The science of saline – why can we drink pure water, but when we put water into our bodies in other ways, like an IV, must we add minerals to it?

Question

The science of saline – why can we drink pure water, but when we put water into our bodies in other ways, like an IV, must we add minerals to it?

In: 480

Answer 1

I mean you really can’t/don’t drink “pure water”. Ever.

Any drinking water has mineral content still in it. The distilled water you see in the stores alongside drinking water is different, this is pure H20, used for things like CPAP machines. I’m not sure what exactly will happen if you only drank distilled water but it wouldn’t be good lol.

Water that’s salinated, be it medical grade or just salt water from the sea, has a much, much higher saline content than what we drink that’s why your body can’t tolerate it.