Iced tea, or something else?

RightfulSin · July 2017

Hello all. I am making this post to try to figure out what to drink. By that I mean, I have a 40 oz Hyrdoflask that I usually fill once a day with a beverage, and drink that throughout the day (not necessarily only that, but usually at least that). I have been using some of the Arizona tea powder packs, or the True Lemon packs, but I am getting iffy with them due to the sugar content. I was thinking of just brewing some hot tea into a concentrate, then pouring over ice in the Hydroflask to chill and dilute it. I was thinking of using teas that don't really contain caffeine, so as to avoid too much of it, but I am wondering if this is a wise choice or not. As I said, it would be my main beverage throughout the day, most days, and I would like it to not be horrible for health. Any advice would be welcomed, as would recommendations for alternatives. Thank you.

Caedwyr · July 2017

Water is always good (depending on the quality of the water available locally and if a filter will help improve the flavour).

If you are wanting something that has some flavouring but without a lot of calories, I'd recommend using a roobios tea (also called red bush or red tea), a herbal tea (which frequently include roobios), a corn tea, or black soybean tea (kuromame tea). Chamomile tea tastes remarkably good when chilled. If you want to enhance the flavour, a small amount of honey or other sweetener can be added but for thirst quenching I prefer to not add any sugar at all.

Using non-caffeinated teas should be okay. They are consumed widely in Asia as chilled beverages you can get from vending machines. If you have any health issues or potential health issues related to hormones, it might be worthwhile running the kuromame option by your doctor as there are some reports that soy beans can have an effect on hormone levels, especially for women seeking to become pregnant.

RightfulSin · July 2017

Yes, that is what I was seeking mainly, something that has some flavor to make it taste like, something.

If I went the tea route, is there any things I need to watch out for should I consume the volume listed above? Meaning, negative effects to consuming the volume suggested. I would also most than likely go the unsweetened route, seeing as how I mainly lack a sweet tooth. I drink unsweetened tea, straight coffee, etc.

Thanks for the ideas for teas to look out for Caedwyr, I'll see about picking some up today maybe.

Burtletoy · July 2017

40oz of tea would be, like, 2 arizona ice teas. Their website says that each 8oz of black tea have about 15mg of caffine. So 40oz of black tea would have about one cup of coffee worth of caffine, less for green or white tea.

Jebus314 · July 2017

I also used to add like cucumbers or lemons to my water to give it a little bit of taste. It's more work to make and clean up but it was a nice change of pace.

RightfulSin · July 2017

Burtletoy wrote: »

40oz of tea would be, like, 2 arizona ice teas. Their website says that each 8oz of black tea have about 15mg of caffine. So 40oz of black tea would have about one cup of coffee worth of caffine, less for green or white tea.

As I said though, I would probably be using mainly non-caffeinated types, because I don't need it for the energy, and also would probably be skipping the sweetener.

Burtletoy · July 2017

Yeah, I was just pointing out that even if you go the other route and use normal teas, it still isn't very much caffeine.

Caedwyr · July 2017

Jebus314 wrote: »

I also used to add like cucumbers or lemons to my water to give it a little bit of taste. It's more work to make and clean up but it was a nice change of pace.

This is a good point. If you are looking for something like what spas call "detox water", you can't go wrong with putting some cut up wedges or slices of citrus fruit + fresh mint in the water. This is something you'd do in the morning and keep the water chilled for the day. It is very refreshing, is mildly flavoured, and has almost zero calories.

RightfulSin · July 2017

The caffeine aside, is there anything else that would made this ill-advised? Hard to think of any, since there are cultures around the world that drink tons of tea, but it doesn't hurt to ask/think about it.

Wassermelone · July 2017

Black, green and white teas:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_effects_of_tea

Otherwise, if you are drinking an unusual tea/infusion just google 'health effects X tea' where X is that thing. Licorice tea for example, while delicious, shouldn't be drank in large quantities. Or at least so says the internet when googling that.

