Urine

1. Wipe or rinse out the mouth.
2. Give a serving size of water to drink.
3. Rinse any exposed skin with lukewarm water and soap.
4. Call 1-800-222-1222 for additional instructions.

Most of our poisoning questions about urine involve accidental ingestions by children. Sometimes when left unsupervised in the bathroom, children will play in the toilet and ingest taste amounts of urine. Also, children will tear at their diapers and eat some of the larger polymer beads that are full of urine. This is not toxic, but the beads can be a choking hazard to the child, but the small amounts of pee is not expected to cause any symptoms. While this is unpleasant to think about, overall only minimal symptoms are expected from this misadventure.

In ancient folk medicine, it was thought there could be some health benefits to drinking urine, and this advice still comes up periodically on TV shows and internet forums. To be clear, there is no known health benefit from this practice. Drinking it can introduce bacteria into your system which may cause stomach upset, nausea, and vomiting. Urine comprises of water and waste products the body tries to eliminate from our systems. Ingesting urine re-introduces these waste products back into the body, putting stress on the kidneys and may ultimately lead to dehydration or possible kidney damage.

If you find your child ingesting urine do not panic. Wipe out the mouth with a soft, wet cloth and give them some water to drink. Wash any skin exposed to the urine with soap and water. If problems start or you have questions, call the Missouri Poison Center right away at 1-800-222-1222. The poison center is open all day, every day for poisoning emergencies and questions.

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