I  am  posting  this  which I  received from  Dr. AW Martin, Martin Clinic.  My problem with this article is two fold:  1. I don’t drink coffee and  2. it says nothing about tea.  Sigh

Does  coffee  cause  dehydration?  This is  a  question that  gets  asked  a  lot. There is plenty of research  that shows  that coffee  has  tremendous health  effects. For  example, here  are a few interesting benefits of coffee according to research:

Coffee and Dehydration

Coffee can:

•  Reduce the risk of death. According to a large study, drinking three cups or more of coffee a day can lower the risk of death. Of course the study is not talking about “double double” coffees for all of our Canadian friends.
• Lower the risk of prostate cancer and endometrial cancer.
• Decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes
• Improve your skin
• Improve muscle health
• Decrease the risk of dementia.
• A recent study suggests that coffee may be the best pre-workout drink due to the fact that it increases fat burning potential.

As you can see, coffee has some very exciting health benefits. Coffee is good for you. However, does coffee lead to dehydration? If you ask someone that question, they will usually answer “yes” very quickly. The reason why we all think that coffee dehydrates is due to a study done in 1928. In that study, coffee was shown to have an increased diuretic effect. Since the study in 1928, 2 studies have been done to try and answer the question and both had mixed results.

Now a new study has shown that coffee hydrates as well as water. The purpose of the study was “…aimed to establish if regular coffee consumption, under normal living conditions, is detrimental to the drinker’s hydration status,”. The results of the study showed that consuming a moderate intake of coffee (4 cups) caused no significant difference across a wide range of hydration indicators when compared to equal
amounts of water.

Bottom  line  is  coffee  doesn’t  seem to  lead  to any dehydration. This does not mean  that coffee can replace water. Water does more than simply hydrate our bodies. Research has shown the  phenomenal benefits  of water consumption. Now  it seems that  drinking  a lot  of water and coffee will help you live a healthier and longer life.