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Water versus coffee

MyIdaho54
MyIdaho54 Posts: 81 Member
edited February 9 in Food and Nutrition
I consume lots of black coffee per day (nothing added). Do I still need to drink at least 8 glasses of water per day? My family Doc thinks the extra water is not necessary. Agree?

Replies

  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.
  • FredDoyle
    FredDoyle Posts: 2,272 Member
    I agree with your doctor. the diuretic effect of coffee is minimal unless you drink a large amount.
    It certainly hydrates you and that is the desired effect. So does tea, soda pop, milk, beer and food.
  • Charlottesometimes23
    Charlottesometimes23 Posts: 687 Member
    I would agree, unless there's been some more recent evidence. This review article says that people seem to develop a tolerance to any diuretic effects. It concludes that there is no evidence that consumption as part of a normal lifestyle leads to fluid losses above those ingested.

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19774754
  • RllyGudTweetr
    RllyGudTweetr Posts: 2,019 Member
    snopes.com/medical/myths/8glasses.asp
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.
    Water is also a diuretic. Coffee hydrates just as effectively as water, as does milk, tea, juice, soda, beer, and food.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    Agree.


    See here:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/821181-myths-and-facts-about-hydration-requirements
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.

    so are strawberries asparagus, beets, brussel sprouts, garlic and carrots. does that mean that if i drank water with a salad made with those vegetables that water wouldnt count?
  • grimm1974
    grimm1974 Posts: 337 Member
    As far as hydration goes, you should be fine. As a kid, I never would drink water. Everything I drunk was Kool aid and soda. I never was dehydrated. It still never hurts drinking some pure water to help flush the systen.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,706 Member
    I consume lots of black coffee per day (nothing added). Do I still need to drink at least 8 glasses of water per day? My family Doc thinks the extra water is not necessary. Agree?

    You ought to actually drink more than 8 glasses of water since coffee is a diuretic and therefore does not hydrate you in the same way as drinking less coffee nd 8 glasses of water does. It also depends if you drink other liquids than coffee and water.
  • MyIdaho54
    MyIdaho54 Posts: 81 Member
    Thanks everyone! I drink mostly coffee with 2-3 glasses of tap water. All my urine is clear and I make multiple trips so I should be good to go! Ummm, wait...

    That is, I drink at most 2 to 3 glasses of water per day.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,706 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.

    so are strawberries asparagus, beets, brussel sprouts, garlic and carrots. does that mean that if i drank water with a salad made with those vegetables that water wouldnt count?

    Your logic is faulty.....Do you eat lots of salad, or just one to accompany your meal ? The OP expressly said she drinks " lots of black coffee " and I think that can make a difference as far as the diuretic effect is concerned. I would assume the same is true if a person eats " lots " of the above mentioned food items. No one mentioned that " water does not count " when ingesting diuretic foods/drinks. The question was if the OP still had to drink 8 glasses of water on top of the coffee.
    When I did my MA in Nutritional Science, I learned that to stay hydrated one should drink a small glass of water with each cup of coffee. I wonder if this is the reason why in so many coffee shops in Europe people get a glass of water served with their coffee.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.

    so are strawberries asparagus, beets, brussel sprouts, garlic and carrots. does that mean that if i drank water with a salad made with those vegetables that water wouldnt count?

    Your logic is faulty.....Do you eat lots of salad, or just one to accompany your meal ? The OP expressly said she drinks " lots of black coffee " and I think that can make a difference as far as the diuretic effect is concerned. I would assume the same is true if a person eats " lots " of the above mentioned food items. No one mentioned that " water does not count " when ingesting diuretic foods/drinks. The question was if the OP still had to drink 8 glasses of water on top of the coffee.
    When I did my MA in Nutritional Science, I learned that to stay hydrated one should drink a small glass of water with each cup of coffee. I wonder if this is the reason why in so many coffee shops in Europe people get a glass of water served with their coffee.

    You should look at peer reviewed studies as they indicate otherwise.
  • dayone987
    dayone987 Posts: 645 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.

    so are strawberries asparagus, beets, brussel sprouts, garlic and carrots. does that mean that if i drank water with a salad made with those vegetables that water wouldnt count?

