The rainbow-colored loaded teas that promise more energy, sharper concentration, and effortless weight loss have begun appearing more frequently on Instagram.
These neon cocktails with names like “Gummy Bear,” “Blue Hawaiian,” and “Unicorn” have all the right ingredients for social media superstardom, but do they live up to the hype in practice?
It’s a difficult question to answer.
What exactly are these “loaded teas,” though?
There are many kinds of “loaded teas,” which are beverages that contain a combination of supplements marketed for various alleged health benefits, such as increased energy and focus, a faster metabolism, and fewer food cravings. The beverages aren’t trademarked, but many social media profiles promoting them are associated with Herbalife, whose vitamins are often utilized as ingredients.
There is no one set recipe for loaded teas because different vendors use different ingredients. Still, many include the Herbalife Liftoff energy tablet, the Herbalife Herbal Tea Concentrate, other add-ons from Herbalife like aloe or collagen water, and a wide range of sweet (frequently sugar-free) syrups or even juices. A 32-ounce glass of supplements can be a drag to down, but the tropical tastes and rainbow swirl give a little fun to the process.
Los Angeles-based naturopathic doctor and nutritionist said, “It’s the same recipe as an energy drink, but they label it a tea — because teas are what ‘healthy’ people drink.” In support of her claim, not all caffeine-packed beverages sold online contain tea.
What inspired the creation of loaded teas?
Whether the idea for loaded teas originated in Herbalife’s corporate headquarters and was shared with distributors or whether distributors came up with the notion and it took off is unknown. However, hundreds of stores, many focused in communities across Oklahoma, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, and Tennessee, advertise their new beverages during special events while referring to a Herbalife online store on Instagram and Facebook.
Herbalife-affiliated “nutrition clubs” are where you’re most likely to find loaded teas; these clubs are “locally owned and operated by independent Herbalife distributors” who join Herbalife’s membership program to receive wholesale supplements at a discount to use personally or sell to customers. According to the corporation, there are currently 2.3 million autonomous Herbalife dealers, but only 5,900 clubs in the United States.
Contrary to a GNC, you need to be “personally contacted by a Herbalife member or consumer to enter their club,” as stated in the official company documents. Distributors often provide Herbalife supplement recipes, loaded tea kits, and other products in their online stores, even if they don’t have a nutrition club.
Herbalife settled FTC charges of misleading “consumers into believing they could earn considerable money selling diet, nutritional supplement, and personal care items” in 2016 for $200 million.
The FTC also found problems with the company’s pay structure, saying it “rewards distributors for encouraging others to join and buy products to grow. While accepting the settlement, Herbalife insisted that several allegations against the company were untrue.
Is it safe to consume loaded teas?
There is no universal nutritional profile for tea because each store creates unique blends using different ingredients. Many businesses, however, advertise that their drinks begin at only 20 to 24 calories, with the addition of extras increasing the calorie count.
In addition to biotin and vitamins B and C, the nutritional labels for Herbalife’s Liftoff and Herbal Tea Concentrate also claim that the beverages include the amino acid L-taurine, which has been shown to improve both immune and energy levels. According to a Seattle-based registered dietician and Bastyr University assistant professor, many of Herbalife’s supplements appear safe for most healthy adults.
Herbal Tea Concentrate has even more caffeine and tea extract than Liftoff does in just one serving. However, Liftoff already contains several stimulants like ginseng and guarana in each tablet. The caffeine content of many “loaded teas” is at least 160 milligrams, roughly the amount found in two cups of coffee (as per the FDA, 400 milligrams per day is safe for healthy adult persons, although they note that caffeine affects people in different ways).
Many Instagram photos from nutrition clubs give the impression that users are taking excessive amounts of supplements; nevertheless, it is difficult to determine precisely how many stimulants and vitamins are being taken in this way. One of the experts we’ve contacted speculated that the effect of loaded teas would be amplified if consumed on an empty stomach and noted that a handful of her customers drank loaded teas while engaging in intermittent fasting, despite her warnings to the contrary.
Nutritionists’ thoughts on loaded teas
The nutritionists we spoke with cautioned against relying solely on loaded teas for their nutritional value; doing so could result in adverse health effects despite the possible benefits of increased energy and vitamin intake.
One of our experts mentioned:
“The abundance of stimulants is my primary complaint about these beverages. They do nothing but rev your heart rate up to dangerous levels. Anxiety raises not just your heart rate and blood pressure but also your hormone levels and their potential to dampen your demeanor. “
She went on to say that adolescents are more susceptible to the side effects of coffee.
High levels of caffeine can have a detrimental impact on sleep quality, which can affect a person’s food intake and desires, leading to low energy and the likelihood that the person will engage in physical activity, which can further reduce the person’s focus and motivation.
This means that the problems people believe loaded teas can solve may be caused by the stimulants included within them.
Some of her customers and others who contacted her mentioned experiencing adverse side effects from consuming loaded teas. These included headaches, nervousness, and stomach problems.
When she began researching the contents of loaded teas, she thought “there wasn’t a lot of clarity with what people were obtaining with these teas.” “They take a handful of powders and add some artificial coloring and flavoring to make it look and taste good.”
We’ve contacted several nutrition clubs promoting heavy teas on Instagram. Still, thus yet, we are still waiting for someone to get back to us.
Many of these stores’ names include “nutrition,” such as Twickenham Nutrition, Ad Astra Nutrition, and Wild Nutrition. It’s reasonable for customers to assume that these stores’ staff members are well-versed in nutrition and can offer sound recommendations. Herbalife does not give any nutrition training for club owners, and club owners don’t need to have any kind of expertise in fitness or nutrition.
However, these clubs use various claims and supplement combinations to market their supplement-laced teas. On Instagram, several health groups have claimed that loaded drinks are sugar-free and even keto-friendly. Corn syrup solids, fructose (a kind of added sugar), and maltodextrin (a starch-based thickener) are all found on the labels of Herbalife’s Liftoff and Herbal Tea Concentrate, neither of which are keto-friendly. This is before any synthetic flavors or dyes are added to the syrup.
Many nutrition club profiles on social media have claimed that these teas aid in weight loss. While our conversations with nutritionists revealed that stimulants could increase metabolic rate, they also cautioned that weight loss claims are generally exaggerated.
If you switch to one of these teas in the afternoon instead of a soda, you’ll trim down, as there won’t be any extra calories to absorb.
What if you want loaded teas?
Hundreds of people online have expressed their approval and enthusiasm for them. If you don’t have any problems after drinking one, our expert says you shouldn’t exclude them from your life entirely. Still, it would be best to consider them more like alcoholic drinks than health drinks.
For optimal kidney function, we recommend hydrating with eight ounces of water prior to each session. Additionally, caffeine might cause dehydration.
Nutritionists have also suggested that consumers try to brew their own rendition of a loaded tea at home with everyday ingredients. In the end, you should stick to eating and drinking natural food. Green tea was recommended as a means of increasing your stamina.
There is no magic pill that will give you that boost of energy. Instead of turning to quick fixes like loaded teas, people should examine their lifestyles to discover the root causes of their energy deficits.
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