Is It True That Tea And Coffee Has To Be Discounted From Daily Fluid Intake Totals?
It used to be the case that tea and coffee were ‘banned’ as liquids when totalling up how much fluid someone drinks in a day. This is due to the fact that they contain caffeine, which acts as a diuretic (it encourages the body to pass water). However, recent research has indicated that after drinking tea or coffee we actually lose far less through the diuretic effect, than we take in through the tea and coffee. So if you drink two to three cups of tea or coffee a day, it is now acceptable to count these as part of the daily fluid intake. However, caffeine can make some people very shaky and jittery, so it is best not to drink more than three cups per day. Moreover, coffee and tea have to be processed more than pure water, by the kidneys in particular, although the liver is also affected, so it is best to minimise tea and coffee drinking and maximise water intake.
