"Water Fasting Diet Can Lead to Death from Water Intoxication"...Health Authorities Warn

Water Intoxication: Edema and Seizures, Severe Cases May Lead to Death
Following Water Intoxication, Risks of Amenorrhea and Osteoporosis Also Increase

Amid the rising popularity of the 'water fasting diet' among teenagers on social networking services (SNS), health authorities have warned that the side effects of water fasting can lead to death.

Actor Jangwoo Lee's 'water fasting' diet appearance revealed last year. [Image source=MBC 'I Live Alone' broadcast screen capture]

On the 13th, the Korea Health Promotion Institute stated, "Posts attempting weight loss through water fasting are spreading on SNS and video platforms, so caution is needed regarding inaccurate health information." The institute added, "Extreme weight loss through water fasting can cause serious harm to the human body and various side effects," explaining that "a representative side effect is 'water intoxication.'"

Water intoxication is a fatal poisoning condition caused by excessive water intake in a short period, which lowers blood sodium concentration and increases intracellular water, leading to swelling, seizures, and potentially death. The institute also pointed out that the weight loss from drinking only water may include muscle mass, which reduces basal metabolic rate, making it an ineffective weight loss method.

Recently, posts reviewing the 'water fasting' diet have been actively shared on SNS, especially among teenagers. These posts often say things like, "During water fasting, dizziness is harder to endure than hunger," and "I was diagnosed with a lymph node problem at the hospital, but I can't stop water fasting." One teenage girl attracted much attention by sharing her know-how after losing weight from 66 kg to 49 kg in a month without exercise through water fasting.

The water fasting diet became even more famous after actor Lee Jang-woo appeared on MBC's 'I Live Alone' last year, fasting for three days while consuming only water and salt, losing 4 kg. The background for teenagers engaging in such extreme dieting is attributed to the pervasive 'appearance-oriented culture' in our society. Excessively thin bodies become ideal goals through SNS, leading teenagers with low self-esteem to obsess over dieting to achieve a sense of accomplishment through a thin physique. However, experts emphasize that the side effects of water fasting diets during adolescence include not only water intoxication but also amenorrhea, osteoporosis, eating disorders, and various other problems, negatively affecting physical and mental development.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.