Water intake, Does Tea count and Coffee???

Yogi_Carl

I've just made another cup of tea.

Can one of you graduates above show me where structurally the components of tea connect with the molecule H2O please. I cannot see how anything in tea can structurally change water.

marycmeadows

IMO - tea/coffee DO NOT COUNT as water - if they have caffeine they act as a diuretic which dehydrates you. Decaf is fine to count as water.

water is water. just drink water, it's not that hard.

coffee_rocks

This thread is the reason I:

a) don't log my water at all.

b) stopped accepting friend requests.

I got tired of the endless little messages on my wall about either how much water they had consumed that day (just hit 188oz for today...52 to go!) or the stupid messages that I'm not drinking enough water, and my coffee doesn't count.

Yesterday I drank 2 large coffees, a glass of milk and a couple of glasses of water. Shockingly, I still woke up, alive and well, this morning. Now, where is my Starbucks card? I'm parched.

MarcieSwitzer

According to my doctor, who is a very bright woman, as long as there is no aspartame, sugar, milk, etc in coffee or tea it is all water. Other research I have done indicates the diuretic effect of the caffeine in tea and coffee has little to no effect on the amount of water consumed. After forty years of insisting only water could be counted as water, even Weight Watchers with their nutritionists have determined the water in everything is water: even milk can be counted as consuming water, although the calories have to be counted as points. If you factor in the awesome antioxidants from tea (all of them) its like taking a multivitamin or herbal supplement with your water. Even coffee, which has taken hits from time to time from the scientific community, has been determined to be very safe and actually good for you. If you add cream, milk, or sugar, you'd need to log that as well.

Amberonamission

I don't count anything with caffeine or calories or artificial sweeteners.

MarcieSwitzer

Tea and Coffee are both duratics which by function, increase water excretion, so you're kind of sabotaging yourself.

Water is also a diuretic (it also increases water excretion). Therefore drinking water sabotages yourself.


:noway:

Absolutely true, it is the reason we drink water, to flush out the toxins, but if someone is "holding water" from sodium the first thing the doctor says is: drink more water (unless you have known kidney issues then they look for other issues).

FitBeto

Beer counts too right? And soda?

rml_16

IMO - tea/coffee DO NOT COUNT as water - if they have caffeine they act as a diuretic which dehydrates you. Decaf is fine to count as water.

water is water. just drink water, it's not that hard.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/caffeinated-drinks/AN01661

Researchers used to believe that caffeinated drinks had a diuretic effect. This means that you would urinate more after drinking them, which could increase your risk of becoming dehydrated. Recent research shows that this is not true and that caffeine has a diuretic effect only if you consume large amounts of it — more than 500 to 600 milligrams (the equivalent of 5 to 7 cups of coffee) a day.

emilynicole02

You're shortchanging your body if you count tea and other garbage as water. WATER counts as water. Nothing else.

So are you trying to tell me if you were to add a packet of crystal lite, or some other flavoring to your water, you wouldn't then count that water bottle either???? Tea CAN be counted as water as long as you don't add anything extra to it. Tea Is NOT garbage!! Silly silly girl.

dawson55510

I dont drink tea or coffee imo i wouldnt count tea and defo not coffee as hydration liquid for the body

rml_16

You're shortchanging your body if you count tea and other garbage as water. WATER counts as water. Nothing else.

So are you trying to tell me if you were to add a packet of crystal lite, or some other flavoring to your water, you wouldn't then count that water bottle either???? Tea CAN be counted as water as long as you don't add anything extra to it. Tea Is NOT garbage!! Silly silly girl.

Why does adding something extra to it make it not water anymore? Yes, you need to count any calories from sweeteners or milk, but you're still getting the water. If you want to tick it off, you can.

billsica

Two words: whole house humidifier

Amberonamission

Two words: whole house humidifier

three words

braebrae2001

I started p90x 4 days ago>>> I also started using the food tracker recomended...I feel bloated...I think im eating way too much.........Havent gained pounds but my stomach is really bloated....I eat so much at times i feel like im going to get sick....Is this normal?

gwenmf

Think about this logically: Adding tea (or any flavoring) to water does not change the water into anything else.

Many people choose not to count those things, but their bodies still recognize the water.

And LMAO at classifying tea as "garbage."

I agree with this ^

Most things I've read, if it's caffeine free and calorie free, it can count towards water.

trud72

:drinker: my dietition says it does count as water....

rml_16

Think about this logically: Adding tea (or any flavoring) to water does not change the water into anything else.

Many people choose not to count those things, but their bodies still recognize the water.

And LMAO at classifying tea as "garbage."

I agree with this ^

Most things I've read, if it's caffeine free and calorie free, it can count towards water.

If it has caffeine and calories, it still hydrates you and can count towards water. You just have to also count the calories.

agthorn

...Don't you just love how people try to sound smart, when they have no clue what they are talking about?

Oh, the irony.

I'm sorry, did the big words confuse you, or do I need to provide references so you can fact check? Just curious, did you Graduate Cum Laude from College, and honors from HS?

I did, and then I got a PhD from one of the top research institutions in the country.

So, when you say "It's a chemical reaction therefore it does change the molecular properties of the water." - the water changes from H2O to what, exactly?

And when you said " Notice such words as "oxidation," "hydrogen acceptors," and "hydrogen donors." All indicate a chemical reaction between the tea and water." - these are all reactions between the compounds and enzymes in the tea (assisted by the heat of the water), not between the tea and the water.

And when you said "To simplify this, if it was a "physical" reaction, you could draw the tea out of the water by reverse osmosis like you could get the salt, sugar, or even lemon juice out of water." - well, yeah you could. If you leave a cup of tea out for a long time, the water will eventually evaporate and leave the dissolved tea compounds behind.

DebbieLyn63

Wow, just wow. Can't believe some of the crazy thinking of some people on this site.

Anything that has water as an ingredient is still water. Your body doesn't know that you added tea, or coffee, or milk, crystal light, mio, soup, or anything else to the water.

Excessive amounts of caffeine can be dehydrating, and high levels of sodium in your diet, whether it is added to your 'water' or is in other foods you eat, can cause water retention, so in those cases you may want to drink extra water, but stating that water is no longer water if you add anything to it, is just ridiculous.

Even beer, is mostly water, however the effect of alcohol on your liver is a whole different story.

I count all of my half-caff coffee, iced tea, milk, soup, and even my occasional diet ginger ale, as my 8 cups of water goal. No need to be so anal about it.

ihad

Here's a good article from the Mayo clinic on the topic.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/water/NU00283