What is the result of drinking salt water?

• A. It will hydrate you
• B. It will dehydrate you
• C. It will taste sweet
• D. It will cause immediate vomiting

Answer: (B)

Drinking seawater dehydrates you because its salt content is far higher than what your body can use for hydration. Seawater is about 3.5% salt, so when you drink it, your kidneys must work to excrete that excess salt. To flush out the salt, they produce urine that is still salty, which requires more water than you gained from the drink. Water is pulled from the body’s tissues to dilute and excrete the salt, leading to a net loss of total body water. The overall effect is dehydration, not hydration. It isn’t reliably tasting sweet, and vomiting isn’t an automatic immediate result, though it can occur in some situations.