Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Several problems here...

Hi - Regular tea (which is a specific plant) has caffeine and tannins. Both can trigger IBS symptoms, especially if you're brewing the tea strong. Iced tea is almost always stronger than hot tea to begin with. In addition, cold causes muscles to contract, so drinking icy beverages can also trigger problems.

Are you more attached to the real tea (as opposed to herbal) or to the iced element (as opposed to hot)? The best bet is to go with a hot herbal tea (and remember, herbal "teas" aren't really tea at all - they're different plants altogether). So peppermint, fennel, chamomile, ginger, anise, etc. herbal teas won't have any caffeine or tannins. What they will have is volatile oils that can actually help relieve IBS symptoms, or prevent attacks in the first place. Peppermint is terrific for pain, fennel is great for bloating, ginger helps nausea. None of them should send you running to the bathroom as the regular tea will. And if you have to have your tea iced, they'll be much more tolerable than regular black tea, even if cold.

- Heather

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Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!

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