does green tea count as water intake?

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  • TheDreadPirateRoberts
    TheDreadPirateRoberts Posts: 225 Member
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    ALL tea and coffee counts!! Google it! Yes they are very MILD diuretics, but not so much that you lose anything significant. So YES, You can and SHOULD count tea and coffee. You should also count water in your food towards your 8 a day.

    You also need to realise that this "8 a day" figure was arbitary and is NOT a one size fits all. If you are in a cold climate doing sod all, then you dont need that much and if you are in a hot place exercising you need more (and salt). So, what you SHOULD do is drink when you are thirsty. You can also look at the colour of your urine. If it is light coloured (straw) then you are hydrated. If its not, then you are dehydrated (simplisic but true)

    Alcohol does NOT count towards your water intake as it screws up the loop of Henle's (part of the body that determines how much urine you should produce) actions and you end up urinating far more than you should as a conseqence (via inhibiting ADH).

    So, yes tea and coffee count as does water in your food. Alcohol doesn't. 8 glasses is an average that is not suitable for all. Google it for more information, because a lot of people on this site just go with information they hear from others rather than checking it.

    Example Link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/treatments/healthy_living/nutrition/healthy_caff.shtml
  • TheDreadPirateRoberts
    TheDreadPirateRoberts Posts: 225 Member
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    When I was doing Weight Watchers years ago they said anything that did NOT have caffeine. I think green tea does.

    WW clearly didnt have a clue what they were on about then, as that is not accurate.
  • TheDreadPirateRoberts
    TheDreadPirateRoberts Posts: 225 Member
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    When your thirsty that means your body is already dehydrated, you should really drink water prior to this, so you don't become dehydrated...

    Again, not true. The thirst mechanism is designed to stop you becoming dehydrated. it kicks in when you need water and not when you are dehydrated. Google it. Latest medical advice on this subject is to drink when you are thirsty and not try to drink a set amount of water a day.
  • TheDreadPirateRoberts
    TheDreadPirateRoberts Posts: 225 Member
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    Green tea counts as water if it's decaf. Caffeine is considered a diuretic so your body will flush it out. Even though green tea has about 1/3 the amount of caffeine as coffee does you still should not cosider it as water. Even the "Dr. Bernstein" diet considers decaf coffee as water but only one time per day. Green tea on the other hand has so many good qualities in it you can consider it as water (again, only if it's decaf). I've also read however that too much green tea isn't good for you. 2-3 cups a day is a good amount.

    Caffeine is a very mild diuretic. It has a very negligible affect and will certainly not result in the body "flushing it out". Green tea (and normal tea and coffee) is considered as liquid and whomever Dr Bernstein is, he is talking unscientific crap. Green tea has a lot of benefits over regular tea.
  • grrrlface
    grrrlface Posts: 1,204 Member
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    I count everything except alcohol as every drink I consume is made primarily of water.

    Difference is, if I drink a bottle of cola vs. a glass of water, I will log the cola as calories as well. It might not be the best thing to drink but it is still primarily made from water.

    That and if I drank other drinks + 8 glasses of water a day I would never leave the bathroom! :P
  • TheDreadPirateRoberts
    TheDreadPirateRoberts Posts: 225 Member
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    No, Tea is not water PERIOD!! You should ONLY be counting water as water or you are really cheating yourself.

    Also not true. Again... look it up. Dont just quote stuff you heard somewhere.
  • determinedbutlazy
    determinedbutlazy Posts: 1,941 Member
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    This whole "tea is a diuretic" thing is such bull****.
    Anything that makes you PEE is a diuretic... WATER is a diuretic.
  • migookmelissa
    migookmelissa Posts: 2 Member
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    Drinking green tea (no sugar) is one the best things you can do for your body. It hydrates you just as well as water (arguably better) and it also has detoxifying properties. The idea that the caffeine in green tea will dehydrate you is a complete myth! Even if you made the strongest cup of green tea know to man, it still would have a high enough water content to offset any possible dehydrating effects. I believe the point of tracking your water is to show yourself that you are staying properly hydrated, which supports fitness and overall well being.

    In short--go ahead and track that green tea as water! You earned it!

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