Is having hot tea a bad habit?

[lorisuewho]

This post is about actual tea. . .

 

I have been overeating as of late and I think part of my problem is I'm cold. It is cold in our house. So I decided to replace snacking with drinking tea, but now I find I'm constantly having a cup going. Is too much tea bad for you? Am I replacing one bad habit with another?

 

And, yes, I realize TeA could be warming also :o)

[Guest submarines]

If it is, I'm not aware of it. I drink hot tea 10 times a day--green tea, black tea, herbal tea, roiboos. It might be too much caffeine if you drink only green and black, though.

[KungFuPanda]

I consider it a good habit. My morning (and often afternoon) cup of Irish Breakfast tea has sugar and a plush of milk in it, so it's not completely guiltless. However, some afternoons and most evenings I switch to green teas or herbals. I add nothing to those. I think that drinking tea instead of snacking is an excellent idea and a habit that could benefit some people.

[Dandelion]

I think it's a perfectly fine habit. Tea provides many health benefits. Green tea is especially good for you.

 

I would switch to herbal tea in the afternoon (wouldn't drink caffeinated tea all day). To switch things up, you could also make your own lemon tea (basically hot water with freshly squeezed lemon) which is very healthy as well.

[WishboneDawn]

I can't see how it would be bad. But sometimes when I don't want tea but want something warm I'll just have a cup of hot water. 

[OrganicAnn]

If you just want to warm up, you could drink hot water.   Some people drink hot water with lemon.    Or honey and lemon.

 

Tea as already states has caffeine, which can be not good. Caffeine can be addictive.   It stains.   If you use sugar, then that could be bad.   Also I read somewhere that green tea is not good for pregnant women.    So depending on if any of these are issues for you, then it could be a bad habit.    I think in moderation it is fine. 

[Chris in VA]

I think it's fine. Do you like other hot drinks? Broth is good, too. And I second hot tea and lemon--it's really cleansing and I think delicious. 

[maize]

If you're worried about too much, you could vary with herbal teas, hot water with lemon, broth...

[Trish]

There is slight risk of accidentally becoming British, especially if you put the milk in the cup first.

[Guest submarines]

I can't see how it would be bad. But sometimes when I don't want tea but want something warm I'll just have a cup of hot water. 

 

I guess it could be a bad habit if one uses an artificial sweetener, or too much sugar. 

[KungFuPanda]

I think I drink more tea than average and it's never stained my teeth. I wonder how much you have to drink to get staining? Or if coffee stains much worse and tea gets lumped in with that.

[soufflegirl]

Unless you're adding a ridiculous amount of sugar to each cup, you're probably fine. I've had 4-5 cups a day for the last 15 years and it doesn't seem to have done any harm.

[dbmamaz]

I used to drink a lot of tea, including herbal at night, but ended up switching to coffee and hot chocolate - DEFINITELY worse!  I'm still doing the coffee, but recently got in to hot toddy at bedtime.  which also seems like a pretty bad habit!  But tea is pretty healthy and if you do at least some of it as herbal and/or decaf, really, much healthier than over-eating

[Ellie]

I don't see why it would be a problem. :-)

[gardenmom5]

there is such a thing as too hot (some cultures like it that hot, and have an increase in throat cancer).  if it's comfortably warm you should be fine for temp.

 

also make sure you are drinking adequate amounts of water.   it really does make a difference.  just doing that can increase your metabolism and warm you up.

 

one woman did an experiment where she drank 3liters every day for a month.  she spread it throughout the day of course.  not only did some minor but annoying issues disappear, she felt better and lost a few pounds.  enough to convince her to continue.

[lorisuewho]

I think it's fine. Do you like other hot drinks? Broth is good, too. And I second hot tea and lemon--it's really cleansing and I think delicious.

 

 

If you're worried about too much, you could vary with herbal teas, hot water with lemon, broth...

When you say "broth" do you mean like you homemade broth? I have stopped making broth because it was just one more thing to do. Do you think boxed/canned broth would be okay?

[OneStepAtATime]

My mother and I have been drinking hot tea nearly every day for years.  No ill effects that I can see.  However, my mother reads a LOT of health magazines and one had an article on a new study that showed excessive amounts of tea CAN have a bad effect on bladder function and something else but I can't remember what.  Tea is a diuretic so too much I guess may make it harder (especially with women) to maintain bladder control as they get older.  I did not read the article but I can check if Mom remembers what it says.  You have to drink a huge amount for it to have long term negative consequences apparently, but I don't know what they determined to be huge amounts...

[Joker]

I think I drink more tea than average and it's never stained my teeth. I wonder how much you have to drink to get staining? Or if coffee stains much worse and tea gets lumped in with that.

 

My dh drinks coffee all darn day and has no staining. We don't use a whitening toothpaste either. I drink two cups of green tea every morning and have never had issues with staining.

 

The only people with stained teeth that I know are smokers.

[Mrs Mungo]

Over-consumption of green *or* black teas can actually affect your thyroid function. I wouldn't worry about this too much, unless you have an thyroid issue already.

[KrissiK]

I'm not sure how it could be bad, especially if you drink herbal tea. Although a cup or two of the real stuff won't hurt you either, I don't think. I drink peppermint tea a lot warm up and because I like it.

