Question

Miss Torres is stranded on an island with no fresh water; she decides to drink salty ocean water (gross). Would you support her decision or advise her against it? In your explanation, be sure to include the word homeostasis.

A) Support her decision because of homeostasis.
B) Advise against it due to homeostasis.
C) Support her decision despite homeostasis.
D) Advise against it without mentioning homeostasis.

Answer 1

Drinking salty ocean water can have negative effects on the body due to osmotic pressure, as it can draw water out of cells and worsen dehydration.

Step-by-step explanation:

Drinking salty ocean water can have negative effects on the body due to osmotic pressure. Seawater has a higher osmotic pressure than most bodily fluids, which means that it is hypertonic compared to our body fluids. When you drink seawater, it can actually draw water out of your cells, making you thirstier and leading to further dehydration.

This is because our bodies are capable of coping with hypotonic (lower solute concentration) solutions better than hypertonic ones. When we drink excess water, our kidneys collect it and excrete it. However, when we drink hypertonic seawater, the excess solutes need to be excreted, and water is drawn out of our cells to dilute the seawater.

In conclusion, I would advise against drinking salty ocean water due to osmotic pressure, as it can worsen dehydration instead of providing hydration.