Final answer:
Dehydration leads to increased concentration of solutes in urine, resulting in a higher specific gravity. Dehydration reduces the water available to dilute the urine, causing a decrease in urine volume and an increase in solute concentration, which in turn increases its specific gravity.
Step-by-step explanation:
Dehydration would likely increase the specific gravity of urine. Specific gravity is a measure of the concentration of solutes in urine. When the body is dehydrated, there is less water available to dilute the urine, leading to a higher concentration of solutes, primarily urea and other wastes. This higher concentration translates to a higher specific gravity. The normal range of specific gravity for urine is between 1.0050 g/mL to 1.030 g/mL. A value above this range suggests that urine is more concentrated, which can occur due to dehydration, among other causes.
In contrast, conditions that increase urine production, like diabetes insipidus or mellitus, can also lead to variations in specific gravity. For instance, in diabetes mellitus, despite the increased volume of urine, the specific gravity also rises due to the presence of glucose. However, in the context of dehydration, the specific gravity of urine increases due to the lower overall fluid intake and subsequently less urine volume, leading to a higher solute concentration in the urine that remains.