[Crimson Wife]

I would limit it to no more than 300 mg/day of caffeine. Black tea has the most and white tea the least.

[ThatHomeschoolDad]

My acupuncturist  said green tea in winter but white tea in summer, which had something to do with heating/cooling of the liver.  I ignored her and do green year round.

[NotSoObvious]

Constantly drinking anything but water is bad for your teeth, especially if there is sugar in it. Try to enjoy your cup, then give your mouth a break. The amount consumed isn't the issue, but the frequency of putting something in your mouth is. 

[mommymonster]

My DH has a bad response to green tea if he drinks too much. It feels somewhat like a heart attack, he says. We learned about this funny little response from an ER cardiologist. 

 

:w00t:

 

Moderation in everything seems to be key. 

 

In addition to tea, I do miso soup, lemongrass broth, sweet and sour broth...

[Rosie_0801]

I think miso soup tastes better.  :drool5:

[catz]

I would vary the types (black, green, white, herbals, etc), but honestly I think it is fine. Broth and miso soup are great, but very high in sodium (unless you're making your own broth, miso is naturally high in sodium), so I would not replace tea with broth regularly.

[maize]

 

 

 

When you say "broth" do you mean like you homemade broth? I have stopped making broth because it was just one more thing to do. Do you think boxed/canned broth would be okay?

I have used boxed broth. I've even made a broth of bouillon cubes and drunk that. Someone suggested miso soup, which is great too.

[Susan in TN]

I don't care if it is or not. Hot tea is a necessity of life.

[Kari C in SC]

I don't know, but all these tea threads make me giggle like I am a middle schooler! :D

[Deee]

The Brits built an Empire on tea, weathered two world wars, as well as numerous other conflicts, and seem as hardy and stoic as ever. While it might give you a stiff upper lip, I can't see it doing much harm. It's known to fix most minor catastrophes, especially if taken with a friendly chat. Australians drink gallons of tea as well and we seem OK (any problems are due to over consumption of beer....). The biggest problem is sugar (nasty habit) and our avoidance of the "naked cup of tea", ie tea without biscuits or cake. If you eat something every time you have a cuppa, you'll get portly quite quickly, but a cup of tea on its own is fine. If you don't want caffeine, try Rooibos. It's almost the same (almost!) as black tea and you can add milk.

 

BTW, if you add milk to tea it won't stain your teeth as much.

D

[laundrycrisis]

If you tend to be anemic, the tannins in black tea can make that worse.  Also there is a study linking throat cancer to drinking a lot of tea that is too hot (ie just boiled, and still hot enough to burn your finger). 

 

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/CancerPreventionAndTreatment/story?id=7182731

[Mrs Mungo]

Over-consumption of green *or* black teas can actually affect your thyroid function. I wouldn't worry about this too much, unless you have an thyroid issue already.

Just to clarify, this is due to the amount of fluoride in green and black teas. Herbal tea would probably depend upon the type. White tea is fine in this regard.

[Liz CA]

Too much black tea or perhaps even green tea can have an effect - one is caffeinated, the other can change hormonal things a bit. I think you would have to dring gallons of green tea before you'd feel something. Perhaps changing the type of tea is best. A little redbush (rooibos) tea, a little mint, a little chamomile, a little peach...Make sure whatever tea you are using is organic.

[NotSoObvious]

She tends to sensationalize things a bit, but I liked this article on teas.

 

 http://foodbabe.com/2013/08/21/do-you-know-whats-really-in-your-tea/

[rieshy]

I had to laugh because I just got home from a tea tasting with dds at a chinese tea shop, made a cup of tea and then sat down and saw this post.  

 

Drink tea good enough that you don't have to add anything is my vote.

[Cosmos]

If you're doing it just to warm up, try plain hot water. I drink a lot of my water hot in the winter and it really helps me stay warm. I don't put lemon or anything else in it. Just hot water.

[JennyD]

If you're doing it just to warm up, try plain hot water. I drink a lot of my water hot in the winter and it really helps me stay warm. I don't put lemon or anything else in it. Just hot water.

 

My MIL does this.  I find it baffling.

 

When I saw the title of this thread I immediately thought of the song, "If Loving You Is Wrong, I Don't Want to be Right."

[goldberry]

 but recently got in to hot toddy at bedtime.

 

How do you do yours?  I've wanted to try this...

[Joyofsixreboot]

I drink teas in the afternoon and evening.  I switch varieties through the day with herbals, green and decaffeinated black flavored teas.  I don't use sugar but otherwise it's probably much healthier than pop ( or even my beloved coffee which i drink all morning)

[happypamama]

IDK if too much hot tea is bad or not, but that's a large part of why I drink coffee -- a hot drink warms the body like nothing else!

 

What about switching it up sometimes and trying a hot vanilla steamer? It's just whatever milk you like, heated, with vanilla and whatever sweetener you like (I use liquid stevia).

 

I want to say that I have heard of hot lemonade too; I make cold lemonade with just water, lemon juice, and liquid or powdered stevia, so I can't see why it wouldn't be doable hot.

 

I like the idea of broth too, or some sort of light soup, or a homemade tomato soup?