[at-l] Drinking Sea Water......

[shane@theplacewithnoname.com (Shane Steinkamp)]

> Humans can't drink salt water because the kidneys can only
> make urine that is less salty than salt water. Therefore, to
> get rid of all the excess salt taken in by drinking salt
> water, you have to urinate more water than you drank, so you
> die of dehydration.

This is a very common misconception.  If you study death by dehydration, and
sea rescue/survival, though, you'll see that it isn't true.

On average, if you have NO water, you will die after seven days.  By the end
of day three, you will be unconscious.

If you drink sea water, you will still die after seven days, BUT you will
not loose consciousness until day five.

You're dead either way, but if you drink sea water sparingly, you have two
extra days of consciousness to either be rescued or effect your own rescue.
Don't expect them to be happy days either...

Shane