Ask Tappity: Science Questions for Kids > Why Can't Humans Drink Seawater?
Why Can't Humans Drink Seawater?
People always say you can’t drink saltwater - but why not? Besides the super salty taste, of course. Watch our fun science experiment to find out, and read more in our explanation below!
Saltwater Is Saltier Than Your Body Needs
Salt water is about 3 times as salty as your body, so when you drink saltwater, your body has to get rid of that extra salt in order to keep working properly. It does this by filtering out the salt using your kidneys. Then, you get rid of the extra salt through your pee.
Saltwater Is Saltier Than Your Pee
Sea water is so salty, though, that it’s even saltier than the maximum saltiness of your pee. So in order to get rid of that extra salt, your body has to ADD water to your pee to dilute it. For every 1 quart of sea water you drank, you would need to pee out about 2 quarts of water in order to get rid of all the excess salt.
The Effects of Dehydration
A little bit of saltwater is no big deal - sure, you might lose a little water, but your body can handle that. If you keep drinking seawater, though, you’ll start to become dehydrated, meaning your body doesn’t have enough water. This can lead to dizziness, confusion, and even death. So if you're ever stuck on a desert island, don’t drink seawater!
Saltwater Facts for Kids
Got saltwater questions? We’ve got salty answers!
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Fish drink water, just like us. Saltwater fish are able to drink the salty water around them because they have special cells that do nothing but pump extra salt out of their bodies.
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A salt molecule is made up of a sodium atom and a chlorine atom stuck together. When you eat salt, your saliva dissolves the salt, meaning it breaks up the molecule into individual atoms. So when you’re tasting something salty, your taste buds are actually interacting with sodium and chlorine atoms individually.
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If you took all the salt in the ocean and spread it out on land, it would make a blanket 500 feet tall. That’s a lot of salt!
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The Gaet’ale Pond in Ethiopia is 43% salt - 14 times as salty as the sea! - making it the saltiest body of water on Earth. The water comes out of a spring from under the Earth’s crust, bringing lots of salt with it.
More Answers to Ocean Questions from Kids
How much water is in the ocean? How deep is it? The Tappity Oceanography library has tons of fun interactive lessons with answers to those questions and more!
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