I just finished watching a show on the discovery channel about shipwreck
survivors and it reminded me of something I heard a couple of years ago.
Some guy ,possibly a scientist or doctor,said that the reason drinking seawater could hasten your death was that by the time you were desperate
enough to drink it your body was to dehydrated.I also seem to remember that he said he was planning on putting his theory to the test.
Has anyone heard of this guy,or know what happened?

RickJ

I don't know about the guy, but the saltwater issue is cut and dried:

If you drink saltwater the kidneys go into overdrive to get rid of the salt...so you end up urinating more water than you drank...resulting in dehydration.

Chery

I remember that I heard salt water, especially while on ship can cause brain damage and deleriums which could also be due to dehydration, as in the Sahara where we see 'mirages',either of which, if not found and saved can cause death.
But, when we were stationed in Georgia in the 50's however, we were issued salt tablets to protect us against the heat and water loss due to perspiration, so it's a 'go figure issue'.

RickJ

Yes, in the past it was assumed that salt lost from heavy sweating ought to be replaced. One of those "old school" things.

Nowadays, though, it's recognized that this is not the case. The focus is on hydration with water.

Biologically speaking, I can't imagine even 1 of 10000 medical folk who would recommend salt intake in any circumstance where dehydration is a risk.

Chery

That's true Rickj, but remember how schools taught kids to hide under their seats in case of atomic attacks too? There were a whole lot of myths out there and they often stick unless educated otherwise. That's why the 'go figure' tags on a lot of those old tales, and that was an example.

RickJ

Yes.
I'm not knocking the "old school". I recognize that in each generation and century we do the best we can with what we know of at the time...

labman

We no longer take salt tablets. If I remember correctly, somebody came through the factory and took out all the dispensers including the one in the lab where I was working at the time in the late 70's. Now we drink Gatorade Aid or other sport drinks to replace the electrolytes the body loses through heavy perspiration. Duh.

The body needs a certain level of ionic material including sodium. The trick is balance. The body doesn't work right with too little or too much.

Chery

Go Figure, Duh If you hadn't of told us we would not have know....