The same way that coffee and alcohol are. The same way that lemon juice is acidic even though it's also mostly water (which of course is neutral), The same way that a lye solution will burn even if it's diluted with water.
Astringent. I only knew this word in the reduce-mucus context until just now. Lemons are an excellent astringent and are my friends. I love being able to expand my understanding of the word; I had a more narrow definition.
I ALSO learned in Un Lun Dun yesterday that phlegm has a second meaning - it can also mean calm. So, if someone is phlegmatic, they're calm (rather than filled with snot).
It occurs to me I should verify that instead of taking a dark fantasy young adult book at its word about that... ;>
As an alkaloid, it will react quickly with acids to create soluable salts. This means, when the alkaloid hits your blood, it reacts with the uric acid, causing a salt precipitate. Excess of salts in your blood are dealt with via the kidney. The kidney takes the excess salt and pushes it out in the urine stream. The more salt it collects, the more it creates urine to expel the salts. The more urine it creates, the more water it takes from your body.
Please note that I don't have any idea why tea makes you thirsty :). This is just why caffiene generally is dehydrating.
That said, I once heard that if you put salt on your tongue and stare at a bright light, you'll create an artificial need for thirst, as your body has been programmed to respond to brightness and salt as causes of dehydration. Never tried it, though...maybe this weekend...
The tea plant (Camellia sinensis) is an example of a plant said to have a naturally high tannin content. When any type of tea leaf is steeped in hot water it brews a "tart" (astringent) flavor that is characteristic of tannins. This is due to the catechins and other flavonoids. Tea "tannins" are chemically distinct from other types of plant tannins such as tannic acid[2] and tea extracts have been reported to contain no tannin
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The same way that lemon juice is acidic even though it's also mostly water (which of course is neutral),
The same way that a lye solution will burn even if it's diluted with water.
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Wouldn't most liquids made mostly out of water, be diuretic?
Logically adding fluids to your body is going to increase the flow of urine....simply because you're providing more urine building blocks.
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This is what people always say to me when I say, "Tea makes me thirsty!" so I had always assumed diuretic was just a synonym for dehydrating.
It makes me thirsty before I have to pee, so despite the poor word choice, I continue to main that this is a thoroughly boggling mystery to me.
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I ALSO learned in Un Lun Dun yesterday that phlegm has a second meaning - it can also mean calm. So, if someone is phlegmatic, they're calm (rather than filled with snot).
It occurs to me I should verify that instead of taking a dark fantasy young adult book at its word about that... ;>
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(The comment has been removed)
As an alkaloid, it will react quickly with acids to create soluable salts. This means, when the alkaloid hits your blood, it reacts with the uric acid, causing a salt precipitate. Excess of salts in your blood are dealt with via the kidney. The kidney takes the excess salt and pushes it out in the urine stream. The more salt it collects, the more it creates urine to expel the salts. The more urine it creates, the more water it takes from your body.
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That said, I once heard that if you put salt on your tongue and stare at a bright light, you'll create an artificial need for thirst, as your body has been programmed to respond to brightness and salt as causes of dehydration. Never tried it, though...maybe this weekend...
Reply
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(The comment has been removed)
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The tea plant (Camellia sinensis) is an example of a plant said to have a naturally high tannin content. When any type of tea leaf is steeped in hot water it brews a "tart" (astringent) flavor that is characteristic of tannins. This is due to the catechins and other flavonoids. Tea "tannins" are chemically distinct from other types of plant tannins such as tannic acid[2] and tea extracts have been reported to contain no tannin
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