Science question: Is it easier for your body to absorb plain or salt water?
Most of the water on our planet is salt water, yet we don’t drink it. Let’s use gummy worms to show how different types of water are absorbed by our body.
Supplies needed:
- Ruler
- 6 gummy worms
- Paper and pencil
- 2 glass bowls
- 2/3 cup (160ml) warm water
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Spoon
The experiment
With the ruler, measure the length of the gummy worms. Write this on a piece of paper. In a bowl, combine 1/3 cup (80ml) of the water and salt, and mix together with a spoon. Add the remaining 1/3 cup of water to the other bowl. Write which bowl is which on a piece of paper and place under the bowl. Put three gummy worms in each bowl. Let the worms sit in the bowls for a couple of hours.
Pull out the worms and measure them again. Are your worms bigger?
The Outcome:
The gummy worms in both bowls absorbed water. However, the worms in the plain water absorbed more water and grew much larger than the worms in the salt water.
Why it worked:
When gummy worms are added to water, the water molecules move through the tiny holes in the surface of the candy. The gelatin keeps the gummy worms from dissolving.
Critical thinking:
Plain water is easier for our bodies to absorb. That’s why we don’t drink salt water.
Source: The 101 Coolest Simple Science Experiments by Rachel Miller, Holly Home and Jamie Harrington.