Are There Any Calories in Tea?

Tea is a popular beverage that is enjoyed by two-thirds of the global population.

It's created from Camellia sinensis, popularly known as the tea plant, which has been cultivated for its flavor and therapeutic benefits for thousands of years.

While plain brewed tea has almost no calories, many ready-to-drink and flavored tea store options are high in added sugars and fats.

This article will help you learn more about various tea types and their calorie count.

Herbal Tea

Infusions created from herbs, dried fruit, leaves, flowers, or buds from plants other than Camellia sinensis are known as herbal teas.

Chamomile, peppermint, lavender, rooibos, and hibiscus are some common herbal teas known for their medicinal benefits.

Their calorie content, like that of traditional teas, is considered minimal. Some, such as hibiscus tea, contain zero calories.

Plain Tea

Plain tea is nearly calorie-free since certain sections of the plant contain just trace quantities of carbohydrates.

An 8-ounce cup (240 ml) of freshly brewed black tea, for example, contains only 2 calories, which is considered insignificant. Most infusions are the same way.

As a result, plain tea is a great alternative to sugar-sweetened drinks.

Additionally, its caffeine and polyphenol antioxidants provide a variety of health advantages, including weight loss, improved heart health, and lowered chronic disease risk.

Tea Latte

Tea latte is a milk tea variant made with a 1:3 ratio of tea to milk. As a result of the greater milk content, it has more calories.

It has grown increasingly popular at tea shops and coffee chains, where flavored syrups are often added. These additions raise the calorie content of your drink even further.

Bubble Tea

Bubble tea, often called boba tea, is a Taiwanese beverage made with tiny, chewy tapioca balls. Black tea, sweetened condensed milk, syrup or honey, and tapioca pearls are the most common ingredients.

Sweetened condensed milk is a thick, high-calorie dairy product made from full fat cow's milk that has been partially evaporated and sweetened with sugar. There are 122 calories in one ounce (30 ml).

As boba tea has become more popular, several establishments have begun to add jelly, egg pudding, and fruit juice to their menus. This adds additional calories to the tea.

Iced Tea 

Iced tea is a chilled form of black tea with flavors such as lemon, peach, or mint. The additional sugar content is the key difference.

While both are popular in the United States, sweet tea is more popular in the South, while unsweetened iced tea is more popular in the North.

Sweet tea is sweetened with sugar, as the name implies, and the amount added determines how many calories it has. Unsweetened iced tea, on the other hand, is taken without sugar and hence contains no calories.

Chai Tea

Masala chai, which means "spiced tea," is another name for chai tea.

Black tea, heavy cream, sugar, and a blend of spices — usually cardamom, ginger, cinnamon, pepper, and cloves — are used to make this tasty milky beverage.

Heavy cream has a high fat content. It has a calorie count of 100 per ounce (30 ml).

Chai tea can be served either hot or chilled. Chai is made directly in milk, unlike conventional milk tea, which is brewed first in water.

What you need to know

Green, black, oolong, and white teas, as well as herbal teas, have nearly no calories.

Other popular variants, on the other hand, may contain milk, sugar, syrup, and other high-calorie ingredients.

Even so, you can cut the calories in your tea by switching out some of the components or simply drinking it plain.