The list of benefits of regularly drinking tea is long and getting longer as more scientific research results are published. We won't be listing them out here, but you can have a look at our tea benefits articles.
Can Tea Replace Water?
Many wonder whether tea is an acceptable substitute for water. This question isn't unexpected. Tea is healthy and it's relatively cheap, even if you prepare it every day. So why not?
For most people, tea will be a great alternative to water, at least for a part of the day. If you're not sensitive to caffeine, tea is gonna be great for during the morning and afternoon. If you're somewhat sensitive to caffeine, then just stick to the mornings. A few notes:
- Children below 12 shouldn't drink more than 1 cup of tea a day.
- If tea makes you continuously want to go to the toilet, it's a sign you had enough. Switch to water!
- Even if you're not sensitive to caffeine, drinking too much tea in the evening can hurt your sleep. Limit your consumption to one cup, or switch to caffeine free herbal teas.
2 Litre Daily Target: Can Take Count as Water Intake
Health authorities generally recommend to consume 8 glasses of 8 ounce water per day. This is equal to about 2 litre. However, to most people drinking purely water the whole day can be boring.
Whether or not tea can fully count as water intake will slightly depend on how sensitive you are to caffeine in tea. If you've very sensitive to caffeine, too much tea intake can actually result in fluid loss. In such as case, drinking a litre of tea won't count as a litre of water. The most important sign to stop drinking tea and switch to water would be when you find out that you need to go to the toilet too frequently.
Tea shouldn't be seen as a complete substitute. Instead, regard it as a complementary beverage that ads more colour to your daily beverage experience.
Tea Versus Water Weight Loss
When it comes to weight loss, again tea will be an excellent alternative to water. At least, that will be the case during the day. The caffeine in tea will allow you to stay energized and burn more calories during the day. In addition, it won't cause a spike in energy levels like coffee, which can make you sometimes more tired instead.
It's however again important to avoid caffeine intake during the evenings. The reason is that caffeine can negatively affect the quality of sleep. The consequence of that is that you will more likely skip exercises and crave for bigger meals, more fast food and sweet snacks.