Coffee & tea as a water count

ido10612

I try to drink 8 glasses of water a day. Its hard. I usually can get around 5 or 6 glasses. Does the "8 glasses of water a day" rule apply to other liquids or just water. I like to drink green tea (nothing added) and black coffee. Can i count that as water?

jpatrickwinstead

The 8 glasses a day thing is a myth. There's no science behind it at all. Drink when you're thirsty.

Yes, coffee and tea count.

TDGee

No, they do not count. Both are caffeinated, which will help to dehydrate you. Water is important and essential.

bprague

I only count my tea if I don't add any sweeteners to it. It's really personal preference. I do however stand by at least 8 cups of water a day. A lot of people can't even tell when they are thirsty and mistake it for hunger. I know when I get thirsty I start to want to eat fruit. It took me a while to realize that if I drank some water, suddenly I had no desire for that fruit. It's kind of cool how your body does that. Anyway, if you do 8 cups of water a day, you can retrain your body to recognize thirst as... well thirst.

Good luck!


Edit: I should note my tea is non-caffeinated green tea oolong variety

LivLovLrn

my (naturopathic) doc told me you can count 1/2 of how much green tea you drink as water intake (so you could count 4 ounces of an 8 ounce cup) but nothing else counts.
I don't agree that it's a myth. I definitely notice feeling better when I drink more water; though some days I don't get my 8/8 and don't worry about it.

McKayMachina

No, they do not count. Both are caffeinated, which will help to dehydrate you. Water is important and essential.

Not entirely true.

Green tea, for example (the real stuff, not the bottled crap), is not enough of a diuretic to negatively affect your water intake. I count green tea and my OceanSpray On-the-Go mix-in drink powders and such. Coffee, usually not.

Elleinnz

As you would have noticed everyone is different - I personally add the green tea I drink - but not coffee...

KevDaniel

The truth lies somewhere in the middle, while tea and coffee are not ideal sources of water they certainly count for a portion of your water intake. The balance still lies on the water side and it does not negate the water.

PaulaJKelly

I won't weigh in on whether 8 glasses of water is absolutely necessary. I found 10 glasses to be better for me personally. It was a good way to "fill the tank" with something other than the junk I probably wanted in the beginning. My thoughts on coffee is that it is a diuretic which means it makes you release more liquids than retain them. Green tea - you will have to do some research to find out if it acts as a diuretic as well. You could flavor your water with a little lemon or lime. I think you will be best served if you can get 8 glasses of water daily. Wishing you all the best in your journey to become healthier.

RoanneRed

The 8 glasses a day thing is a myth. There's no science behind it at all. Drink when you're thirsty.

Yes, coffee and tea count.

It's my understanding that if you're already thirsty then you should have taken some fluids earlier.

I also recently heard that caffeine is not dehydrating if you are a regular drinker so believe some of a coffee could be couted towards water intake although I don't bother myself.

ShellyMacchi

The 8 glasses a day thing is a myth. There's no science behind it at all. Drink when you're thirsty.

Yes, coffee and tea count.

speaking from personal experience water sure does count... in fact i personally 'need' 12 glasses of water a day... anything less and my skin suffers, and quite bluntly i become constipated, and i 'feel' hungry even when there is no reason for me to do so, (since most people mistake hunger for thirst when the body is 'used' to being dehydrated).
The body needs plenty of water for all it's functions to work as intended.
When i drink too little water my weekly weight loss also declines.

And yes, it was my Dr who made me see the light about this. i trust him.

annacataldo

only if the tea/coffee is decaf, not caffeinated. it will dehydrate your water if you dont.

i drink half of my body weight in water a day (16 cups), but if i work out, its hot out, i have excess sodium, or drink caffeine, i have to drink extra, so im usually around 20cups a day.

flavor water with fruit (pineapple, orange, lemon, etc).

also food can count towards water, but you wont know how much... things like rice, noodles, cucumber, mushrooms, carrots, watermelon, cantaloupe and tons of other fruits and veggies all have water in them that will add to your water intake... if you eat completely fresh then that will help with water too.

MelissaL582

I personally don't count coffee or tea towards my water intake- but that's just me. I've seen some people count their tea if nothing is added. Have you tried those MIO drink mixers? My husband has to use that, it's the only way he'll drink water.

bgelliott

You can't count anything as water if it's not water. Yes teas and coffee are liquids but it's not water and will not hydrate the way water does! I drink my weight in ounces daily if I can which is roughly a gallon of water a day and I have 2 cups of coffee and 1 tea as well. I don't even count the water mixed in my protein as part of my daily intake.

bitonech

The 8 glasses a day thing is a myth. There's no science behind it at all. Drink when you're thirsty.

Yes, coffee and tea count.

The following book (written by a Dr.) is about the scientific research he has done over the years. http://www.watercure.com/ In his book he explains how when you drink coffee the amount of liquid you expel is more than the amount you consumed. Whereas with water it is a 1 to 1 ratio. Thus coffee and more specifically caffeine dehydrates your body. So, I personally do not count any caffeinated beverages as water consumed.

As towards the 8 glasses a day... We should all consume at least 50% of our body weight (lbs) in ounces of water per day. So, yes if you are less than 120 lbs then you do not need 8 - 8 oz glasses a day. The average adult is more than 120 lbs so that is why they recommend that you should get at least 8 glasses of water a day.

I also personally only count pure water or water with a sugar substituted flavoring as my daily consumed water... anything else like fruit juice is just extra.

And by the way... your mouth being thirsty is the first symptom of dehydration. So once your brain says "I'm thirsty" your already dehydrated.

RangerSteve

Some serious mis-information in here.

