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Urine, excreted by the kidneys, is a liquid containing excess water and water-soluble nitrogen-rich metabolic waste including urea, uric acid, and creatinine, which must be cleared from the bloodstream. Urinalysis detects these nitrogenous wastes in .
In , urine travels from the kidneys via the to the bladder and exits the urethra through the penis or vulva during urination. Other excretion urine through the cloaca.
Urine plays an important role in the earth's nitrogen cycle. In balanced , urine fertilizes the soil and thus helps to grow. Therefore, urine can be used as a fertilizer. Some animals mark their territories with urine.MacDonald, David W. "Patterns of scent marking with urine and faeces amongst carnivore communities." Symposia of the Zoological Society of London. Vol. 45. No. 107. 1980. Historically, aged or fermented urine (known as lant) was also used in gunpowder production, household cleaning, leather tanning, and textile dyeing.
Human urine and human feces, called human waste or human excreta, are managed via sanitation systems. Livestock urine and feces also require proper management if the livestock population density is high.
The total solids in urine are on average per day per person. Urea is the largest constituent of the solids, constituting more than 50% of the total. The daily volume and composition of urine varies per person based on the amount of physical exertion, environmental conditions, as well as water, salt, and protein intakes. In healthy persons, urine contains very little protein and an Proteinuria is suggestive of illness, as with sugar. Organic matter, in healthy persons, also is reported to at most 1.7 times more matter than minerals. However, any more than that is suggestive of illness.
are often present in urination of humans.
Colorless urine indicates over-hydration. Colorless urine in drug tests can suggest an attempt to avoid detection of illicit drugs in the bloodstream through over-hydration.
The odor of normal human urine can reflect what has been consumed or specific diseases. For example, an individual with diabetes mellitus may present a sweetened urine odor. This can be due to kidney diseases as well, such as kidney stones. Additionally, the presence of in urine (diagnosed as maple syrup urine disease) can cause it to smell of maple syrup.
Eating asparagus can cause a strong odor reminiscent of the vegetable caused by the body's breakdown of asparagusic acid. Likewise consumption of saffron, ethanol, coffee, tuna fish, and onion can result in telltale scents. Particularly spicy foods can have a similar effect, as their compounds pass through the kidneys without being fully broken down before exiting the body. Foods that Affect the Odor of Urine. livestrong.com. December 27, 2010.
A diet which is high in protein from meat and dairy, as well as alcohol consumption can reduce urine pH, whilst potassium and organic acids, such as from diets high in fruit and vegetables, can increase the pH and make it more alkaline.
Cranberries, popularly thought to decrease the pH of urine, have actually been shown not to acidify urine. Drugs that can decrease urine pH include ammonium chloride, chlorothiazide diuretics, and methenamine mandelate. Urine pH: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia . Nlm.nih.gov (2011-03-28). Retrieved on 2011-04-27. Discovery Health "Urine PH – Medical Dictionary" . Healthguide.howstuffworks.com (2007-05-16). Retrieved on 2011-04-27.
| +Bacterial isolates in human urine and cows' !Humans aged 5–11 !Bacterial percentage in humans !Bacterial percentage in cows | ||
| Bacillus | 10.4% | 5.1% |
| Staphylococcus | 2.6% | 2.6% |
| Citrobacter | 3.9% | 12.8% |
| Klebsiella | 7.8% | 12.8% |
| Escherichia coli | 36.4% | 23.1% |
| Proteus | 18.2% | 23.1% |
| Pseudomonas | 9.1% | 2.6% |
| Salmonella | 3.9% | 5.1% |
| Shigella | 7.8% | 12.8% |
The color and volume of urine can be reliable indicators of hydration level. Clear and copious urine is generally a sign of adequate hydration. Dark urine is a sign of dehydration. The exception occurs when diuretics are consumed, in which case urine can be clear and copious and the person still be dehydrated.