    Your logic is faulty.....Do you eat lots of salad, or just one to accompany your meal ? The OP expressly said she drinks " lots of black coffee " and I think that can make a difference as far as the diuretic effect is concerned. I would assume the same is true if a person eats " lots " of the above mentioned food items. No one mentioned that " water does not count " when ingesting diuretic foods/drinks. The question was if the OP still had to drink 8 glasses of water on top of the coffee.
    When I did my MA in Nutritional Science, I learned that to stay hydrated one should drink a small glass of water with each cup of coffee. I wonder if this is the reason why in so many coffee shops in Europe people get a glass of water served with their coffee.

    I've been to Europe several times. Never had a glass of water served with my coffee.
  • Charlottesometimes23
    Charlottesometimes23 Posts: 687 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.

    so are strawberries asparagus, beets, brussel sprouts, garlic and carrots. does that mean that if i drank water with a salad made with those vegetables that water wouldnt count?

    Your logic is faulty.....Do you eat lots of salad, or just one to accompany your meal ? The OP expressly said she drinks " lots of black coffee " and I think that can make a difference as far as the diuretic effect is concerned. I would assume the same is true if a person eats " lots " of the above mentioned food items. No one mentioned that " water does not count " when ingesting diuretic foods/drinks. The question was if the OP still had to drink 8 glasses of water on top of the coffee.
    When I did my MA in Nutritional Science, I learned that to stay hydrated one should drink a small glass of water with each cup of coffee.
    Hopefully you also learned to refer to peer reviewed research articles to keep up to date. There doesn't seem to be any evidence that the water in a cup of coffee doesn't count towards fluid intake (the OP's original question) or that caffeine has any significant diuretic effect.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.

    so are strawberries asparagus, beets, brussel sprouts, garlic and carrots. does that mean that if i drank water with a salad made with those vegetables that water wouldnt count?


    Your logic is faulty.....Do you eat lots of salad, or just one to accompany your meal ? The OP expressly said she drinks " lots of black coffee " and I think that can make a difference as far as the diuretic effect is concerned. I would assume the same is true if a person eats " lots " of the above mentioned food items. No one mentioned that " water does not count " when ingesting diuretic foods/drinks. The question was if the OP still had to drink 8 glasses of water on top of the coffee.
    When I did my MA in Nutritional Science, I learned that to stay hydrated one should drink a small glass of water with each cup of coffee. I wonder if this is the reason why in so many coffee shops in Europe people get a glass of water served with their coffee.

    my logic is fine. just because you'd have to chew those things before swallowing doesn't negate their comparability to coffee.

    i also note that you didnt respond to the fact that water is a diuretic.... how exactly then do you suggest someone "properly hydrate"?

    glad you have your MA, i have a PhD so, yay for higher education :drinker:

    when i lived in france and travelled other places in Europe (czech republic, greece, spain, italy, england, belgium, netherlands, sweden), I never received a glass of water with my coffee unless i expressly asked for it.
  • OatFloats
    OatFloats Posts: 119
    They do serve a glass of water with coffee in Vienna.
  • mungowungo
    mungowungo Posts: 327 Member
    Sorry but the peer reviewed scientific studies never asked me. Coffee makes me pee. It got so bad I had to change to decaf. Yes I know this is anecdotal so therefore not scientifically backed up - but nonetheless true. It may very well vary from individual to individual what their tolerance to caffeine is.
  • ann121212
    ann121212 Posts: 290 Member
    Just as a side note the Australian Koala rarely drinks water at all. They get what they require from a steady diet of gum leaves. They are a mammal (marsupial mammal) like us, they are hydrated like us - but they dont drink (usually).
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
    I would disagree.

    I believe coffee is a diuretic.

    so are strawberries asparagus, beets, brussel sprouts, garlic and carrots. does that mean that if i drank water with a salad made with those vegetables that water wouldnt count?

    I guess I was wrong. I'll admit it.

    You can just continue to be an *kitten* I guess.
This discussion has been closed.

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