Water!

sarahg3006
sarahg3006 Posts: 4
edited November 8 in Food and Nutrition
Hi all

Do cups of tea count towards your water intake?

Thanks
Sarah

Replies

  • shovav91
    shovav91 Posts: 2,335 Member
    Yes, tea counts as it is essentially just water with leaves soaked in it :)
  • alliesun53
    alliesun53 Posts: 160 Member
    If it's caffeinated...NO!!!!! In fact, you should be ADDING an additional glass of water for every beverage you drink with caffeine. A normal day requires about 8 8 oz glasses of water. If I have 2 cups of coffee or tea, it should now be 10.
  • pesimpson
    pesimpson Posts: 1 Member
    Yes, tea counts as it is essentially just water with leaves soaked in it :)

    I disagree. Most tea has caffeine in it, which is a diuretic that will purge more water than what is in your cup of tea.

    I only count water as water.
  • EMarvie
    EMarvie Posts: 335 Member
    i was told to only count water intake as water - but others have also said decafe tea with nothing in it can be treated like water.
    personally Im sticking to only water
  • gp79
    gp79 Posts: 1,799 Member
    If you drank a glass of water, and then at the tea leaves, would you count that as water? The tea would just be made in your stomach instead of in a glass.
  • alliesun53
    alliesun53 Posts: 160 Member
    Also....keep in mind DECAF does not mean NO CAFFEINE. it just means less, and passes a level that the gov't has set that requires something to be said to be caffeinated.
  • gp79
    gp79 Posts: 1,799 Member
    i was told to only count water intake as water - but others have also said decafe tea with nothing in it can be treated like water.
    personally Im sticking to only water

    So eating decafinated tea, would mean you need to subtract a glass of water from your intake?
  • alliesun53
    alliesun53 Posts: 160 Member
    i was told to only count water intake as water - but others have also said decafe tea with nothing in it can be treated like water.
    personally Im sticking to only water

    So eating decafinated tea, would mean you need to subtract a glass of water from your intake?

    exactly. you need to add a glass of water for every caffeinated beverage you drink.
  • Ryhenblue
    Ryhenblue Posts: 390 Member
    Caffeine serves as a mild diuretic, increasing urine production to flush fluid out of the body. I wouldn't count it as water if it has caffeine, but I would put it in my food log to keep track of my fluid intake.
  • My nutritionist counts anything non-caffeinated (not de-caff, NON-caff), non-carbonated as water:

    Water (yeah, thanks Captain Obvious, i know)
    Propel type flavored water
    Crystal Light type stuff
    Red tea (since it's not really tea)

    Your body will always respond better to actual plain water, but as always, your mileage may vary...
  • ScatteredThoughts
    ScatteredThoughts Posts: 3,562 Member
    Yes, tea counts as it is essentially just water with leaves soaked in it :)

    I disagree. Most tea has caffeine in it, which is a diuretic that will purge more water than what is in your cup of tea.

    I only count water as water.

    Incorrect. You would need to consume a lot more caffeine than that for it to be a problem.

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

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19774754
  • gp79
    gp79 Posts: 1,799 Member
    Caffeine isn't as much of a diuretic as many believe it to be. THe study where that "myth" was generated was done in 1928, using three subjects for a short period of time. Since them hundreds of studies have been done. Here's a couple.

    http://advance.uconn.edu/2002/020722/02072207.htm
    http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/559762_2
    http://www.medicinenet.com/caffeine/page3.htm
  • WenniL
    WenniL Posts: 14
    from what my dietician tells me...I need to drink 8 8oz glasses of water a day. She said I can drink plain tea or plain black coffee in it's place. I am anti-water and I love my french vanilla caps every morning. I think plain water tastes icky. She is really tring to wean me away from the sugary drinks...pop, juice, flavored water, caps, etc. She says artificial sweetners is just as bad as real sugar for me. Hope this helps.
  • AkSwtHrt
    AkSwtHrt Posts: 8 Member
    What about adding Mio Water Enhancer or Crystal Light? I have drank so much water, I needed a change.
  • bfl2010
    bfl2010 Posts: 33 Member
    As long as it's decaf. My doctor told me that tea could dehydrate you if you drink too much. :wink:
This discussion has been closed.