Do tea, coffee, milk and soup count?
Short answer: yes, all of them, at their full volume. Sippy offers water, tea, coffee, milk, juice and soup, and each counts the same as water.
Why coffee and tea count
The idea that caffeine dehydrates you does not hold up at ordinary amounts: in a controlled comparison, coffee hydrated habitual coffee drinkers about as well as water (Killer et al., PLoS One 2014), and a drink-by-drink comparison put tea, coffee and milk close to water on a hydration index (Maughan et al., Am J Clin Nutr 2016).
Milk, juice and soup
Milk actually holds water in the body a little longer than water does, thanks to its protein, fat and electrolytes. Juice and soup are mostly water too. Sippy counts the liquid; what else is in the glass — sugar in particular — is a separate question it does not try to answer.
What is missing, and why
Alcohol is not on the list. It makes the kidneys clear more water than they take in (Hobson & Maughan, 2010), so logging a beer as hydration would be wrong in the one direction that matters.
Food is not on the list either, although about a fifth of your daily water comes from it (EFSA, 2010). That share is already built into the goal, which counts drinks only.
Pick a drink before you log
- On the Today screen, tap the drink you are having in the row above the cups.
- Tap a cup button, or + for a custom amount.
- The drink is stored with its type, so Today’s log shows what you have been drinking as well as how much.
FAQ
- Should I count a fizzy drink?
- Sippy has no entry for it. If you want the volume counted, log it as juice — but the better reason to drink water instead is the sugar, not the water.
- Does the type change my goal?
- No. Every drink counts at its full volume toward the same goal.
- Can I see a breakdown by drink?
- Yes — every drink keeps its type, and Today’s log shows it beside the amount.
Sippy is a reminder and a record of what you drink, not medical advice. Its suggested goal follows published guidance for healthy adults, and the app is for ages 14 and up. If you have heart, kidney or liver disease, low blood sodium, take diuretics, or have been told to limit fluids, ask your doctor before setting a goal.
Drink water, grow cute cats
Sippy nudges you only when you are behind, logs a glass in one tap from the Lock Screen, and grows a cat farm — or a tiny forest — as the goal days add up. Free, no ads, and nothing leaves your iPhone.
Download on the App Store