Urophagia
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Urophagia is the consumption of urine, which is the liquid by-product of blood filtration in the body. There are various reasons that humans may consume urine. Urine was used in several ancient cultures for various health, healing, and cosmetic purposes, practices which are still used by some people of these cultures today. In Euro-American culture, these practices are known as urine therapy, a form of alternative medicine. Thai people had been practising Urophagia for long.[1]
Other reasons for urophagia include attempting survival, if no other potable fluid is available, though numerous credible sources (including the US Army Field Manual) advise against it. Also, some people consume urine as a sexual activity, and members of at least one culture consume urine for ceremonial purposes.
Contents
Reasons for urophagia
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Attempting survival
Some survival instructors and guides,[2][3] including the US Army Field Manual FM 21-76 "Survival",[4] advise against drinking urine for survival. These guides state that drinking urine tends to worsen, rather than relieve dehydration due to the salts in it, and that urine should not be consumed in a survival situation, even when there is no other fluid available. However, none gives data or sources to back up these statements. Basic physiology suggests that the urine produced in the first hours or day after being cut of from fluid supplies may be a useful source of fluid. Under conditions of dehydration the kidneys need only 0.5 L of water per 24 h to excrete the 'waste' i.e. the salts and organic material that needs to be removed from the blood.[5]. Under normal conditions a healthy adult will produce some 2 L of urine, of which 1.5 L can be considered 'free water' while the other 0.5 L is needed to remove waste. Thus theoretically, drinking one of L normal human urine is equivalent to drinking 0.75 L of water. As dehydration proceeds, urine will become more concentrated and approach the limit of 0.5 L/24h where it is no longer useful as a 'beverage.'
Indeed, in some instances people in dire straits have drunk urine and survived. Aron Ralston used the technique when trapped for several days with his arm under a boulder.[6]
Urophagia in Islam
Although the Urophagia has a long background in arabic culture, drinking the urine of the camel was once recommended by the Mohammed, the prophet of Islam. In Sahih al-Bukhari is mentioned a Hadith in which it says that some people came to Madeenah and fell sick. Mohammed told them to drink the milk and urine of camels, and they recovered and grew fat.[7]
References
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3083577.stm
- ↑ [http://trackertrail.com/publications/motherearthnews/72/index.html Tracker Trail – Mother Earth News – Issue #72
- ↑ [http://www.equipped.com/primer.htm EQUIPPED TO SURVIVE (tm) – A Survival Primer
- ↑ Water Procurement, US Army Field Manual
- ↑ Ganong’s Review of Medical Physiology Twenty-Third Edition 2010, Table 38-7
- ↑ Aron Ralston | Outside Online
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- Urine Therapy: Skeptic's Dictionary entry
- Urotherapy, fact sheet at the American Cancer Society
