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12/22/2024 09:10:14 pm

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Atlanta Teenager Dies From Drinking Two Gallons of Gatorade at Football Practice

Consuming excessive amounts of water in a short period of time can cause brain swelling and lead to seizures, comas and even death

(Photo : washingtonpost.com)

A high school football player died Monday after reportedly drinking two gallons of water and Gatorade each during practice.

Zyrees Oliver, 17, collapsed at home in Atlanta and had to be airlifted to a nearby hospital. He lapsed into a coma for five days before his family decided to remove from life support.

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Oliver complained of cramps during football practice at Douglas County High School, west of Atlanta, Georgia. Tammy Chavis, Oliver's aunt, said the teenager drank two gallons of water and another two gallons of Gatorade while practicing.

Oliver's mother picked up the teen because he couldn't drive himself home. Later in the day, he collapsed.

Oliver had no brain activity when doctors examined him, saying the teen suffered a massive swelling around the brain.

Nina Oliver, another aunt of the teenager, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "We had a healthy, beautiful, vibrant young man ... Death from over-hydration is rare but also preventable."

Nina Oliver continued that one should just drink less to prevent overhydration but unfortunately, "conflicting and often incorrect advice exists" on how much water to consume after intense activity.

Exercise-associated Hyponatremia is a condition wherein people consume so much fluid after working out that their blood cells swell. Such swelling can cause pneumonia, liver failure, kidney failure and congestive heart failure that could eventually lead to death.

Consuming excessive amounts of water in a short period of time can also cause brain swelling and lead to seizures, comas, and even death.

The condition is rare and there have been instances where one dies of overhydration.

In 2005, Matthew Carrington of Chico State University in California died from drinking too much water during a fraternity initiation. In 2007, Jennifer Lea Strange, 28, died of water intoxication from drinking about two gallons of water during a radio station contest.

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