Man Suffers Kidney Failure From Drinking 16 Cups Of Iced Tea A Day

The mystery behind why a 56-year-old man in Arkansas suffered kidney failure has apparently been solved. The unidentified man drank a gallon of iced tea on a daily basis.

Daily Mail reports that a number of potential causes were examined closely by a team of medical professionals from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. However, all of those causes were ruled out once the team discovered the man’s daily consumption amounts of iced tea.

Dr. Umbar Ghaffar published an article in the New England Journal of Medicine in which he discussed the team’s discovery.

“It was the only reasonable explanation.”

Does that mean that people should stay away from iced tea? Studies have proven that black tea does have high levels of oxalate, a chemical which has been linked to creating kidney stones and even causing kidney failure. However, oxalate can only lead to kidney failure if it is consumed excessively.

Therefore, the fact that the unidentified man apparently enjoying drinking iced tea is basically insignificant when compared to the amount of iced tea that he consumed every day.

The Institute of Medicine recommends that the average man sticks to an intake of 13 cups of liquid overall on a daily basis. That figure helps to put this man’s iced tea consumption of 16 cups a day into perspective.

According to Daily Mail, by drinking 16 8 oz. cups of iced tea daily, this man consumed up to 10 times the amount that the average American consumes.

Quite a few studies and published reports have confirmed the benefits of drinking iced tea – especially if that tea is unsweetened. For instance, according to MD Health, unsweetened iced tea usually does not have any calories. By reducing a person’s calorie intake, he or she can potentially reduce the risks of diabetes and obesity.

There are many different types of teas that have an abundance of antioxidants in them. By adding lime or lemon to the tea, those antioxidants will increase. Unsweetened tea is also known for helping to eliminate any free radicals that could progressively cause damage throughout your body.

In order to prevent kidney failure, removing iced tea from the list of beverage choices is not necessary, according to Dr. Randy Luciano, a kidney specialist at the Yale School of Medicine. However, making sure that you are not excessively drinking iced tea on a daily basis is vital.

[Image Credit: Dollar Photo Club]