Diet and Exercise Myth #20: Tea and coffee don’t count towards your daily water consumption

We all know how important it is to drink plenty of water and stay hydrated.

Individual requirements vary based on many factors, but as a general rule of thumb adult men should aim for at least 2.5 litres of water per day, women at least 2 litres, and children should be having at least 1 litre of water a day.

That’s total water intake, including from solid foods (which contribute on average around 20% of your total water intake).

While those recommendations are sound, they’re sometimes accompanied by a disappointing caveat: that you shouldn’t count tea and coffee towards your daily water consumption.

You might even have been led to believe that caffeinated drinks should be subtracted from your water total.

These are myths.

Multiple scientific studies have confirmed that caffeinated drinks are good sources of water, and they don’t cause dehydration.

Of course water is the best thing to drink for hydration, and it’s good for you in a million different ways. But you don’t have to worry that caffeinated drinks are counting against you when it comes to hydration.