Caedwyr · July 2017

For things like herbal teas or roobois teas, they aren't actually "tea" (unless they are a blend with a black or green tea), they're just called that because they are a similar type of beverage. Therefore, the answer is going to vary depending on what particular beverage you are planning on making. Some of the herbal teas could easily have agents in them that aren't good to drink in large volumes over a long period of time. As always, you'll want to check each beverage ingredient. Normally you can just take a look at the ingredient list and look them up to see what is written about consuming large amounts. Everything is a toxin in large enough quantities. If you are concerned, pay attention to how your body responds. For some people, they find drinking certain types of "tea" makes them need to urinate more frequently, for others they can get headaches. Many of these reactions will vary from person to person.

Enc · July 2017

Peppermint tea, for example, is fine for most people in most quantities. But if you have GERD or related problems can cause spasms in your stomach that can aggravate the condition. Chamomile tea has mild sedative qualities that make it nice for right before bed but perhaps not during work. Etc. etc.

I think it might be worth considering to think less on "what will I drink" as a permanent thing, and possibly have a range of options to keep you from getting bored and are reasonably healthy. The water options suggested are great ways to start. There are a ton of very low calorie beverage mixers that have flavors you can find out there with next to no sugar. I will occasionally add bruised rosemary to water as an occasional flavor option. There are lots of things you can do.

Just focus on moderation, I guess.

Holler · July 2017

I dunno what specific flavor profile you're into or what sugar level is a deal breaker for you, but I am a person who gets bored easily so I usually keep a rotating pitcher of iced teas from Davidstea for less-sugary/non-la croix summer drinkin'. That link is filtered to only no-caffeine options, and looking at the nutrition facts for them, you'd be looking at approximately 5g of sugar for your 40oz bottle (though a couple of the sweeter ones are up to 15g per 40oz).

BlindZenDriver · July 2017

Simply adding a bit of lemon juice to water is also an option ie. slicing a lemon in half and squeezing the juice into the water.

Darkewolfe · July 2017

One thing to note: if you just drink plain water for awhile and stop drinking flavored stuff, your palette will eventually adjust and you'll be more comfortable just drinking water. It's a really good thing to try and stick with.

CelestialBadger · July 2017

Darkewolfe wrote: »

One thing to note: if you just drink plain water for awhile and stop drinking flavored stuff, your palette will eventually adjust and you'll be more comfortable just drinking water. It's a really good thing to try and stick with.

Even alternating teas and flavored waters with plain water will keep them interesting, as you won't get tired of the same flavors all the time.

Personally I prefer plain water as a default, then something nicer like sparkling water or tea as a way of "treating" myself and breaking up the day.

Chiselphane · July 2017

Caedwyr wrote: »

Jebus314 wrote: »

I also used to add like cucumbers or lemons to my water to give it a little bit of taste. It's more work to make and clean up but it was a nice change of pace.

This is a good point. If you are looking for something like what spas call "detox water", you can't go wrong with putting some cut up wedges or slices of citrus fruit + fresh mint in the water. This is something you'd do in the morning and keep the water chilled for the day. It is very refreshing, is mildly flavoured, and has almost zero calories.

Mint is great, it is so easy to grow. Heck the problem is stopping it from taking over. We have a patch in our yard and I do nothing at all to it and it just gets bigger and bigger. A further additional bonus is the bees seem to love it. We just go out and grab a few leaves as needed

Djeet · July 2017

For volume I'd go with cold brew cause it's easier. For straight black tea you can find products at the grocery store that will let you cold brew a couple liters per packet in the fridge overnight.

If you just want to flavor your water look into infuser pitchers. You can put whatever you want into the basket (herbs, spices, fruits, vegetables) and let it sit for a day or 2 to get stronger flavor. That said, your fresher/fleshy agents are going to start breaking down after 2-3 days, and they'll have already given their flavors, so I'd pull those after a couple days to optimize taste and look of the infusion.

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Iced tea, or something else?

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