If Urine is sterile....?

[BOD]

Dumb question time.

If urine is sterile does it matter at all whether one widdles in or near a stream?

In stationary water surely a no no if only because of the perception of pollution but as the saying goes one never steps into the same river twice so who cares if your mate recycles his water ?

I await the flak!

 

[Lordyosch]

There is more than one kind of 'pollution'. Bacteriological, Chemical, Visual, Particulate, and even 'thermal' amongst others

Although urine is sterile, it contains chemicals (Urea) which would upset the nitrogen levels, possibly the pH and probably other things.

And if lots of people widdle in a small stream you *could* I suppose raise the temperature which will affect oxygen levels in the water thus causing harm to some species.


Jay

 

[BorderReiver]

It's not a nice thought that you might be drinking someone's wee.

If enough people do it you could encourage the over growth of some plants and algae and ruin the local ecology.

So be kind enough to wee a little distance from the stream and let your high nitrogen waste filter through the soil. Thank you.

 

[Peter_t]

what about fish, shorly they pee right?

pete

 

[Jimcatt]

It's not a nice thought that you might be drinking someone's wee. QUOTE]

Ha-ha, you do every time you use tap water

 

[redandshane]

Yep although its not a nice thought ;Jimcatt is absolutely right
urine is ultimately a recycleable product

 

[Sniper]

Urine is full of the body's toxins, it is the way we flush out our kidneys which gather and filter these toxins from our blood, so although it may be sterile (and I don't believe it is) it is still full of nasties which you do not want to put back into your body otherwise blood poisoning is one of the likely results. To reuse urine it has to be distilled to remove these toxins and return it to a usable resource but without the distillation process it should be considered pretty much poison. Also don't forget it is full on ammonia, an acid which will destroy most living things including plants.

 

[Draven]

My main point was covered by Sniper . . . urine might be OK to consume, or depending on what waste you have to expel, it might not. Better not to take the risk, unless it's drink or die.

Does it matter, though? Have you really found yourself in a situation where you thought "Blimey, if only I could pee in that river . . . "?

 

[Dana Hawkeye]

Under normal circumstances, yes, urine is virtually sterile and can and has been used by the 'owner' of the urine as an expedient antibacterial wound flush, it can also be used as an anti-fungal solution on said owners feet. BUT, you cannot guarantee that it is sterile without performing a urinalysis on the said urine, which out in the sticks is inpractical.

In a survival situation, where dehydration is an issue, the urine's Ph will change from neutral (7) and the colour will go from an almost clear colour to some instances a brownish or black colour.

Clear, copious and virtually odourless urine is a sign of good health and good hydration The average adult daily production rate is between 1 and 2 litres.

 

[Hoodoo]

Dumb question time.

If urine is sterile does it matter at all whether one widdles in or near a stream?

In stationary water surely a no no if only because of the perception of pollution but as the saying goes one never steps into the same river twice so who cares if your mate recycles his water ?

I await the flak!

One of the main reasons we wee is to get rid of urea, a byproduct of protein metabolism. Urea is toxic. That's why we can't store it in our bodies, unlike critters like say sharks, who have a way of protecting themselves from the toxicity of urea, and use the urea to osmoregulate.

Urea is cytotoxic, but as it is released, it is sterile, meaning no pathogenic bacteria. However, once released, it is a magnet for microorganisms that feed on urea. In short order, it can become rather nasty stuff. This is why you pee in a toilet and not in the sink. Of course, if you are in cold climates, the growth of microorganisms is slowed, and this is why folks like the Inuit can recycle their urine and use it for cleaning.

 

[firecrest]

Can I ask a question?
Ive always been told dont drink urine or seawater in a survival situation, but Bear grylls drank his own p**s from a snakeskin the other week? I dont want to start a debate about the man but its a serious issue, should a person do/not do this in a survival situation?

 

[Draven]

Can I ask a question?
Ive always been told dont drink urine or seawater in a survival situation, but Bear grylls drank his own p**s from a snakeskin the other week? I dont want to start a debate about the man but its a serious issue, should a person do/not do this in a survival situation?

In a real survival situation, as in, if you really need water and you have no option other than drinking your own urine, then surely it's better than dying. And for the record, while urea is toxic, the amount one would likely ingest from drinking their urine wouldn't be, unless they lived off it. One thing to keep in mind is that if you drink your urine, the next time you urinate, all the chemical concentrations will be higher. But still, if it's a matter of do or die, I think the answer is pretty plain. Saltwater, on the other hand, is a no-no.

