Lots of water usually quenches thirst. But sometimes, drinking even more water doesn’t seem to be enough. Drinking constantly all the time but still being thirsty is annoying thirst.
Thirsty people also go to the bathroom frequently. Most adults urinate about 2800ml a day, and thirsty people can urinate up to 15L, depending on how much water they drink and what is causing them to be thirsty.
Treatment options depend on the cause of the illness.
Etiology
Burning thirst is often seen as a symptom of other diseases.
- Diabetes: Ultra-high blood sugar can make patients urinate more. The more often you go to the bathroom, the more likely you are to become dehydrated and thirsty, and thus drink more.
- Diabetes mellitus: Most people think of the pancreas when they hear “diabetes”. It occurs when there are problems with the kidneys or the pituitary gland, which secretes a hormone that helps control the amount of water stored in the body by the kidneys.
- Psychiatric disorders: Some people have an uncontrollable urge to drink water, so they drink all day even when they don’t need to, which is called psychogenic irritability. Psychiatric disorders that cause irritable thirst include.
- Schizophrenia and other personality disorders;
- Mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety;
- Anorexia nervosa.
- Brain injury: Brain injury from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection or other diseases.
Why is it a disease?
Drinking too much water can upset the chemical balance in the body. Normally, people can remove excess water by urinating, but when urination does not keep up with the frequency of drinking, the blood is diluted, which can lead to low levels of sodium in the blood (hyponatremia) and too much water in and around cells.
This condition can damage organs and bones, and can also trigger symptoms such as:
- Headaches;
- nausea;
- abdominal cramps/spasms;
- slow reaction time;
- slurred speech;
- Lack of mental clarity;
- Blurred consciousness;
- spasticity.
When hyponatremia worsens, coma or death may occur.
If extreme thirst and polyuria with these symptoms persist for several days, contact your doctor immediately.
Treatment options
People with diabetes must adjust their treatment plan to better control their blood sugar.
Physicians may prescribe medications or hormones to treat UTIs.
For psychogenic irritability, treatment options include:
- Limiting the amount of water you drink;
- Psychological counseling;
- Medication.