Coffee and tea do not dehydrate you to the point where you're peeing out more than you drink. This would only be true if you're taking straight espresso shots. If you drink a 16oz cup of coffee, you're not going to pee all the water out that comes with it. You can also hydrate yourself with fruits like grapefruit and watermelon as well since they're mostly water. Does it count towards the old wives tale of the MUST HAVE 8 glasses a day? No, but who cares anyway, that's just a myth in the first place.

Even if you don't drink enough water, vasopressin and aldosterone will kick in to make sure your body re-absorbs every last bit it can.

This forum really needs to stop with the dietary myths.

DreamLittleDarling

The human body is 70% water. Water is essential to live. Period.


"myth" ...where do you people come up with this stuff?!

Nette_54

The 8 glasses a day thing is a myth. There's no science behind it at all. Drink when you're thirsty.

Yes, coffee and tea count.

No it is not a myth in fact if you are thirsty then you are already dehydrated. I did see on telly that Doctor Oz said we didn't need to actually drink 8 glasses of water as there is water in some of the foods we have like fruit and vegies but personally I cannot see how they can be counted. It is hard to get that amount of water drunk and I don't succeed myself most days but the best thing I find to do is to have a bottle of water where ever I go and I tend to drink more then

kyle4jem

The human body is 70% water. Water is essential to live. Period.

It's not just humans. All natural things contain water, so that includes fruit, veg, meat, fish, etc. even dry bread contains some water (weigh a bagel dry then toast it and see how the weight fluctuates!)

Yes it is important to take in fluids, but everything in moderation and that goes for water. Personally, I probably don't drink enough fresh water, but I have 2-3 cups of coffee a day, a couple of glasses of juice and a couple of diet soda. I don't pee a lot, so I'm not losing more water than I take in.

I drink my weight in ounces daily if I can which is roughly a gallon of water a day

Sorry, but that sounds scary. I'm 1,64m (5' 4") weigh 113kg (249lbs) if I were to drink 249floz of pure water that would be like 7 litres a day and as I'm not doing lengthy workouts each day, I think that would surely tip me into the realms of water intoxification. :sick:

I think we should all probably drink a few more glasses of water a day than we're used to, but whether that is 8 cups (8 x 8floz ca. 1.8l) or 5 or 15 cups depends on the individual, whether or not they are exercising, the heat and humidity levels etc. :drinker:

"myth" ...where do you people come up with this stuff?!

Mostly from the Internet… that’s why so many links are being quoted :bigsmile:

jpatrickwinstead

I'm not saying you shouldn't drink water, I'm saying that the "rule" about 8 glasses a day is a myth. It's just an arbitrary number than doesn't take into account your body size, environment, level of activity, or the amount of water contained in the food you eat.

--The "8 glasses a day" thing came from a study done in the '40's which suggested people need about 2 liters per day. What is never repeated is the second half of that sentence which states that "much of this can be gained from the solid food we eat." Remember chicken is 54% water, ground beef is 53%, even white bread is 30% water.

--Caffeine is a diuretic, but only in large quantities. You'd have to drink an enormous amount of tea or coffee for it to have any appreciable affect on fluid levels.

--"If you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated" is also a myth. Part of the function of your kidneys and endocrine system is to maintain proper blood density levels. Our thirst mechanism kicks in if blood becomes concentrated by more than about 2%; symptoms of dehydration appear at blood concentrations of about 5%. People (not to mention every other animal species on earth) have survived just fine for millions of years without a camelbak strapped to them.

If you aren't in the habit of drinking water, then maybe it'll be helpful to have a goal amount to drink everyday, at least until you get into the habit. But it's not a "rule". Drinking when you're thirsty works just fine - assuming that you aren't all messed up from drinking sodas and other garbage all the time. It's how your body is supposed to work.

jpatrickwinstead

The following book (written by a Dr.) is about the scientific research he has done over the years. http://www.watercure.com/ In his book he explains how when you drink coffee the amount of liquid you expel is more than the amount you consumed.

This guy didn't do "research", he did speculation and then wrote a book about it. He's been discredited. Google it.

TubbsMcGee

No, they do not count. Both are caffeinated, which will help to dehydrate you. Water is important and essential.

If they're decaffeinated, then yes, they should count as your water consumption.

I always add the water in my tea to my water intake---HOWEVER, there is no "scientific evidence" supporting the golden 8 glass a day rule. Simply listen to your body and drink when you're thirsty.

Tell tale sign to know if you're dehydrated is to check the colour of your urine. If it's dark, you need to drink more water.
Urine Dehydration Charts are posted in the bathrooms overseas in Afghanistan for the troops. I don't think they count how many bottles of water they drink a day.

Qarol

This is a hot topic for some people.

I think there are benefits to drinking plain water. Not flavored, not any other beverages. Plain water. So I log that. If I drink something else, I put that into my food diary. Coffee has calories. Diet Soda has sodium. Sure, these help with my general hydration, but I don't get the same benefits as plain water.

And even if something says decaffeinated, it usually retains some caffeine.

marquesajen

There alot of differing opinions about it, obviously, but for my part I drink either iced green tea or herbal tea with a tiny bit of honey when I'm at work. I count it as my glasses of water, but I also drink water when I'm at home.

kimmerroze

For more on this endless debate please Log onto myfitnesspal.com Click on the message boards search feature and use the key words "Does coffee and tea count as water"

Here you will find many a post about this topic. One could read until they shriveled up from dehydration!

(just make sure to down a glass or two of espresso followed by a beer or two to rehydrate yourself):drinker:




....Kiddng, but seriously, drink your friggin water.