Urine from pregnant women contains enough human chorionic gonadotropins for commercial extraction and purification to produce hCG medication. Pregnant mare urine is the source of , namely Premarin. Urine also contains Antibody, which can be used in diagnostic antibody tests for a range of , including HIV-1. Urine Antibody Tests: New Insights into the Dynamics of HIV-1 Infection – Urnovitz et al. 45 (9): 1602 – Clinical Chemistry . Clinchem.org. Retrieved on 2011-04-27.
Urine can also be used to produce urokinase, which is used clinically as a Thrombolysis agent.
The US Army Field Manual advises drinking urine for survival. The manual explains 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. In hot weather survival situations, where other sources of water are not available, soaking cloth (a shirt for example) in urine and putting it on the head can help cool the body. Water Procurement , US Army Field Manual
During World War I, Germans experimented with numerous poisonous gases as weapons. After the first German chlorine gas attacks, Allied troops were supplied with masks of cotton pads that had been soaked in urine. It was believed that the ammonia in the pad neutralized the chlorine. These pads were held over the face until the soldiers could escape from the poisonous fumes.
Urban legend states that urine works well against jellyfish stings.Castillo, M. (2017, June 20). Don't Pee On A Jellyfish Sting — It Won'
Alchemy spent much time trying to extract gold from urine, which led to discoveries such as white phosphorus by German alchemist Hennig Brand when distilling fermented urine in 1669. In 1773 the French chemist Hilaire Rouelle discovered the organic compound urea by boiling urine dry.
Lant is a word for aged urine, originating from the Old English word hland referring to urine in general.
/ref> This scenario has appeared many times in popular culture including in the Friends episode "The One With the Jellyfish", an early episode of Survivor, as well as the films The Real Cancun (2003), The Heartbreak Kid (2007) and The Paperboy (2012). However, at best it is ineffective, and in some cases this treatment may make the injury worse. Fact or Fiction?: Urinating on a Jellyfish Sting is an Effective Treatment . Scientific American. 4 January 2007. Retrieved on 2011-04-27. Jellyfish Sting Treatment – How to Treat a Jellyfish Sting . Firstaid.about.com. 22 August 2010. Retrieved on 2011-04-27.
Textiles
Urine has often been used as a mordant to help prepare textiles, especially wool, for dyeing. In the Scottish Highlands and Hebrides, the process of "waulking" (fulling) woven wool is preceded by soaking in urine, preferably infantile.Mentioned by an interviewee in Lomax the Songhunter, a 2004 documentary film.
Olfactory communication
Urine plays a role in olfactory communication, since it contains that act as Pheromone. The urine of predator species often contains that serve as a animal repellent against their prey species.Swihart, Robert K., Joseph J. Pignatello, and Mary Jane I. Mattina. "Aversive responses of white-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus, to predator urines." Journal of chemical ecology 17.4 (1991): 767-777.
History
The fermentation of urine by bacteria produces a Ammonia solution; hence fermented urine was used in Classical Antiquity to wash cloth and clothing, to remove hair from hides in preparation for tanning, to serve as a mordant in dying cloth, and to remove rust from iron.See:
Ancient Rome used fermented human urine (in the form of lant) to cleanse grease stains from clothing. The emperor Nero instituted a tax () on the urine industry, continued by his successor, Vespasian. The Latin saying Pecunia non olet ('money does not smell') is attributed to Vespasian – said to have been his reply to a complaint from his Titus about the unpleasant nature of the tax. Vespasian's name is still attached to public urinals in France (vespasiennes), Italy (vespasiani), and Romania (vespasiene).
Language
The English word urine (, ) comes from the Latin urina ( -ae, f.), which is cognate with ancient words in various Indo-European languages that concern water, liquid, diving, rain, and urination (for example Sanskrit meaning 'it rains' or meaning 'water' and Greek meaning 'to urinate'). The Onomatopoeia term piss predates the word urine, but is now considered vulgar.
Urinate was at first used mostly in medical contexts. Piss is also used in such colloquialisms as to piss off, piss poor, and the slang expression pissing down to mean heavy rain. and baby talk (such as wee, pee, number one and many others) have long existed.
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