Arguably the best on-screen martial artist of all time, Bruce Lee died out of the blue on July 20, 1973, on the age of 32. The thriller surrounding his sudden demise has spawned quite a few wild conspiracy theories, but a brand new evaluation means that the ‘Little Dragon’ might have died from consuming an excessive amount of water.
Although speculative and unconfirmed, this proposed reason for demise represents an ironic blow to a person who helped popularize Jap philosophy with the enduring catchphrase “be water, my pal.”
To succeed in their conclusion, the research authors started by reviewing the identified information surrounding Lee’s demise. As an example, it’s properly documented that the well-known actor skilled a headache and dizziness at round 7:30 pm, shortly after smoking hashish and consuming water. He then took a painkiller known as Equagesic, however was discovered unresponsive two hours later.
An post-mortem revealed that his mind had swelled to 1,575 grams (3.5 kilos), which is properly above the typical 1,400 grams (3 kilos). It was due to this fact concluded that Lee died from a kind of swelling known as cerebral edema, which occurred because of an excessive response to Equagesic.
Nonetheless, the research authors level out that he solely took the treatment after experiencing a headache and dizziness, which can point out that his mind had begun to swell earlier than he popped the capsule. Moreover, they are saying that “cerebral oedema wouldn’t be anticipated to be the one necropsy discovering if certainly hypersensitivity to Equagesic was the reason for demise.”
“We now suggest, based mostly on an evaluation of publicly out there info, that the reason for demise was cerebral oedema because of hyponatraemia. In different phrases, we suggest that the kidney’s lack of ability to excrete extra water killed Bruce Lee,” write the researchers.
Hyponatremia arises when fluid consumption exceeds the kidneys’ capability to filter water out of the blood. Often it happens when an individual drinks an enormous quantity inside a really quick house of time, and whereas there’s no proof to recommend that Lee did something of the kind, the research authors say that he might have had “a number of danger elements for hyponatraemia” and will due to this fact have developed the situation “from consuming a a lot decrease water load.”
As an example, they notice a number of claims made by Lee’s spouse and physicians that the actor had given up stable meals and survived solely on carrot and apple juice. Generally known as the “tea and toast weight loss program”, this low solute consuming regime might have considerably elevated Lee’s possibilities of growing hyponatremia.
The star can also be reported to have used diuretics with a view to rid his physique of sodium and make his muscle tissue seem extra ripped. On prime of this, sources near Lee declare that he started consuming “ten to twenty ceramic bottles of sake” a day within the closing months of his life.
Taking these life-style elements into consideration, the researchers say Lee in all probability skilled a cerebral edema two months earlier than his demise, when he vomited, handed out and commenced convulsing. Although he recovered from the occasion and was not recognized with hyponatremia on the time, the research authors suggest that this unexplained sickness might have foreshadowed what was to come back.
“In abstract, Lee had a number of danger elements predisposing to hyponatraemia ensuing from interference with water homeostasis mechanisms that regulate each water consumption and water excretion,” they are saying. “We hypothesize that Bruce Lee died from a particular type of kidney dysfunction: the lack to excrete sufficient water to keep up water homeostasis.”
In different phrases, be water, my pal. However not an excessive amount of water.
The article is printed within the Scientific Kidney Journal.