Wait, Does Coffee Count Toward My Hydration Goals? Here's What Dietitians Say

Beth Ann Mayer
·5 min read
2

Cup of coffee being held

It's not exactly a secret that hydration is critical to our health, or that plain old water is considered the best way to stay hydrated because it doesn't have calories or sugar.

"Water is essential for life," says Cara Harbstreet, MS, RD, LD of Street Smart Nutrition. "It helps with everything from regulating your body temperature to eliminating waste and metabolic byproducts."

With that in mind, there are ways to stay hydrated beyond drinking water in its purest form. Not all water sources are liquid.

"Besides water alone, there are other beverages and foods that do count as consuming water," says Harriet Skevis MS, RDN, CDN, CPT of the Division of Medicine at Northwell Health's North Shore University Hospital in New York.

The CDC lists plain coffee as a beverage that is part of a healthy diet. If you home-brew your morning cup of joe, you know it's made using water. However, you also may have heard coffee is dehydrating—or felt thirsty after consuming it. So, which is it? Can coffee count as water or not?

We asked registered dietitians to spill the beans. The answer is complicated.

Related: Should You Work Out on an Empty Stomach? Here’s What Trainers Say

Does Drinking Coffee Count as Drinking Water?

It's debatable. "Caffeine can act as a slight diuretic effect and cause some of it to be lost in the urine," says Anthony DiMarino, RD, a registered dietitian with the Cleveland Clinic’s Digestive Disease Institute. "Therefore, the majority of the fluid in coffee can contribute to the hydration of most healthy individuals."

However, drinking coffee isn't the same as drinking water. For instance, 2015-published research found that people lost about 15% of fluid per 300 mg of caffeine consumption. In other words, fewer than 7 ounces of coffee can go toward a person's daily water intake (and remember, a cup is considered 8 ounces.)

Coffee's dehydrating effects complicate matters."Those who are at risk for dehydration, like the elderly, athletes, those working outdoors and those who are ill, should be cautious with their caffeine intake," DiMarino says.

Skevis notes that you may need to add more water to your daily log if you drink coffee. "A person would likely need to add an extra cup of water with every cup of coffee they are consuming," Skevis says. "Coffee is prepared with water, but as an RD, I would not recommend counting it as drinking water."

Decaffeinated coffee does not have the same diuretic effect as drinking water, however, so DiMarino says that it can count more as water.

Related: Is It Bad to Drink Coffee When Sick? We Asked Immunologists 

What Counts as Water?

Coffee's role in your daily hydration intake may be up for debate. However, you're not stuck with plain drinking water. "Anything we consider a clear liquid will contribute to our daily hydration," DiMarino says. "Water is the obvious and most accessible clear liquid we drink."

According to DiMarino, some clear liquids that can contribute to hydration include:

  • Clear soup broths

  • Sugar-free sports drinks

  • Decaffeinated tea and coffee

  • Fruits and vegetables

Wait, food is water? You bet. "Fruits and vegetables are often upwards of 90% water," Harbstreet says. "Since most Americans don’t eat enough fruits and vegetables, this offers a double whammy of providing valuable nutrients and fiber along with some extra fluids."

Try adding produce like watermelon, berries and leafy greens to meals.

Related: 'I Drank 8 Glasses of Water Instead of Only 3 Every Day for 2 Weeks—Here's What I Noticed Right Away'

How Much Water Should I Drink?

The truth is that, once again, it depends. The standard advice is to drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily, but this will vary based on the individual. "The daily amount of water people need depends on a variety of factors such as age, body size and where you live—cold climate, hot climate," Skevis says.

Skevis adds that pregnant and lactating people generally need to consume more water, and activity level also affects a person's needs. "Engaging in one hour of moderate-intensity exercise would require on average a total of two more cups of water during and post-exercise to make up for water losses," she explains.

Generally, Skevis recommends drinking half of your body weight in ounces. Need to start smaller? DiMarino says the age-old 64-ounce recommendation is a good initial goal.

Related: 'The #1 Change I Noticed When I Drank Black Coffee Every Day for a Week'

The Health Benefits of Water

There are many. DiMarino says some of the vital health benefits of sipping water include:

  • Improved joint health

  • Well-functioning organs and cells

  • Digestion

  • Increased energy levels

  • Body temperature regulation

  • Skin health

  • Feeling satisfied for longer after eating

Signs of Dehydration

Check your pee—seriously.

"One of the easiest ways to gauge hydration status is through the color and volume of your urine," Harbstreet says. "Smaller volumes or a dark amber color indicate you need to drink more."

Harbstreet adds that other red flags you're dehydrated include:

  • Headaches

  • Fatigue

  • Difficulty focusing

  • Dry mouth

What should you do?

"More often than not, dehydration can be treated at home by simply drinking additional water," DiMarino says. "If you had lost electrolytes through sweat or vomiting, it would be important to replace electrolytes with sports drinks or electrolyte powders mixed in your water. For more extreme cases of dehydration, seek medical treatment."

Next up: The Biggest Mistake People Make When Flavoring Their Water, According to Registered Dietitians

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