Does Tea Count as Water

secoke
secoke Posts: 69 Member
edited November 12 in Food and Nutrition
I really enjoy green tea (no sugar) in the morning and peppermint tea at night (no sugar) and on the weekend some English Breakfast with a little sugar and milk. Now I know that caffeine in my green tea and English Breakfast is a diuretic, but tea typically has far less caffeine than coffee and often less than soda, so am I still getting the hydration benefits of water with all my tea drinking?

Replies

  • Chairless
    Chairless Posts: 583 Member
    any liquid you drink or the liquid contained in your food is going to end up as water and it all counts.

    tea and coffe are diuretic but you will never get a negative amount of water from this effect, unless you are mainlining espresso shots.
  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,474 Member
    yep,,, love my green and peppermint teas!
  • LesliePierceRN
    LesliePierceRN Posts: 860 Member
    Yes, it's made up of water.. it can count. I know others are going to get their spandex in a bunch, claiming caffeine and diuretic properties.. but the simple fact of the matter is, caffeine does not detract from water being water, and there are also electrolytes in tea. And guess what? Water in and of itself is a diuretic as well, so that argument goes out the window too. There are also many foods high in water content, and it's perfectly legit to claim water in them as well (watermelon, cucumber), because you can hydrate with food as well.
  • carriewelch
    carriewelch Posts: 1
    Hiya! I am a home health professional, and a dietetics and nursing student. I am by no means an expert, however we do follow a general rule of 64oz of water per day as a starting point, then we add 8 oz of h20 for every 8 oz of coffee drank. H20 in food doesn't count... think of it this way: Your body uses H20 to do a variety of functions, the 6-8 servings a day you are supposed to drink simply replenish the supply used by simply existing (like the BMR for calories). Food that is high in H20 (like lettuce) negates itself because you are using the water in that food to digest that food.
    I like to think of water (and only water) as my water intake- caffeine free and sugar free drinks are just "bonus" water (like the -300 calories from exercise, I don't go eat an extra 300 calories because I burned them off). Caffeinated drinks count as negative water....
  • Chairless
    Chairless Posts: 583 Member
    Caffeinated drinks count as negative water....

    Then im left a bit puzzled as to how i am still alive.
  • slay0r
    slay0r Posts: 669 Member
    Hiya! I am a home health professional, and a dietetics and nursing student. I am by no means an expert, however we do follow a general rule of 64oz of water per day as a starting point, then we add 8 oz of h20 for every 8 oz of coffee drank. H20 in food doesn't count... think of it this way: Your body uses H20 to do a variety of functions, the 6-8 servings a day you are supposed to drink simply replenish the supply used by simply existing (like the BMR for calories). Food that is high in H20 (like lettuce) negates itself because you are using the water in that food to digest that food.
    I like to think of water (and only water) as my water intake- caffeine free and sugar free drinks are just "bonus" water (like the -300 calories from exercise, I don't go eat an extra 300 calories because I burned them off). Caffeinated drinks count as negative water....

    Ohhh dear :( I hope that's not what they teach you for qualifications. I've literally drank nothing but caffeinated drinks for 3 days without any kind of other water intake with lots of food and I was fine. I was a bit dehydrated but that's just due to not drinking as much as I should have done. I think I'd have been dead if it had a negative effect, no?

    I drink 6/7 green tea's a day and I only drink a couple of glasses of water besides that, I'm totally fine and I do 2 hours of cardio a day, I'm never dehydrated so I think I'm doing it right as they say..
  • purplep41n
    purplep41n Posts: 40 Member
    If you're worried about staying hydrated, just check the colour of your wee (sorry for the crudeness but we are all adults here) and that will give you a bit more insight. Of course if you take vitamins, it might be best to assess this before and a little while afterwards as you're urine will be dayglow yellow/orange for a little while afterwards hydrated or not :)

    IMHO
  • ooOOooGravy
    ooOOooGravy Posts: 476 Member
    Caffeinated drinks count as negative water....

    Then im left a bit puzzled as to how i am still alive.

    BAHAHAHA!


    I once read a BBC write up on a study where even alcoholic drinks can hydrate. High % alcohol like whikeys, vodkas and gins are a no no. However, lower % beers and largers are diluted enough to hydrate. Although this is not a recommend form of water consumption...
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