Drinking water may make Ecstasy hangover worse

The mild headache, vomiting and lethargy that are sometimes thought of as an Ecstasy hangover may be a warning sign of swelling in the brain. And one of the usual remedies -- drinking water -- will probably make the condition worse. Perhaps dangerously so.

A case report of a young woman treated for hyponatremia -- low levels of sodium in the blood that causes fluid to build in the brain -- was published in the December issue of the Journal of Urban Medicine to alert physicians to the problem.

“People who take the drug tend to dance and sweat a lot, and so they drink a lot of water. At the same time, Ecstasy causes the release of antidiuretic hormone, which causes this extra water to drive down the sodium level in the blood. This causes fluid that normally stays in the bloodstream to go into the brain, causing swelling and interfering with vital brain functions,” says Stephen J. Traub, an author of the report and co-director of toxicology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. Anyone with signs of hyponatremia -- drowsiness, slurred speech, vomiting, headache -- should go to a hospital or call the nearest poison control center.