Does Herbal Tea Break a Fast?

The question does herbal tea break a fast will be answered in this article in relation to intermittent fasting. The answer is both yes and no depending on what type of fasting you are doing. There are different ways and reasons for each fasting experience. The concern with intermittent fasting is to not create an insulin response.

When you are fasting for weight loss, which is often the primary reason for intermittent fasting, one of the first things that happens is your body will begin to rebalance your insulin levels. People gain weight because they’re producing too much insulin, meaning every time they eat insulin is produced, and even chewing gum can cause an insulin response. This is why grazing all day is not a good idea. An insulin response can also be triggered by drinks like juices and creamer and coffee.

When you wake up in the morning your body is in a fasted state. Depending on your intermittent fasting plan, your eating window will not be open for several more hours, and drinking something that will produce an insulin response is going to take you out of the fasted state, even though you haven’t eaten. This is a good way to struggle with hunger you wouldn’t otherwise have. The added benefit of not having a lot of hunger pangs is a way to get the best results with your chosen intermittent fasting regimen. It is easier to stay focused when you’re not hungry all the time.

Best way to avoid hunger is to work with your body

During your fasting period, your body is doing the fat burning that you want. You get hungry because your body needs fuel. When it switches to body fat for fuel, you don’t feel hungry. Your body’s insulin sensitivity level is key If you are doing intermittent fasting to lose weight, like most overweight people, you probably have insulin resistance. This state requires more insulin to lower blood glucose levels. When a person’s insulin sensitivity changes from resistant to sensitive, less insulin is required to lower blood sugar levels.

Lets change the original question from does herbal tea break a fast to does herbal tea cause an insulin response? If it does not cause an insulin response, it does not break a fast, for intermittent fasting purposes. While everyone is different, herbal tea and true teas do not generally break your fast. This doesn’t mean you couldn’t put something in it that would break your fast, like when you sweeten it or add more than a splash of milk.

For some people who are insulin resistant, even artificial sweeteners can trigger an insulin response. Your best bet starting out, is to find the best flavor profile teas that you like. Drinking unsweetened tea is a good way to get your cup of tea in without an insulin reaction. You don’t want to inadvertently stop the health benefits of fasting by creating an insulin response during your fasting window. You may as well eat a full meal.

Fasting tea time choices

When picking the type of tea you want to drink while intermittent fasting you may want to consider how else the type of tea choose can help you. What are the beneficial effects or health conditions you want to address? Are you concerned with your immune system or cardiovascular disease or something else? You will want to do your own research, but here are a few example of some benefits of different teas. Hibiscus tea can help lower blood pressure and reduce inflammation. Chamomile tea can help optimize blood sugar and may help with oxidative stress caused by free radicals. Ginger tea helps with nausea and supports heart health and more. Peppermint tea can help relieve indigestion and help with sinus congestion and more. The best choice for the types of tea you drink is up to you to determine for your own needs and your overall health.

When getting started you may want to stay away from fruit tea simply because of the sugar in the fruit. When deciding which herbal infusion to use when intermittent fasting, remember to read labels and you can use more than one type of tea. You don’t have to worry about calorie count. Herbal teas are often zero calories or just a couple of calories anyway. It’s the carbs and the sugar that will create the reaction that breaks your fast. You can have multiple cups of tea thought the day during fasting and feeding windows.

Best,

Sherrie

P.S. I very much enjoy an herbal turmeric tea that does not need to be sweetened that you might like to try.