I just read that too much caffeine can dehydrate your body. Is this true? This week I have been gulping down ice tea because it is so hot, even the A/C can't keep up. Today I almost drank a gallon on my own. LOL I read this on Weather Bug under the extreme heat warning. I feel silly because we get hot every year and I gulp away on tea.:? I knew that tea has caffein but I didn't think it had enough to dehydrate a person. I wonder if this is why my mouth felt so dry today.
Someone else can probably explain it better than me, but there's something else besides caffeine in tea that makes it dehydrating...something about the tannins in it? You could always buy decaf tea bags, or do like I do and make it half decaf/half regular. Or have a glass of water for every glass of tea you drink? Good luck surviving the heat. I HATE summer! LOL
Tannins? I never heard of it. I'll have to look it up and add a new word to my list of unknow words. Of course, after I look it up the word will no longer have an unknown meaning to me.LOL Thanks!
I used to fly an awful lot (several hundred thousand miles a year), and dehydration is a real problem on planes. They say that it helps to stay away from both caffeine and alcohol because both exacerbate the dehydration, but I don't believe there's any research to back this up - which makes it urban myth. Still, I tend to avoid both anyway. If I drink caffeine, within minutes I can feel my heart racing. Apparently, caffeine does this in some people because it reduces the levels of magnesium in our system. By the way, some people believe that tannins can trigger migraines, but the jury is out on this claim too.
I heard, don't know if it is true or not, tea is a diuretic. ???? I take my tea with a little bit of sugar and lime please!
Here's just one link about water intake. Over the past decade there have been a lot of studies showing that the "8 glasses of water a day" rule is an urban myth and we don't really know where it even started. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/08/020809071640.htm And while caffeine IS a diuretic, the amount of caffeine in tea, coffee, or soda isn't enough to negate the benefit of the rest of the liquid in the drink.
I occasionally will help myself to a can of Cocaine, it doesn't seem to dehydrate me any. And if caffeine would cause it that's certainly the drink to test the theory on.
Tea is ok, like pp said there's not enough caffeine in it to matter, the problem with soda is the sodium and carbonation more than anything because they make your mouth feel dryer and then you drink more and eventually it will dehydrate you, also the sugars in drinks isn't great for you. Sports drinks are ok, but not if that's all you are drinking..again too much of a good thing is never good. Sports drinks if overused will make you very ill because it will throw off your electrolyte balance in your body.
very interesting...I love iced tea but I drink decaf. I've heard about the dehydration and migrine thing before...but honestly have no clue. (she walks off wondering why she even posted when she really said nothing..lol)
From what I heard, a sports drink followed by water the rest of the day will maximize your hydration. The electrolytes help your body properly use water you take in so as to avoid "overhydration", and the sports drinks work best if followed with pure water. So maybe a glass of gatorade in the morning, and then just keep your fluids up the rest of the day.
What I was told and makes sense to me is that if you will drink a ton of plain water that is of course better for you. But most people don't like to drink just plain water. So drink up on the tea and coffee, because you are more likely to drink more and be more hydrated no matter what side effects that the caffine or tannins have on you. It is like with veggies. There was a study that said it was better to eat veggies with a pat of butter on them. Because most people will eat more of them that way ( a healthy amount as opposed to none) rather then just plain. It is like the whole spoon full of sugar thing. If you just make it a little better then people are more likely to eat enough of it. As my last 2 cents, I don't buy anything the "scientist experts" say. Because it changes so often I can't keep up. I mean are eggs good for you or deadly? LOL
Can you switch to herbal teas? Or add lemon to water? I personally LOVE water. but sometimes I need to switch things up and I usually go with one of those. The teas I really like are raspberry leaf tea, chamomille (usually at night to help me sleep), and few others that I can't rememeber the names of right now. Also, you might want to try barley water, it is SOOOO good for you. I know it sounds weird, but my kids drink it and we just add lime or lemon to it. I have a recipe that I use. As a side note, barley water can help with asthma as well.
That's pretty much all I drink. My current favorite is a new one from Celestial Seasonings: Mango/Acai.
