Don't Try This at Home: What Happens If You Drink a Liter of Soy Sauce

Over the years, some "alternative medicine" practices have taken root that can send people to the grave instead of helping them. One such practice is the so-called colon cleanse, adopted almost obsessively by those seeking to "eliminate toxins" from their bodies. In 2012, a 39-year-old woman was rushed to the hospital after performing a supposed colon cleanse… by drinking a liter of soy sauce in two hours. Would you like to know what happens to the human body, and especially the brain, in that interval?

The Case of CG

I perfectly understand the disappointment, frustration, and even the desperation of not achieving basic physical well-being. Many people go from doctor to doctor and clinic to clinic, spending money in an attempt to identify an ailment or disease that might lead to appropriate treatment. But sometimes we make very serious mistakes, starting by adopting "healthy practices" with questionable medical value, or worse, believing the first thing we read on the Web. That brings us to the story of a woman identified as "CG", aged 39.

CG arrived at the Illinois Medical District in an ambulance, with a rapidly deteriorating mental state, and a cardiac arrest halfway there.

She had lost 11 kilograms in 3 weeks, and suffered iron and vitamin deficiencies. Her husband Julio stated that she had only consumed white bread and canned fish during the last six months. CG was admitted to a psychiatric hospital when doctors thought she suffered from schizophrenia, but she never responded to medications. CG came to the conclusion that "the government had poisoned her", and searching for solutions on the Web, she came across the soy sauce-based colon cleanse.

The hypothesis was that the water in the body contaminated with toxins would move toward the sodium in the sauce, as long as she drank a liter in two hours. CG did it, and began to suffer a very rapid heart rate. She felt needles in her hands and legs. The thirst was almost uncontrollable. While returning home, CG stopped to cry. At home, dizziness and confusion began. She couldn't string one word after another, and her husband helped her lie down. Within minutes, Julio was calling 911: CG had fallen to the floor unconscious, which brings us back to the ambulance.

The Medical Emergency

The first thing CG suffered was an acute case of hypernatremia, elevated sodium levels in the blood. It is declared "acute" because there were no previous causes capable of causing that problem... beyond the liter of soy sauce. To visualize it a little better, just 15 milliliters of sauce have 2.5 grams of salt. Experts recommend not exceeding 5.5 grams. The lethal dose is 40 grams. The liter of sauce that CG drank had 200 grams of salt. One of the most disturbing aspects is that a small part of the information is correct: Water moves toward where there is sodium. As for the rest... it's a disaster.

The original information said that the soy sauce would stay in CG's colon, but this doesn't work like that. The sauce wreaked havoc in her stomach, draining water from the muscular lining. The sauce then continued its journey to the small intestine, leading to its absorption. That means the 200 grams of salt reached the blood, triggering a dramatic dehydration process in every organ of her body. Although doctors have different resources to counteract the initial effects, the most serious damage happened in the brain, due to the reduction in its size. The blood stopped circulating, which translates to a lack of oxygen... and brain damage. The worst part is that it wasn't immediate. She received five liters of water with dextrose (glucose), and water with a 0.45 percent concentration of sodium to dilute the salt in her body. 96 hours later, CG seemed stable...

The Brain Damage

... but she wasn't. CG couldn't speak or move. Doctors initially detected dysarthria (an alteration in the articulation of words), dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), and flaccid quadriplegia. When performing MRI studies, the results showed central pontine myelinolysis, a demyelination (loss of myelin) in the brain's white matter, linked to abrupt corrections in sodium levels. A peculiarity of the human brain is that it tries to compensate for the reduction in its size by pumping sodium into its cells, and using other chemicals to prevent additional water loss. But if a significant amount of water enters the system to dilute the salt when the brain has already made its compensation with sodium, that liquid will enter the brain, causing cerebral edema. Another problem is that the rest of the chemicals cannot easily leave the brain, causing changes in cells that lead to a cascade of death, and the previously mentioned myelinolysis.

The Real Culprit

To finish, one last detail. The iron and vitamin deficiency. The loss of 11 kilograms in three weeks without wanting it. Schizophrenia without reaction to medications. Doctors ruled out cancer and tumors, but we're missing something else: the white bread. Six months of white bread with gluten, to be precise. The strongest theory (and supported by subsequent evidence) is that CG suffered from celiac disease, a permanent gluten intolerance that injures the small intestine, with extra-digestive manifestations such as psychosis ("the government poisoned me"), and prevents the absorption of nutrients.

The Bottom Line

With the correct treatment, specialized attention from the medical team, the invaluable support of her husband, and a completely gluten-free diet, CG managed to recover. In summary: All "magic detoxification" processes on the Web are false, false, FALSE. And if in doubt, talk to a modern medicine professional, and not to pathetic gurus who promise to cure cancer using pumpkin extract.