"Second Lt. Michael Parros died after being treated for hyponatremia." Anyone have any experience with over hydration?

I never had a personal experience with it my years of service. I have heard of cases where this has happened to others although rare.

Strange as it seems, I've had a family member over hydrate and caused the liver to enlarge...go figure..."everyone" tells or hears, drink plenty of water, well seems that knowledge of listening to your own body kinda fell by the wayside.

I was a paratrooper from '91-94. We spent an August in death valley at NTC where daytime temperatures routinely hit 120. We were forced to hydrate to counter this pressure.

After leaving the service, I continued pursuing physically exhausting activities (multi day alpine climbs, multi day mtn biking, etc). I went to work for REI and came across a company called Hammer Nutrition. They were all the rage amongst endurance athletes so I placed an order for some of their products. They sent a pamphlet they prepared that raised my awareness to the issue of over hydration. I believe I recall a statement in the pamphlet that stated more people dying of over hydration than under. The issue is that you're sweating out all your electrolytes (salts - our black boots were white at the bottom from dried sweat/salt). You then take on a lot of water which further dilutes the ratio of electrolytes to water. Soon, you don't have enough electrolytes to retain your water long enough to let it do its job.

It was a small pamphlet that I believe should be fact checked and if accurate should make its way into Army doctrine.

I just recalled this story to a client a couple days ago as his daughter experienced the condition. He rushed her to the hospital for quick fix but really thanked me for the information and said he thought it should be common knowledge. I agree.

I'll share a couple other lessons I've learned in case you've made it this far... The learned that the pain in my back during that month in NTC wasn't from the 100lb ruck sack but from my kidneys dealing with my dehydration. Consider this next time you're exerting yourself and feel back pain. Also, operating in the dry & cold environments can dehydrate you like extremely hot environments... That mist of air that follows each exhale is moisture leaving your body.

Somehow, I have avoided this. When the forced hydration got beyond ridiculous, I'd start chugging faster than I could swallow, meaning an awful lot of water overflowed and ran down my uniform. I didn't even care if that meant I was sticky with cerasport and MRE drink mixes for the rest of the FTX...

Fair winds and following seas, Soldier.

DOD medical personnel used to be eligible for a course called Operational Emergency Medicine that did detailed education on the recognition and treatment of hyponatremia until political forces shut it down. Before that, you would occasionally get a hyponatremia patient due to someone over hydrating to beat a piss test. A graduate of West Point and Infantry Platoon leader should have known how to hydrate properly. The first day of Ranger School, especially now, is not that difficult. If he was already over hydrated and the medical personnel pushed fluids on him without monitoring him properly, then you can thank the lowering of standards for this soldiers death. A couple of quick, simple lab tests could have verified the correct diagnosis. Heck, even determining his urine output should have been a clue.

Hyponatremia is the most common electrolyte abnormality in the United States, occurring in 3.2–6.1 million persons per year. It is estimated that 75% of patients with hyponatremia require hospitalization.
Educate about the signs and symptoms of hyponatremia and emphasize the importance of contacting the treating clinician or seeking immediate medical attention if signs and symptoms develop
Educate about strategies for maintaining good hydration (e.g., consume sports drinks containing electrolytes in place of plain water prior to, during, and following physical exertion or exercise)

What ever happened to the salt pills the Army made us take in VN. It was hot and humid except at 6pm when it rained...

I don't know about now, but it was actually quite common at MCRD Parties Island in the summer. I went there from July 1 to Sept 27 2002. That was a hot year. Recruits were dropping like flies. Most of them from dehydration, but some from hyponatremia.

As a young soldier, barely post Viet Nam era, you could still find bottles of salt tablets by the water fountain in the barracks. We were discouraged from using them because the tablets swallowed whole tended to cause ulcers. Soldiers had the bad habit of taking them whole instead of breaking them up or chewing them before swallowing the salt; we were told instead to add a little more salt to our food.

As to the condition of over hydration, as an NCO I learn to monitor my soldiers fluid intake and watch for signs of heat injuries. Many times in the field when stationed at Fort Stewart I observed soldiers not maintaining a proper sodium intake. One of the good indicators are the symptoms of heat cramps.