No, TikTok's Viral Starbucks Drink Won't Help You Go Into Labor

TikTok is a source for a lot of food hacks — including some of the best Starbucks secret menu drink orders. But, when it pertains to your health, TikTok's advice shouldn't come before your provider's, and you definitely shouldn't be following any creator's advice blindly. A great example of that is the hype surrounding the viral Starbucks Iced Passion Tango Tea (or the Lemonade version) that's been spreading across the app, accumulating hundreds of thousands of likes and comments, along with claims from women that it's labor-inducing.

While peoples' intentions are coming from a good place, and one of these drinks shouldn't have any negative effects on you or your little one, the claims were originally based on the false idea that the small amount of raspberry syrup added to the tea could help speed up labor. Being mostly sugar, it's not surprising that most of the women who've tried it have found themselves still pregnant — albeit with an added touch of heartburn and some upset stomachs.

With the raspberry syrup discontinued, the viral drink has been tweaked to include Iced Passion Tango Tea, lemonade, a pineapple base, and 3 pumps of classic syrup. But, even with the additions, these drinks are much more sugar than the hibiscus and pineapple that are believed to induce labor. They also contain licorice root, which is not pregnancy safe, and a 2013 study published in Planta Medica found that there are potential risks to drinking hibiscus while pregnant. So, while Starbucks is home to the best fast food iced tea, this could be one time to skip it.

The not-so-labor-inducing Iced Passion Tango Tea is not the only Starbucks drink that's made its rounds through the internet for its perceived health effects. The Starbucks "medicine ball" tea is another one that's been shared as a sort of "feel better fast" option. Made from steamed lemonade, peach and herbal infusion tea, and optional peppermint syrup and honey, this drink might feel good going down, but it's not going to magically cure your cold the way people think. Again, much like the Passion Tango Tea that's thought to induce labor, the medicine ball's inclusion of peppermint syrup instead of actual peppermint and lemonade instead of actual lemon make it more sugar than anything remotely medicinal, or even herbal.

While one serving of either of these drinks aren't likely to have any positive or negative effects on your physical health, there is something to be said for the way they might make you feel. Just like any hot tea with honey, the medicine ball could certainly provide some temporary throat-soothing effects — but, mostly, it's just going to feel good to drink something you believe is helping you or providing you with a bit of control. That alone could make a big difference in your mood and overall mentality, and there's certainly something to be said about how that can improve how you feel in your physical body as well.