Re: Could a human survive on D2O? -Reply

[presley.j@atomcon.gc.ca]

     Fellow Radsafers,
     
     The question of survivability when drinking pure
     D2O was a question which came up during training
     while I was with Ontario Hydro.
     (As you probably know, Ontario Hydro operates
     a few Heavy Water production plants).
     
     From what I remember (its a few years now),
     we were told that if a human was to drink pure D2O
     only, the D2O concentration in the body would gradually
     increase.
     At the level of approximately 50% D2O the person would die
     apparently due to "metabolic problems".
     How this value was determined I'm not sure.
     
     I presume some animal studies were done at somewhere
     like Chalk River. Anyone at CRL know ?
     
     Jim Presley
     presley.j@atomcon.gc.ca