putting urine on burns? has anyone ever heard of this?

Nurses General Nursing

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My wife (an RN) told me that her boss (an NP) burned her hand (i'm guessing it was 1st degree) and then urinated on it. I'm guessing this is a wife's tail and searched online to find subjective proof that this works.... can someone shed some light on this... I told her it was a wife's tail and untill I'm proven otherwise do not agree that it helps with a burn. Thanks in advance.

i have heard, from a german friend, that drinking your urine for health purposes is rather common over there in germany. it grossed me out too.

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Specializes in Community, OB, Nursery.

PS: It's not "Ghandi" but "Gandhi". :)

Thanks, Roy!

Small bit of spelling trivia that bothers my anal mind too. ;)

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Specializes in CCU MICU Rapid Response.

I too have heard that urinating on the feet prevents or resolves athlete's foot... (my kids pee on their tootsies in the shower! :o ) I've also heard that earwax has virucidal and antimicrobial properties, and application to a cold sore speeds healing. Just think.... every commercially prepared "fix" probably started with something natural!

~Ivanna

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Specializes in ICU;CCU;Telemetry;L&D;Hospice;ER/Trauma;.

And here, all this time, I thought urine was for marking territory!

A few baseball seasons ago....back when the Cubs actually won a few games, one of the best outfielders then stated that everyday, he peed on his hands to "roughen" then up...supposedly, it caused callouses to form so that he could catch the ball better.....(I wondered if that was written into his multimillion dollar contract) Moises Alou no longer plays with the Cubs...(their bad!)....but I wouldn't want to shake hands with him! Ha!:barf01:

I suppose if people are willing to pay a bajillion dollars for bee vomit (royal jelly) in a bottle and slather it all over their faces, a cheap $2.00 disposable wet diaper in the morning just might be the knock off version! ugh.

eye of newt anyone???

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Specializes in med/surg/ortho.

Or was he just so freaked out because he peed himself...that he forgot about the fire ants ??:lol2:

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The recommended treatment for jellyfish stings (but not Portuguese Man o' War) is white vinegar, which deactivates the nematocysts.

The only time you can be sure urine is sterile is when it has been autoclaved. People have UTIs and STDs. Even without these problems, the urine is going to get contaminated as it passes out of the meatus (which will not have been cleaned in an emergency situation).

As far as drinking urine (or seawater) in extreme situations (lack of drinking water), the body is not a still. This results in a net loss of body fluids. People have survived in spite of drinking urine and seawater, not because of it.

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This works.

At least, it worked on me. I was at a barbecue, and grabbed a skewer, which I then found out was hot. Got a nasty burn (first degree). I was with some friends from Uzbekistan, and they had an old home remedy...urine. After telling them they were nuts, my pain convinced me to try it...so I soaked a tissue in lots of (my own) pee. After a little while, when the pee was applied, no pain, take it right off, immediate pain. Put it back, no pain. Voilla. Interesting. The next day, I awoke and looked at my hand. Nice, well-delineated skewer-shaped burn marks. But no pain whatsoever.

I couldn't find much additional information about it online, but I can vouch for the fact that it works, crazy as it sounds. Do not know the physiology of it.

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Peeing on burns is something I once did instinctively some years ago. It hurt at first but, after a minute or so, had a pronounced soothing effect. It's now my go-to remedy. Additionally, as a guitarist, if I play gigs several days running I sometimes end up with mild blistering on the fingertips of my right hand - I play resonator guitars with very heavy strings - and several exposures to fresh urine can literally effect an overnight cure. It causes a tingling and an astringent sensation as if the skin were being drawn tight. I follow up with a thorough wash and a soaking in surgical spirit. So feel free to shake hands...

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Specializes in Wilderness Medicine, ICU, Adult Ed..

in an extreme situation (little or no potable water) urine might be useful for irrigating a contaminated wound (yes, it is usually sterile). re: burns, a flow of cool liquid can reduce the pain and even the severity of a burn, making prompt, copious irrigation with cool water for 5 to 20 minutes therapeutic. body temperature urine for the duration of one urination? i have serious doubts, but cannot rule it out. tap water is definitely to be preferred! in either case, the only therapeutic value that i would anticipate is that of irrigation with a (usually) clean fluid.

as for drinking urine to survive when fresh water is inadequate or unavailable, absolutely not! human urine is approximately four times more concentrated than serum (approximately 285 mosmoles for serum and 1200 mosmoles for urine, especially in a dehydrated state when the kidneys concentrate urine as much as possible in an effort to minimize water loss). this means that drinking urine will significantly increase electrolyte concentration in the drinker's blood with minimal volume expansion, increasing serum osmotic pressure, with the result of pulling more water out of the intracellular fluids. while this could, theoretically, support plasma volume for a few minutes (which could be beneficial to cardiac output for that short time) it will be quickly followed by cellular dehydration, shock, coma, seizure, and finally, intractable cardiac arrhythmias (primarily secondary to hypernatremia complicated by hypovolemia - a deadly combination).

drinking sea water is certain death, unless the patient can be rapidly rehydrated with hypotonic intravenous fluids (and will usually result in death even with such treatment). this has been known by mariners for thousands of years.

finally, be careful ascribing value to a proposed medical intervention because, "it has been used since ancient times." most ancient treatments are horrible, and should be discarded. exceptions include the few that pass the test of modern controlled studies. remember, bleeding the sick, administering orificenic and other toxins, astrology, rain dances, and throwing virgins into volcanoes have also been used since ancient times, all with very poor results (especially for the virgins)!

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As Judge Judy says, "Don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining." Just wanted to throw that in...

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jellyfish stings ...yes. burns...no! never heard of it.

but my cousin was married to an inuit woman (eskimo). who use to wash her face in her baby's urine soaked diapers. she claimed it was an old tradition in her culture/family to keep the complexion clear. She always did have beautiful skin! I saw her do this once when I was 14 yrs old. I was totally freaked out about it and it turned my stomach. but hey, to each his own!

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Specializes in ED/trauma.

I agree with one of the other posters, urine is sterile IN THE BLADDER, however it becomes very contminated en route out of the body. But I have heard that it will soothe a burn or a jellyfish sting, I wonder if it is any better at it than just plain ole cold water?

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