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Urine

Urine is a liquid by-product of metabolism in humans and in many other animals. In placental mammals, urine flows from the kidneys through the ureters to the urinary bladder and is released from the bladder through the urethra during urination. In other vertebrates, urine is excreted through the cloaca.[1]

Urine contains water-soluble by-products of cellular metabolism that are rich in nitrogen and must be cleared from the bloodstream, such as urea, uric acid, and creatinine. A urinalysis can detect nitrogenous wastes of the mammalian body.


Urine plays an important role in the earth's nitrogen cycle. In balanced ecosystems, urine fertilizes the soil and thus helps plants to grow. Therefore, urine can be used as a fertilizer. Some animals use it to mark their territories. Historically, aged or fermented urine (known as lant) was also used for gunpowder production, household cleaning, tanning of leather and dyeing of textiles.


Human urine and feces are collectively referred to as human waste or human excreta, and are managed via sanitation systems. Livestock urine and feces also require proper management if the livestock population density is high.

Characteristics

Quantity

Average urine production in adult humans is around 1.4 L (0.31 imp gal; 0.37 US gal) of urine per person per day with a normal range of 0.6 to 2.6 L (0.13 to 0.57 imp gal; 0.16 to 0.69 US gal) per person per day, produced in around 6 to 8 urinations per day depending on state of hydration, activity level, environmental factors, weight, and the individual's health.[4] Producing too much or too little urine needs medical attention. Polyuria is a condition of excessive production of urine (> 2.5 L/day), oliguria when < 400 mL are produced, and anuria being < 100 mL per day.

Language

The English word urine (/ˈjuːrɪn/, /ˈjɜːrɪn/) comes from the Latin urina (-ae, f.), which is cognate with ancient words in various Indo-European languages that concern water, liquid, diving, rain, and urination (for example Sanskrit varṣati meaning 'it rains' or vār meaning 'water' and Greek ourein meaning 'to urinate').[59] The onomatopoetic term piss predates the word urine, but is now considered vulgar.[60][61] Urinate was at first used mostly in medical contexts. Piss is also used in such colloquialisms as to piss off,[60] piss poor, and the slang expression pissing down to mean heavy rain. Euphemisms and expressions used between parents and children (such as wee, pee, and many others) have long existed.


Lant is a word for aged urine, originating from the Old English word hland referring to urine in general.

(urophagia)

Drinking urine

Ureotelic

Urine therapy

an attraction to urine

Urolagnia

Archived 2007-01-17 at the Wayback Machine at the University of Utah Eccles Health Sciences Library

Urinanalysis

at drugs.com

Urine Chemistry