how much is too much?

[eor1122]

How much tea does everyone drink on average a day?

What kinds do you drink usually?

My hubby thinks I drink too much tea, but I think he drinks too much coffee.

But in reality I probably do. Over the last couple weeks I find I probably drink 4-6 16oz mugs a day, usually black teas but I'm going to try drinking more white and herbals because I think the black teas might be giving me some minor issues, like heartburn. Which I really didn't get when I was drinking ice tea during the summer. During the summer I probably drink about a gallon (6 bags green/herbal/white per gallon) with lots of ice.

Also I've been reading about tannins and from what I gather (I may be wrong) the darker teas have a higher concentration of tannins than the white/herbals and that tannins interfere with iron absorption.

I look forward to everyone's feed back.

[Pentox]

Hm, a normal day for me would probably be around 64 oz. of tea. Primarily greens.

On weekends that amount goes much higher.

[olivierco]

I think you can drink 2 liters per day without any problems, especially if you drink different kinds of tea.

[Victoria]

64 - 80 is normal for me, with the weekends sometimes being higher.

[Sydney]

I used to swill it down pretty good. These days I've cut back to a couple of cups a day.

[caligatia]

I drink about 64oz. a day.

[tsverrir]

I drink about 2 - 2.5 liters a day. On a normal day I really don't drink anything else than tea. About half of my tea consumption is shou, the other half is both sheng and oolong.

[eor1122]

maybe my hubby is right (don't tell him )

I seem to be drinking just a tad bit more than average

[Space Samurai]

Also I've been reading about tannins and from what I gather (I may be wrong) the darker teas have a higher concentration of tannins than the white/herbals and that tannins interfere with iron absorption.

I've read in a few places this is only a problem if you're anemic, and then you only need to avoid tea around meals.

[scruffmcgruff]

Also I've been reading about tannins and from what I gather (I may be wrong) the darker teas have a higher concentration of tannins than the white/herbals and that tannins interfere with iron absorption.

There are actually almost zero tannins in any tea; it is a common misconception that the astringent compounds in tea are the same as those in wine. There are related compounds called polyphenols, though; you may want to check to see if those interfere with iron absorption.

[ABx]

I was just reading up on the iron thing, and I think it is the polyphenols. At any rate, like Space says it's only if you're drinking it with meals (the actual tea has to come in contact with the food, which it then binds with the iron), and then this effect can be neutralized with a little lemon. While it's not too much of a problem if you're anemic, it reduces iron absorption by up to 70%. I tend to prefer my tea on its own anyway.

Scruff is right that there's no actual tannins. The characteristic color and taste of black teas are from theaflavins and thearubigins, which are the by product of polyphenols oxidizing.

As far as the amount of tea you drink, I really don't think it's a problem. There are lots of countries that drink nothing but tea; it's probably not going to hurt you as long as you don't have any particular sensitivities. You could just try some of the better (fresh, quality whole leaf) green and oolong teas. These would likely be easier on your stomach as well as being more beneficial. I drink mostly oolongs with the occasional Chinese green and I drink up to 3L per day. I just don't drink tea during meals

[eor1122]

I'll make some adjustments to my tea drinking.....and drink something else at meals. I prefer hot tea by itself, but enjoy iced when I eat.

I'm beginning to wonder if I may have sensitivities to certain things. I keep meaning to keep a journal about what I eat to track possible sensitivities (but that's as far as it's gone)

[Proinsias]

Also I've been reading about tannins and from what I gather (I may be wrong) the darker teas have a higher concentration of tannins than the white/herbals and that tannins interfere with iron absorption.

There are actually almost zero tannins in any tea; it is a common misconception that the astringent compounds in tea are the same as those in wine. There are related compounds called polyphenols, though; you may want to check to see if those interfere with iron absorption.

I just posted about the minimal amounts of tannins in tea, citing this article from Cha Dao, on the B&B forum and had this rather enlightening response:

That depends on how the chemical taxonomy is done. Chemical "families" are entirely manmade and arbitrary. What the chart you cited listed as gallate esters and gallocatechins are usually classed in the larger group of "tannins", though not in the more select group of "tannic acids", which is what that chart labeled as "tannins", and which tea indeed only has trace amounts of. So, depending on who's counting with who's semantics, tea is either a rich or a poor source of "tannins".

Link

I've never really had a taste for chemistry but my tea habit might be helping that.

[scruffmcgruff]

Proinsias, I think you may have just given me cause to eat my own foot several times over. Maybe I'll have to take another look at the chemistry.

[Proinsias]

Several times over? That's disgusting.