I was browsing the news the other day when I came across an article titled “Too Much Tea Causes Unusual Bone Disease.” As someone who drinks tea, I was curious. Really? Tea? I thought tea was supposed to be good for you? Will drinking a mug of chamomile cause me to get sick instead of providing relaxation?
Does your tea cause bone disease?
I clicked on the article, and underneath a dramatic X-Ray image of bones that are apparently “very dense” I read the following:
A 47-year-old Michigan woman developed a bone disease rarely seen in the U.S. after she drank a pitcher of tea made from at least 100 tea bags daily, for 17 years, researchers report.
100 bags of tea in one pitcher. While “too much tea” does technically describe what happened, it doesn’t really specify that it isn’t your daily cup of jasmine tea that will make you sick. It’s more so suggesting that brewing a tea that’s 15 times stronger than normal, and ingesting that amount daily for 17 years, might cause dense bones. But really, isn’t there a danger with eating or drinking too much of anything? Even drinking too much water can cause water poisoning.
Read a little further in the article and it says:
The researchers suspected the woman had skeletal fluorosis, a bone disease caused by consuming too much fluoride (a mineral found in tea as well as drinking water).
Wait a second – the bone disease this woman suffered from was caused by fluoride? The chemical that is added to drinking water and toothpaste? How can you blame only the tea (although seriously, 100 bags of tea in one pitcher just screams “did not follow directions”) if the chemical that caused the teas was also found in the water she was drinking.
Then, as if to drive the mis-information even further to the point, the article ends with:
Pass it on: A 47-year-old U.S. woman developed a bone disease after drinking a pitcher of tea a day for 17 years.
This is exactly how medical rumors get started. Anyone remember that “carrots cause cancer“?
Tomorrow, hundreds, maybe thousands of people will be at the office saying, “I read that drinking tea can cause bone disease. This woman drank a pitcher of tea a day for 17 years and got sick.” When in reality, drinking a pitcher of properly brewed tea will probably have no effect on you at all. (Although who knows, maybe it will. Just don’t brew it with 100 bags of tea and drink it every day for 17 years. And make sure it’s de-caf. That much caffeine probably isn’t good for anyone.)
Mary Beth Elderton says
March 23, 2013 at 11:22 amI saw that article. And the one about the lady who died apparently from drinking more than a liter of coke everyday. And the on about the woman who died in a water drinking contest trying to win a game system for her kids. I just shake my head and wonder how anyone could think that consuming that much of anything–day after day or all at once–could be a good idea.
RANDY FULGHAM says
March 23, 2013 at 6:04 pmwho evey said that tea kills you is a idiot,tea is good for you
Victoria says
March 23, 2013 at 9:46 pmthat is so idiotic.. hope no one believes this xD
md kennedy says
March 24, 2013 at 2:37 amAnd apples and tomatoes “cause cancer!” Oh, puleez.
Nena Sinclair says
March 24, 2013 at 4:08 amGood thing there’s no truth to this or I would be in trouble! Lol
Jennifer B says
March 24, 2013 at 11:41 amFluoride occurs naturally in tea leaves, the older the tea leaf the higher the amount. Black and Green has the higher amount. White has less I believe oolong has a low amount as well. That doesn’t mean to not drink it, but don’t drink 100 bags a day! or even 20. I am a avid tea drinker and have no plans of stopping. I drink mostly white or yerba mate( they say that causes cancer :P)
Miriam says
March 24, 2013 at 10:41 pmI just got some yerba mate, but haven’t tried it yet!
I have no plans to stop drinking tea either. 🙂
Sarah L says
March 25, 2013 at 7:20 pmExcuse me while I sip my tea. (one bag, filtered water).
jonathan says
March 26, 2013 at 8:33 pmdefinitely a ridiculous article, probably spouting off 3rd person reference misinterpreted and used to prove a point to sell some kind of product.
jo says
March 27, 2013 at 6:52 pmYes, I saw this article and had to look since I do drink a bit of green tea and herbal teas daily. Luckily I didn’t get too far wasting my time when I saw the quantity they were talking about. If anyone drank that much tea, there are more (in my opinion) dangerous issues than the tea.
Maria Iemma says
March 29, 2013 at 2:14 pmI am not a believer in ‘rumors’ but usually demand actual information. It is dangerous to spread wrong information about health specially.
Amy Baker says
April 4, 2013 at 11:08 amI had to read because we drink a lot of tea….but by a lot we sure aren’t talking 100 bags a day…for the 5 of us maybe 100 bags a month and a good percentage of that is herbal. What a hoot….I’m off to make some tea…