Hi, everyone. I started on the atkins diet a week ago and all seems to be going well except that I am so thirsty all the time. I am drinking plenty of water, I'd say a bit more more than a gallon a day, though tomorrow I will make sure I measure the exact amount I am drinking per day to be sure.
The problem is that I have bouts of extreme thirst and dryness in my mouth, and though I drink and drink it only disappears somewhat...it is much worse at night, when I find myself waking up parched, to drink water I have placed on my nightstand, several times a night.
Is this unusual or a cause for concern? Has anyone else experienced this?
I have looked at many posts that emphasize drinking lots of water, but have not see extreme thirst discussed anywhere.
Besides wanting to lose fifteen more pounds, I am a healthy woman with no physical problems that I know about. Thanks for your response!
Hiding Fox

hang in there. i had bouts of extreme thirst in the beginning too. it does subside a little bit but i find myself dry mouthed pretty often. just keep water handy and drink, drink, drink. good luck on your journey.

Sometimes nighttime thirst is a signal that you're losing rapidly and flushing a lot of toxins out of your system and it's becoming cleaner. The body does most of it's cleaning at night. It takes a lot of cleaning and a lot of water to get rid of years of accumulation, lol!!!

Thank you both for your replies. Reading them, I feel better about it, now. I also drank lots of water last night and lots today...my usual arthritis pain in my wrist seems gone, and I've lost another pound and a half, so all seems well but for the thirst! best wishes to you both! hidingfox

Something else could contribute to this thirst too. Cutting back carbs, the usual sweets, pastas etc. often means increasing "salty" foods. (Meat, cheese, etc.) Your body reacts either by retaining water or by demanding more water.

Drinking plenty of water have many advantage - as you already saw - for example easing arthritis pain:-)

Cheers:
Eva

Thirst is a funny thing to me. On most days I drink lots of water, and it seems the more I drink, the more I want.
BUT, on a day when I am busy, and don't drink as much as I should, I don't seem to get very thirsty. You'd think the opposite would be true. Go figure.

been a major source of irritation and I thought last week it must be due to the NSAIDs I was taking for a recently injured back.
I stopped the NSAIDs, my mouth was better for a few days, then it came back.
It seems to be mostly at night. I wake a lot to pee and my mouth feels like it has been almost blow-torched dry when I awake. During the day, I don't notice it as much but that may be because I have easy access to fluids and can drink a bit of water or other liquid whenever I feel like it.
I hope the above poster is right and it means I am losing lts of weight. That would be a nice trade-off for the unpleasantness of the extremely dry mouth at times.

I read your post about your extreme thirst. Have you had your blood sugar tested? Extreme thirst is a possible symptom of diabetes. Perhaps you could talk to your doctor? Good luck.

I find eating bacon makes me really thirsty for hours after.