# Why is the ocean salty? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 28, 2003, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994 "2003-05-28T12:27:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/1 "2003-05-28T12:27:19Z")
I’m probably going to give myself a big :smack: for asking this, but after spending Memorial Day at the beach (and getting a nice sunburn for my troubles, thank you) I started pondering this question. What is it that makes the ocean salty? And considering that’s it’s the habit of millions of creatures who expend their waste products, exactly how clean is it? (Exxon Valdez notwithstanding) ---
**Author:** ![DrLiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90ced4/32.png) [@DrLiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrLiver)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/2 "2003-05-28T12:42:34Z")
IANAmarine biologist but I’m pretty sure that the ocean is salty because of all the salt that is dilluted in it…(that’s NaCl and all sorts of other different salts and minerals that makes it taste salty) I have no idea how it all got in there though…and why it is all in the ocean and not in lakes and rivers… ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/3 "2003-05-28T12:44:19Z")
Cecil: [Why is the sea salty?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a880401.html) ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/4 "2003-05-28T13:40:31Z")
Thanks, **Desmostylus**. Now…about how clean the ocean is, with all the fish and whales and what not peeing in it… ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/5 "2003-05-28T13:47:27Z")
Well, no-one said you should _drink_ the stuff. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/6 "2003-05-28T14:20:03Z")
ivylass, the ocean is generally not clean as you know. It may appear so. I tested the water from our gutter pipes & also the water in the ocean locally & its loaded with e coli. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/7 "2003-05-28T14:38:59Z")
“I never drink water. Fish piss in it.” W.C. Fields ---
**Author:** ![kniz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/8 "2003-05-28T14:47:08Z")
Since salt water contains many minerals there is an obvious question with an equally obvious answer. [ul]**[li] Why ask about salt and not the other minerals[/li][li] Because salt is the mineral that we can taste.**[/ul][/li] Then there is this interesting fact, which should make one contemplate: **is it just a coincidence?** > [@](#): > > _from [**Immune Support.com**](http://www.immunesupport.com/news/97jul006.htm)_ > **The stable composition of minerals in ocean water is extremely similar to the stable composition of minerals in human blood.** ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/9 "2003-05-28T14:52:44Z")
Oceans are salty because God made them that way. 6000 years ago. Really. ---
**Author:** ![Mirage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Mirage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirage)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/10 "2003-05-28T15:39:35Z")
> [@](#): > > The stable composition of minerals in ocean water is extremely similar to the stable composition of minerals in human blood. The first cellular life began in the oceans over 3.6 billion years ago, and it is not surprising that it adapted to be comfortable and stable in it’s environment. When we left the seas we found sources of water and nutrients on dry land to keep the cells in the same homeostasis our original cells had discovered billions of years earlier. In fact, the mild salinity in our cells that is about half that of the modern ocean, is the same salinity as the primodial sea which spawned life billions of years earlier. ---
**Author:** ![kniz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/11 "2003-05-28T16:11:58Z")
[ul]😃 [sup] **See, I told you it was worth thinking about!** [/sup]\*\*[sub] **Thanks, Mirage** [/sub][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/12 "2003-05-28T16:54:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Desmostylus \* > \*\*Well, no-one said you should _drink_ the stuff. 😉 \*\* Well, of course not, but what about swimming in it with open cuts or sores? I think I’m just cranky from my sunburn, and not prone to think kindly of the ocean just now… ---
**Author:** ![Trigonal\_Planar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/0ea827/32.png) [@Trigonal\_Planar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trigonal_Planar)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/13 "2003-05-28T17:50:06Z")
I’m not sure if the ocean is salty enough, but saline solutions do kill bacteria. For example, your pee is actually not a source of bacteria at all, since its so salty. (BTW, salt kills bacteria due to its being isotropic with respect to living cells, which causes them to shrivel up and die.) ---
**Author:** ![El\_Marko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@El\_Marko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Marko)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/14 "2003-05-28T18:15:46Z")
When I was a kid, I remember going to the ocean regularly. Frequently, I (being a kid at the time) had various cuts and abrasions and while it stings pretty badly when you first go into the water, generally the wounds were cleaner and healed more quickly after some time in the ocean. I think it’s generally accepted that swimming in the ocean is good for cuts and open sores. ---
**Author:** ![hoynt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@hoynt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hoynt)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/15 "2003-05-28T19:16:08Z")
I masterbate at Big Sur once and a while… ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/16 "2003-05-28T19:42:18Z")
The ocean has a self cleaning quality- plenty of microorganisms live in it, but most are harmless, and many digest and eliminate bacteria from sewage, fish poo etc. However this process takes time, so areas near sewage outfalls can be full of fecal coliformes and other nasties. Toxic algae blooms present another danger- there are several organisations which monitor the health of seawater, notably (in Europe) the [Blue Flag Campaign](http://www.blueflag.org/). Presumably you could find similar organisations in the Americas. ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-ocean-salty/177994/17 "2003-05-28T22:08:38Z")
> [@](#): > > from Immune [Support.com](http://Support.com) > The stable composition of minerals in ocean water is extremely similar to the stable composition of minerals in human blood. Hmm, I’d take that wih a grain of salt. For starters they seem to be selling mineral supplements, which tests have repeatedly shown most peope don’t need. The other problem is what they mean by a ‘mineral’ and what they mean by ‘stable’. The levels of iron and sodium in the blood for example are nowhere near the levels found in the ocean. Certainly not extremely similar. The logic itself is flawed. Given that human ancestors left the ocean X billion years ago, I can’t see any reason why our blood would look anything like the composition of today’s oceans. > [@](#): > > I’m not sure if the ocean is salty enough, but saline solutions do kill bacteria. For example, your pee is actually not a source of bacteria at all, since its so salty. Not quite. Some bacteria will die if exposed to saline solutions. Of course some will die if exposed to pure water. Most bacteria will quite happily exists in normal saline or oceanic concentrations with no problems at all. Bacteria have various ways of coping with these problems. Pickling brine is made at saturated concentrations for a reason: anything less wouldn’t preserve the food. Urine isn’t particularly salty. In many westerners it’s slightly less saline than blood. In those people who are not overhydrated the urine becomes hypertonic, but not to any great degree. It’s about 1.5x blood concentrations IIRC. Given that your skin surface commonly has salt concentrations 10 times the concentration of blood, the salinity of urine isnt going to kill even the common skin bacteria. Urine is fairly sterile simply because there’s nothing much in the urethra for microbes to live on. Urine is a waste product, not a food source. The salt and a few other substances do act as antimicrobials to a small degree. The lack of nutrients couple with regular flushing keeps the plumbing about as clean as your household plumbing, and for the same reason. Ask anyone who’s ever had a urinary infection (where the urine isn’t sterile) ad they’ll tell you that the bugs in the urethra are forced to eat the host rather than the urine.