Urination is a normal bodily process that occurs as a natural consequence of metabolism but what exactly is the process. Urine is the excess liquid wastes eliminated by the body. Humans eliminate liquid wastes in one of two ways, urination and perspiration (sweating). There is an entire system in the body dedicated to the elimination of soluble wastes. This system is called the urinary system. The urinary system is made up of the kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra. When food, liquids and drugs are taken into the body, they first pass through the digestive system, where they are broken down for absorption. The nutrients and chemicals then circulate through the blood stream. The body then sends excess liquid and nutrients that are not needed to the kidneys for filtration. The excess includes chemicals from drugs and medications. That is why so many drug side effects concern the kidneys and may eventually lead to kidney damage. The kidneys spend their entire life filtering waste products such as drugs. The fluid that remains after kidney filtration contains a variety of compounds, but is mostly made of a substance called urea. Urea is actually odorless until it mixes with the water left over in the kidneys and then it has an ammonia type smell. The urea, water and other compounds are what forms urine. The urine passes from long tubes called ureters that are connected from the kidney to the bladder. The bladder is a small sac that contains all of the urine. When the bladder is full, nerves in the lining of the bladder send a signal through the spinal nerves to the spinal cord, up to the brain. Your brain then lets you know that it is time to empty the bladder. (On a side note, the nervous system (brain, spinal nerves and spinal cord) not only controls this important response, but also controls the function of the kidneys and, for that matter, the function of every other system in the body.) Once the bladder is full and it is time to void, the urine flows through a small tube called the urethra. The urethra connects to the outside of the body via the genitals and that is how urine is eliminated. Despite what you may think, urine by itself is not toxic to the body. It does have some components that can be irritating to the eyes and skin but, overall, it is not harmful. Water treatment plants can process urine and extract suitable water for drinking. From a healthcare perspective, urine is an extremely important window into how the body is functioning. An in depth urinalysis can reveal hidden problems with a person's overall health, not to mention show drugs a person has taken into his or her body. Another urinalysis, which can be done on a daily basis, is simpler in nature and does not require going to a lab for. I'm speaking, of course, about assessing the color of your urine. Why is this important? Well, as we talked about in a previous post, hydration is an essential part of enhanced health. Urine can be a fantastic indicator to assess your level of hydration. A rule of thumb we give our patients is the more yellow your urine is by mid-afternoon the more dehydrated you are and the more clear your urine is the more hydrated you are. Pretty simple. We hope you found this post insightful and hopefully you'll never look at urination the same again!