I also just read that urea can cause algal blooms to produce toxins (reference), so urine does more to pollute water then simply releasing its own chemicals.

PS: I thought I'd add, that the longer you've gone without water, the more concentrated your urine will be. Without more water to dillute this, it would be more dangerous than normal. I'm not sure just how much of a problem it would be, but I don't intend to find out!

 

[Hoodoo]

Can I ask a question?
Ive always been told dont drink urine or seawater in a survival situation, but Bear grylls drank his own p**s from a snakeskin the other week? I dont want to start a debate about the man but its a serious issue, should a person do/not do this in a survival situation?

The answer is generally no. Every drop of seawater you drink results in an increased loss of water from the body.That's because your kidneys can't make a urine more concentrated in Na and Cl than what is found in sea water. Ultimately, chloride accumulates in your cells and this is what kills you.

Additionally, sea water contains compounds that are laxative, meaning you will also lose moisture in feces.

The Ancient Mariner was right: water, water, everywhere and not a drop to drink. People who claim to have survived drinking seawater usually also report supplementing their water intake with freshwater.

In regards to urine. You might gain some water, depending on the concentration of salts in your urine. However if you are already dehydrated, chances are your urine is highly concentrated and you will gain little in the way of water and just add to your salt load.

I've come across this question before on urine but to be honest, I have not researched it thoroughly, so take my answer with a grain of salt... I suppose part of the answer depends on how much of the salt is absorbed from the urine and how much is excreted in the feces. I would guess most of it is absorbed, which is not generally a good thing, unless you are low on electrolytes. I need to think more about this.

 

[jojo]

Well, urine is sterile when it comes out of your body. But if you store it for any length of time it will start to breed some nasties. Also the problem is that it is a waste product of your body.
To produce urine you must drink, there is no way around this. if you don't drink you produce less urine. I have seen it described as the law of diminishing result: the more you drink, the more you pee, but also, the less you drink, the less you pee. If you drink what you pee, you will get less and less. Also you lose moisture through sweating and breathing. Drinking pee won't get you very far....

Urine is about 95% water, the rest being all the stuff the body wants to get rid of.

I suppose you could use one of those osmosis pump to remove all the impurities and then drink it. Probably better to make absolutely sure you got enough water to drink and do with the urine, what comes naturally!

 

[Nagual]

There was an episode of Brainiac where whatshisface tried to drink his own urine that he passes through an osmosis pump, he tested it against the amount of particulates found in it and compared to some official guidelines for water purity. He took a small mouthfull of it which was very very below the minimum level and was nearly sick, in fact he ran to the loo immediately afterwards.

Nag.

 

[Womble_Lancs]

Just because something is sterile does not mean it is good to drink. Hydrochloric Acid could be sterile...

 

[squantrill]

It's not a nice thought that you might be drinking someone's wee. QUOTE]

Ha-ha, you do every time you use tap water

And its not just pee !!

 

[firecrest]

incidentally, Black Bears are the only animals capable of recycling their own urea during hybernation. It goes into the bladder and then is reasorbed back out the bladder wall, in a process that still baffles science bears need not urinate for months , despite hybernation being much lighter than other animals. it appears to turn urea back into basic amino acids, and the calcium from its bones is not expelled in urine like us but redistributed around its body
Once this process is cracked (and their bones do not lose mass either) scientists hope to create a synthetic hormone to allow humans to do the same, or perhaps to treat urine to make it non-polluting (and drinkable in a survival situation?)

 

[Hoodoo]

incidentally, Black Bears are the only animals capable of recycling their own urea during hybernation. It goes into the bladder and then is reasorbed back out the bladder wall, in a process that still baffles science bears need not urinate for months , despite hybernation being much lighter than other animals. it appears to turn urea back into basic amino acids, and the calcium from its bones is not expelled in urine like us but redistributed around its body
Once this process is cracked (and their bones do not lose mass either) scientists hope to create a synthetic hormone to allow humans to do the same, or perhaps to treat urine to make it non-polluting (and drinkable in a survival situation?)

Bears don't hibernate.

 

[firecrest]

they lie for months and sleep, but they dont go into hybernation as such.