No, 0% milk tea isn't sugar-free; it means no added sugar (like syrup), but the inherent sugars from milk, powders, and especially sweetened tapioca pearls (boba) remain, often adding several teaspoons of sugar, so you still get sweetness and calories. To get truly sugar-free, you need plain tea without milk or toppings.
The recipes for milk tea mainly consist of a tea base, milk, added sugar, and other added ingredients such as fruits, and creamer. The drink is popular for its rich tea flavor, affordability, pretty aesthetics, sweetness, and diversity that appeals to many people, which is similar to coffee in the drink market.
Milk tea can be healthy, depending on the ingredients. If it is made with fresh, unsweetened tea and real milk, it can provide antioxidants and calcium. However, if it is made with sugary syrups or flavored powders, it can be high in calories and added sugar, making it unhealthy.
But keep in mind that a "0% sweetness" bubble tea isn't sugar-free. The milk has sugar, and the boba pearls are often made with a bit of sugar for flavor (contributing about 7 grams). So the reality is that the NUHS still found that a 0%-sweetness bubble tea has about 15.6 grams of sugar.
For example, a typical “sugar-free iced tea” may contain only 0.1g sugar-BUT WAIT, there's a catch! These sugar free products contain sweeteners like sucralose (955), acesulphame potassium (950) and aspartame (951).
Unsweetened tea is an excellent choice for a beverage with zero calories and no sugar! Because unsweet tea does not impact blood sugar levels, someone with Type 2 diabetes can utilize unsweet tea as a beverage of choice.
While zero-sugar sodas may seem like a healthier alternative due to their reduced sugar content, they are not ideal for long-term health and weight loss. For better overall health, your best choice will always be drinking water or 100% natural fruit juices.
The most unhealthy bubble tea is generally Brown Sugar Milk Tea with Pearls, often loaded with 18.5 teaspoons of sugar (in a 500ml serving), high calories (500-600+), unhealthy fats from non-dairy creamers, and massive amounts of refined carbs, far exceeding daily recommendations and contributing to risks like diabetes, obesity, and fatty liver disease. Other top contenders for unhealthiness include chocolate/Oreo boba, Taro milk tea, Thai tea with condensed milk, and any drink with multiple high-calorie toppings like cheese foam, making them calorie bombs.
Bubble Tea and Diabetes: A Risky Combination
The high sugar content in bubble tea can be a major concern for people with diabetes. Traditional bubble tea recipes often contain large amounts of sugar. This could be in the form of flavored syrups, sweetened condensed milk, or sugar-laden fruit juices.
Milk tea consists usually of brewed tea mixed with milk or milk powder. Fruit tea is a mixture of brewed tea and juice or flavored syrup. MyFitnessPal registered dietitian Brookell White says fruit tea is often a healthier and lower calorie option.
A: 1-2 cups are usually fine, but be mindful of the sugar and caffeine!
Is milk tea good for diabetes? No! Milk contains natural sugars (lactose), which can also impact blood sugar. Milk tea, especially if sweetened, can raise blood sugar levels due to its sugar content, which may not be ideal for individuals with diabetes .
Caffeine is a diuretic. Consuming excess milk tea will increase the production of urine in the body and will cause dehydration. It further leads to dizziness, and weakness, and causes unhealthy skin, hair fall and digestion issues as well.
Skip Sugar: If you have diabetes or are suffering from other chronic illnesses, it is advisable to skip adding sugar to your milk tea. A combination of sugar and milk in milk tea adds to the calorie and fat content, making it unhealthy for consumption.
1 cup (240 ml) of Milk Tea without Sugar contains 62 calories (kcal)
Milk or no milk: Adding dairy or plant-based milk brings creaminess and calories. Whole milk can add 100+ calories, while oat or soy milk usually clocks in around 50–80 calories. Sweeteners: Syrups and fruit purées are where a lot of hidden sugar lives. One ounce of simple syrup can add 30–50 calories.
Avoid sugary drinks whenever possible because not only can they raise blood sugar levels, but they can also contribute many calories to the recommended daily calorie intake.
Green tea
Green tea already boasts plenty of health benefits. And recent research suggests that it may have favorable effects on your blood sugar, too. For instance, a 2019 meta-analysis of 27 studies found that short- and long-term green tea consumption lowered fasting blood sugar levels.
The American Heart Association recommends 36 grams (9 teaspoons) per day for men and 25 grams (6 teaspoons) per day for women. And those recommendations are the same whether you have diabetes or not. “A lot of people put a tablespoon of sugar in their coffee and might have a couple of cups throughout the day.
Two cups of milk bubble tea with pearls are about a third of the average recommended intake of 1,800-2,000 calories for healthy individuals. A 500ml cup of brown sugar boba milk is also believed to contain as much as 92g of sugar, about three times more than the amount of sugar in a 320ml can of Coca-Cola.
Possible Health Risks
Diabetes and obesity: Just one 16-ounce boba has more added sugar than the recommended daily allowance. 1 Too much added sugar can increase your risk of diabetes and obesity. 7. Constipation: Tapioca pearls often contain a fiber called guar gum.
Tea Lattes: Simply ordering a tea latte, like a Matcha Latte or a Black Tea Latte, with boba and reduced sugar can be a great option. Alternative Toppings: Some shops offer healthier toppings like aloe vera, chia seeds, or herbal grass jelly, which are typically lower in calories and sugar than tapioca pearls.
7 No-Added-Sugar Drinks Dietitians Say Will Keep You Hydrated and Healthy
There's no single "number one" unhealthiest soda, as different ones rank poorly for different reasons (sugar, acidity, dyes), but Mountain Dew, Fanta Grape, and orange sodas often top lists due to high sugar, potent citric acid for enamel erosion, and potentially carcinogenic artificial dyes (like Red 40), making them particularly damaging for teeth and overall health, notes this article from Eat This, Not That! and this article from Fowler Orthodontics. Dark sodas (like Coke/Pepsi) are also very unhealthy due to sugar, caffeine, and caramel coloring, while clear sodas (Sprite/7Up) are generally less harmful but still packed with sugar, says this article from MEL Magazine.
One can of artificially sweetened soft drink daily may increase diabetes risk by more than a third - Monash University.