Yoda, Amen. You can't argue with or fix stupid. God knows how many people have been sickened, injured or worse from watching those un"reality" shows. Especially since the first time these people try one of those things they learned, they are in a crisis situation and have no clue of what they are doing and don't know what they don't know. Gee, what could go wrong here?
It's a relatively simple matter to practice some of these basic skills at home to get a feel for how it's supposed to go, develop some muscle memory, as it were, prior to going into the wilds.
I am amazed at the woeful ineptitude of so many people who consider themselves to be "outdoorsmen" but could not survive one night out in the boonies without all of their creature comforts.

Is he trying to teach how to get out of situations? I feel Bear Grills is not out trying to say hey lets jump in a frozen lake, he is trying to say if you find your self in a frozen lake here is what to do. Some of his cliff climing is a little overwheleming but I feel most people know there limits.

From a retired ER RN, I may be able to shed some light on the drinking urine question. It is true that some cultures do engage in drinking urine without significant health risks, but in a survival situation, it's not a good idea. The kidneys filter out all sorts of stuff from your body that is not good for you, if you are not dehydrated these toxins will not be concentrated and not have all of the possible serious consequences. But,if you are dehydrated, the bad stuff can be very concentrated. The reason your body is getting rid of it is it's not good for you, and somebody is going to try to drink something that your body is rejecting? If you drink it your body will require more liquid to excrete the stuff you just took in. As your body gets dehydrated and starving for food, it will breakdown fat to obtain energy. A byproduct of fat breakdown are ketones, which can upset the acid base balance of your blood. You see this a lot with patients with uncontrolled diabetes, where it is called DKA or diabetic keto-acidosis. all of these require more liquid in order to compensate for the worsening condition. This is life threatening. Taking in ketones excreted in you urine can further exacerbate a breakdown in proper metabolism. That is to say it can kill you.

You are much better off peeing in the pit you made for your solar still and pure water will condense in the cup at the bottom (if you have done it right) I highly recommend that anyone who goes into the wilds learn how to make a solar still. It used to be kind of a standard in Army survival training. Parachute canopy can be used or a piece of plastic tarp,( I carry an 8'x8' 3-4 mil plastic tarp in my pack, doesn't take up much room and has a lot of uses)
For the people who survived drinking sea water or urine, they were lucky. Anecdotal evidence is very bad to cite as an example of how to do it. there are cases where people drank sea water and made it. Most who do that do not survive, but the reaction of the body is similar.

I thought that Bo's information was very interesting.

Good advice and I am glad I am not the only one fed up with the bogus information found on the survival show in question.

The last episode of "Man vs. Wild" that I watched was one a couple of years ago in which Bear Grills was supposedly body floating a mountain stream in the gear he had with him. It was obvious that he had a floatation device under his jacket. That was it for me. As for his long and arduous journeys to "get out", S&R experts are always going to tell lost hunters and fishermen to "stay put" as soon as they know they are lost. Hunker down, get a fire going, get some sort of shelter up, stay warm, hydrated and somehow signal your location. I don't ever see Mr. Gills doing much of that.

Thank you Bo, that is very important information. I liked the article.

Purplehead,
You got it. You will have a much better chance of being found by SAR if you follow those guidelines. Disregard those and you have a much better chance of being found by the carrion eaters, but you won't care, you'll be the carrion. For me, I'll take the SAR route, it's easier on my family, oh, and me.

Your article sets a lot of things straight for me. Thank you, Bo.

grmustangs, very good point. On that note, if you find yourself having to cook insects and you have a choice, go with grasshoppers. If you can catch enough to present a decent meal, cook them, in any container that can be sealed enough to keep them from jumping out, be it foil, a tin can with the lid still partially attached, an army mess kit that has the lid, whatever. You will know they are done to perfection when they turn red. After that, you can break off the legs. (they don't provide that much to the bulk and they get caught between your teeth. When you're already in less than optimal conditions, you don't any more annoyances.)
I would recommend that you try it before you go out so you have an idea how to do it. If you have kids you can make a game out of it, give them a prize or a surprise for the kid who catches the most. You don't need to tell them it's a gourmet treat. Hey at home you can melt chocolate and dip the bugs in it. The kid won't know until you tell them.