# Medical applications of urine

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medical-applications-of-urine/400225>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [April 15, 2007, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medical-applications-of-urine/400225 "2007-04-15T16:54:02Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![mudsharkymon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9f8e36/32.png) [@mudsharkymon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mudsharkymon)\
**Post date:** [April 15, 2007, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medical-applications-of-urine/400225/1 "2007-04-15T16:54:02Z")

</div>

In [http://www.straightdope.com/columns/070330.html](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/070330.html) (Can urinating on your feet in the shower cure athlete’s foot?) you point out that since urine is sterile it is not of any use to help cure athlete’s foot or any other skin condition.

I was surprised that you did not address the popular notion that urine be used on jelly-fish stings. Is that BS as well?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2007, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medical-applications-of-urine/400225/2 "2007-04-16T14:43:09Z")

</div>

[Old Wives’ Tale? Urine as Jellyfish Sting Remedy](http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=2283933&page=1) (abc news)  
Vinegar Works Best, Doctors Say  
By DR. ARCHANA REDDY - Aug. 8, 2006

> [@](#):
>
> Urine has not been scientifically proven to help in jellyfish stings, said Dr. Paul Auerbach, an emergency physician at Stanford University Hospital and an expert on jellyfish stings.
> 
> Instead, vinegar is the best first treatment, he said, when treating stings from North American jellyfish.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![essell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/34f0e0/32.png) [@essell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/essell)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2007, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medical-applications-of-urine/400225/3 "2007-04-16T17:34:15Z")

</div>

Have a look down the page, as we’ve been talking all about pee in [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=414646) thread, including the specific thing you’re asking about.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2007, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medical-applications-of-urine/400225/4 "2007-04-17T08:18:23Z")

</div>

[QUOTE=mudsharkymon]  
…you point out that since urine is sterile it is not of any use to help cure athlete’s foot or any other skin condition…  
[/QUOTE]  
Actually, the article doesn’t say that. It does say urine is (usually) sterile and it does say that it isn’t effective at curing fungal skin diseases, but it doesn’t link these two facts in the way you suggest.