Question

Why do we call water the universal solvent? All life, as we know it, needs water. What is the importance, relative to water being a universal solvent, to living systems?

Answer 1

• Water is the essential part of our living world.It can dissolve more substances than any other liquid and due to this property,water is known as the Universal solvent.
• Water has a major role in most of the biological processes.Water helps in the movement and utilization of substances like oxygen and nutrients.
• Water also dissolves many salts and organic molecules such as simple alcohols,sugars,salts,proteins etc and also dissolves many gases such as oxygen and carbon dioxide and all these processes are important for the proper functioning of a living organism.
• We all know that blood is a water based solution which helps to carry molecules to the specific locations and also it helps in the action of drugs in our body.
• Kidney has a vital role in filtering the substances that enter in our body through food and drinks.Here water has an important role.It helps the kidneys through dissolving the waste substances and remove waste from our body in the form of urine.
• In case of plants, water dissolves soil minerals and transport them from the roots to the leaves and other part of the plant.Product of photosynthesis (carbohydrates) dissolves in water and carried to various parts of the plant through phloem.
• Being a universal solvent,water has an important role in the living world.Life on the earth is dependent on fluid water.