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"Drink Only to Thirst," Scientists Say: Consensus Statement Addresses Preventable Condition Responsible for at Least 17 Deaths since 1993
[June 30, 2015]

"Drink Only to Thirst," Scientists Say: Consensus Statement Addresses Preventable Condition Responsible for at Least 17 Deaths since 1993


Scientists of the 2015 Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Panel published their consensus statement online today in the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine. CrossFit Inc. sponsored the conference but did not participate in the development of the guidelines.

The 18-page document contains comprehensive hydration recommendations aimed at preventing exercise-associated hyponatremic encephalopathy (EAHE), a condition that causes brain swelling and resulted in at least 17 deaths since 1993. Most recently, high-school football players Zyrees Oliver and Walker Wilbanks died from EAHE in August 2014.

The statement can be downloaded for free here: http://journals.lww.com/cjsportsmed/Fulltext/2015/07000/Statement_of_the_ Third_International.2.aspx.



The consensus panel's recommendations contradict published position stands, lay literature and advertisements that advise people to drink before they're thirsty or consume fluid according to a predetermined schedule.

Key to the "Statement of the Third International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Development Conference, Carlsbad, California, 2015" is the following: "Using the innate thirst mechanism to guide fluid consumption is a strategy that should limit drinking in excess and developing hyponatremia while providing sufficient fluid to prevent excessive dehydration."


The consensus statement is a result of the third International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia (EAH) Consensus Development Conference, held in Carlsbad, California, in February 2015 and involving 17 experts from around the world. Prominent contributors include Dr. Mitchell Rosner (University of Virginia), Dr. Tamara Hew-Butler (Oakland University), Dr. Arthur Siegel (Harvard Medical School) and Dr. Joseph Verbalis (Georgetown University).

About CrossFit

CrossFit Inc. is the developer and provider of the CrossFit® Fitness Program and a recognized worldwide leader in functional fitness. Founded by Greg Glassman and built on the foundations of constantly varied, high-intensity functional movements, education and collaborative competition, CrossFit-brand workouts develop strength and fitness while cultivating community and camaraderie in each of the more than 12,000 affiliated gyms in its global network. CrossFit Inc. is a leading accredited certificate issuer for physical-training professionals worldwide and offers specialty certificate programs in addition to its core curriculum. CrossFit Inc. publishes the CrossFit Journal, promotes physical and cognitive health and fitness through the CrossFit Kids Foundation, and created and operates the CrossFit Games, an annual competition where elite athletes compete to be named the Fittest on Earth™.


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