[Photonate]

Hello, I've read from a few different sources that drinking tea can be quite beneficial, even more than drinking water, but from my understanding tea also has caffeine in it. So a little while ago I thought maybe starting to regularly drink (unsweetened) tea would be a good idea and might possibly help with my overall health. But (mainly) considering the matter of the caffeine in tea, I'm just wondering if it would be better to not focus so much on staying hydrated with tea and just stick with good old water.

[Skeezyks]

Well... I drink tea as well as water. Of course there are different types of tea. Without going into a lot of detail, there are black teas, green teas & white teas. The black teas have the most caffeine. Green tea has less. And white teas have less still. White teas in particular supposedly have many health benefits in addition to being very low in caffeine. (Black & green teas are said to have health benefits too.)

My personal favorite in teas are the first flush Darjeelings. However they have become quite expensive over the past couple of years or so. I'm not really a fan of most green teas. But I enjoy white teas quite a bit. I do limit the amount of black tea I drink due to the caffeine. I have problems with my nerves & too much caffeine just adds to the difficulty. So I'll generally have some black tea in the morning with breakfast (about 250 to 300 grams) & about the same amount in the evening. Otherwise I typically drink water. (I'm sipping ice water as I type this.)

This past summer, in lieu of drinking black tea, I began steeping white tea (11 grams of white tea leaves to 1100 grams water) in a tea pitcher in the refrigerator for about an hour & a half. That worked well. Then, when I wanted some, I would either heat a cupful to about 160 degrees in the microwave, or I would ice it. It was quite enjoyable either way.

One good source of various varieties of teas (including herbals & flavored teas) is a company called "Teasource" That's where I buy all of my teas. Here's a link to their website:

Tea Collection | TeaSource

[BeyondtheRainbow]

You can buy decaffeinated teas (black for sure) and herbal teas are caffeine free.

[Photonate]

Yeah I know the caffeine content is pretty small, just of course can't help but wonder if it still might be having any negative effects at all lol I think the main thing is the good feeling I get from just the basic idea that whenever I buy/drink tea I know I'm doing it as a positive thing to try and be healthier.

I've never even liked the taste until a little while ago when I thought maybe if I made myself drink it, and it had been so long since I had even a single drink of any, that I would start to like it and now I actually love the taste :P

[*Beth*]

I believe that water is the healthiest substance there is. Herbal teas, of course, contain no caffeine. But I think all tea contains tannic acid. Tannic acid is fine in small amounts. If you're drinking a lot of tea, however, tannic acid can be unhealthy.

[sarahsweets]

The thing about caffeinated drinks is the diuretic factor. But the thing is it's still hydrating and some fashion. The weird thing is for me caffeine in tea affects me worse than coffee I don't know why.

[*Beth*]

Originally Posted by sarahsweets

The thing about caffeinated drinks is the diuretic factor. But the thing is it's still hydrating and some fashion. The weird thing is for me caffeine in tea affects me worse than coffee I don't know why.

Me, too. Caffeine is what's known as a "ragged" chemical. It kind-of changes shape according to where it "lives". So the caffeine in coffee is a somewhat different caffeine that's in tea.

[~*glass_owl*~]

I went to a doctor about this, because I used to drink so much tea all the time (and I still live on decaf coffee and tea) DON'T GET INTO THE HABIT.

1. It's expensive.

2. I'm constantly stopping at coffee shops to either buy decaf or tea, because when I'm thirsty that's what I want to drink.


What the doctor suggested was, since I was already in the habit of drinking tea, was to drink a glass of water for every cup of tea I have. But my recent doctor suggested even less tea. Like maybe mostly water and only one or two cups of tea a day, which is way different than half.


Conclusion: the logical conclusion is to drink water, the tasty conclusion is to drink whatever you want, but you might not live as long according to my doctors and you should also ask your doctor what's right for you so you get enough water.

[Mountaindewed]

I drink iced teas from Sonic with flavor shots in them. The flavors are about 5-90 calories depending on the size of the tea. I always get the large since they are 99cents.

Water makes me retain water weight. A lot of weight. I’m not sure that’s necessarily a good sign.

[Aviza]

My mom drinks tea, green mostly, always unsweetened. Rarely drinks water. She loves tea and milk. She's 71, has all her teeth, and that's cause she drinks milk. I've told her to drink more water, but she says tea has water in it I'm getting my water.