Almost everyone knows from childhood that it is strictly forbidden to drink sea water. Many do not understand why exactly - it is impossible and okay. I used to even wonder how you can suffer from thirst in the sea - well, like, you can't drink a lot, but what is the problem with taking a sip to quench your thirst?
But even on the hottest day on the beach, no one would even think to take a couple of sips straight from the sea. Unfortunately, the measured pace of human existence is often interrupted by completely unforeseen events. After a shipwreck, for example, even in the last century, the survivors dared to use sea water, because they did not know about the dire consequences of such a risky act.
So why exactly sea water cannot be drunk and what can happen if you still have to.
Salt
In total, a liter of sea water contains 40-50 grams of salt. A person needs only 15 grams per day, that is, almost four times less. Such a serious overdose is bound to cause unpleasant consequences.
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Kidney problems
It is absolutely impossible to quench your thirst with sea water. Salt is removed from the body by the kidneys, which after such a cocktail will be forced to work at maximum power. A heavy load for a long time will cause a failure in the system - the kidneys are simply not designed for such rush jobs.
Dehydration
In addition, the whole body will be involved in working on the problem. In order to quickly get rid of excess calcium, magnesium and potassium salts, he needs to dissolve them in fresh water - and he cannot get it from the outside. The body begins to take fluid from the intercellular space of tissues, which leads to rapid dehydration. Deprived of nutrition, internal organs begin to fail one by one.
Metallic taste
Sea water is known for its very high content of nutrients: chlorides, sulfates and metals. To remove all this filth, the body, again, needs absent fresh water. Metals are deposited in cells, gradually poisoning the body.
Laxative
Let's not forget about sodium sulfate, which is extremely saturated with salty sea water. He has the enchanting ability to have a powerful laxative effect on a person. As a result, dehydration occurs much faster.
Let's take a closer look at the Seawater Drop under the microscope:
This is a drop of seawater under a microscope. Now let's take a closer look at what's in it …
Here is a graphical representation of it:
And now in more detail:
In everyday life, a person constantly deals with fresh water - there are practically no foreign impurities in it.
Another thing is the water of the seas and oceans - it is rather a very strong brine than water. In a liter of sea water, there are on average 35 grams of various salts:
27.2 g table salt
3.8 g magnesium chloride
1.7 g of magnesium sulfate
1.3 g potassium sulfate
0.8 g of calcium sulfate
Table salt makes water salty, magnesium sulfate and magnesium chloride give it a bitter taste. Taken together, salts make up about 99.5% of all substances that are dissolved in the waters of the oceans.
Other elements account for only half a percent. 3/4 of the total amount of table salt in the world is extracted from sea water.
Academician A. Vinogradov proved that all chemical elements known today can be found in sea water. Of course, not the elements themselves are dissolved in water, but their chemical compounds.