhere... I’m telling you this from personal family experience; that’s exactly what we were told. And then a girl, only 28, passed away. I don't want to scare you, but ignore their quick fixes and keep pushing until you find out what's actually going on.

Amy Long19 said:These are extreme outliers...
Look, just drink 2 liters of water a day and you'll be fine..
..1..not chugging it every hour..
2. Or honestly, just go when you gotta go. Don't hold it in...
3. And most importantly: don't take EX, and you won't have to worry about overcompensating with water every sixty minutes.
..thanks

Exactly, those are extreme cases. (extreme)

But let's be real, you don't actually need to force down 2 liters of liquid every single day. That’s just a total myth. You need to hit that 2-liter mark overall, but you get plenty of that through your food (moisture and metabolic water) along with your actual drinks.

Man, I’ve dropped so much weight lately, but now whenever I eat even a slightly heavy meal, I bloat up like a freaking balloon... it’s wild. I can literally see the scale jump by like 9 pounds in a single day. I’m guessing it’s all because of my diet and probably not getting enough protein, so I’m definitely going to start fixing that ASAP. But hey, I was wondering, is there actually any kind of medication or just some pills that can help with this bloating stuff? I'm heading to see my doctor tomorrow to get some professional advice and see what they think...

? Are you really gaining 4 kg in a single day? And what kind of edema are we talking about here? It’s highly unlikely you'd be dealing with kwashiorkor under our current circumstances...