[ohioln]

I thought that there are ketones and other things in urine that are harmful if they are drank. They are products of metabolism. Although urine is sterile in the bladder, once it passes from your body, it comes in contact with germs and bacteria when passing through the end of the genitalis. I believe that when people eat their own fecees and/or drink their own urine, they are displaying evidence of a psychiatric issue or may be demonstrating symptome of seniliey.

[gr8rnpjt]

My ex husbands grandmother used to save her urine in jars in the basement to water her garden in the summer. Needless to say, after we discovered her policy, we stopped eating at her house...
...on a lighter note, just for a bit of humor when I used to work in the "hallowed halls" when I would sit down to chart, I would get some apple juice from the fridge to sip on and used to drink it from a specimen cup... It stopped a few nurses in their tracks when they saw that, sometimes I would pretend to be very surprised and say, OMG! I left my drink in the utility room!
(a little 11-7 humor)

[jasmine4494]

Just a few points of interest:

1. Premarin = PREgnant MARes' uRINe, from which the estrogen is extracted.

2. Drinking urine exacerbates dehydration. Urine entering the gut is a hypertonic solution that pulls water from the interstitial space via oncotic/ osmotic pressure. So, if you think you might be dying of thirst in the near future, definitely ditch this idea.

3. Throwing away any beauty products containing urea may be a bit premature. It is unlikely that the urea has originated from an animal source (unless you paid extra to have the REAL thing! LOL)
It was the synthesis of urea (an organic compound) from ammonium cyanate (an inorganic compound) in 1828 that revolutionized the field of organic chemistry. Since they've been able to do this for well over 150 years, it seems unlikely that animals would be used for this particular ingredient. Slap on the night cream and rest easy.

4. As for saving your urine in fruit jars in the basement........
The nitrogen is great for growing plants, and (unlike farmers with tanks of anhydrous ammonia) you'll never have to worry about meth manufacturers trying to steal your urine.

Trivial pursuit, anyone?

[anichols]

off the medical subject...if urine is good for plants why does puppy pee kill the grass?

[peachespsw]

Originally Posted by Shamira Aizza

I prefer to view urine as the waste product that it is. If it were useful to the body, it wouldn't be eliminated.

babies are eliminated from the body and they are not considered a waste product

[wolfgirl]

First off, let me say that your body will not stop producing urine unless your kidneys fail. The water that is included in urine is designed to dilute the toxins that your body is excreting. Your body produces these toxins on a continual basis due to cellular respiration, etc. The body will concentrate the urine as much as possible in order to conserve water when dehydrated, but this is taxing on the kidneys, and the underlying dehydrating issue should be eliminated as soon as possible (understanding, of course, that being stranded in the desert could pose some difficulties).

As far as urine being "safe", I'm not sure that I would go that far. It certainly is sterile, unless you have a urinary tract infection, but the aforementioned toxins would be re-introduced into the body and have to re eliminated again, this time through the digestive system. Not an option I plan on having to experience any time soon.

And yes, urea is used in many cosmetic products--but it, in itself, is not "urine". Urine is composed of many elements, of which urea is but one. The uric acid in urine was vital to the tanning of hides in prehistoric times.

[sillynurselady]

Hello,
This is my first time here, but thusfar I have enjoyed reading the questions and responses. The TV show CSI (the original one in Vegas) had an episode last season about a doctor writing a book regarding the benefits of drinking your own urine. In his belief (and he had written a book about it on the show), it was beneficial in reducing the signs of aging or maybe it was delaying the aging process. Either way, it's gross and disgusting! The show was primarily about this MD who did all sorts of weird treatments for aging, and this came out because a couple of his patients died and the coroner found urine in their stomachs. Maybe this teenager saw that show, or worse yet, maybe there is an actual book out there touting this as a new treatment for aging. I sure hope not!
Sillynurselady, RN

[Shamira Aizza]

Originally Posted by peachespsw

babies are eliminated from the body and they are not considered a waste product

I suppose that depends if you are having a baby or an abortion now, doesn't it?

BTW, babies are not useful items to be carried about in the human body.

Otherwise, I see not the relevance to this discussion. Since some folks like to compare ourselves to other animals, it might be reasonable to point out that some species eat their babies.

[teeituptom]

in my original post I just reported something new to me.

I never thought this would turn into such a prolific discussion

Scares the pee outta me

[Jamesdotter]

Originally Posted by anichols

off the medical subject...if urine is good for plants why does puppy pee kill the grass?

I think the puppy's pee kills the grass because it's concentrated. If you water the spot soon after he does his duty (our term for it), the grass will just green up nicely.