Since tea and coffee are permitted before shacharit, is it safe to assume that all liquids are permitted? Otherwise why is it okay to add milk and sweeteners to the tea? Or is tea and coffee only permitted to help you pray better?
Are things such as honey and yogurt considered liquids and therefore permitted before shacharit? I know solids are not allowed.
Answer
The poskim don't differentiate between liquids and solids. As user6591 pointed out, only foods considered as luxuries or to be haughty are forbidden. Dose of Halacha brings sources and explains:
The Gemara (Berachos 10a) writes that one mustn’t eat before davening as it is considered haughty to take care of one’s personal needs first. While most Poskim (Bais Yosef OC 89:3) hold that this prohibition is derabanan, the Minchas Chinuch (248:5) writes that it is mideoraisa and the Chayei Adam (16:1) writes that as the Gemara brings a Pasuk, it is akin to being mideorraisa. One isn’t even allowed to taste food (Shulchan Aruch OC 89:3).
The Shulchan Aruch allows one to drink water and the Mishna Berura (89:22) includes coffee and tea (if it will help his davening) though writes that one shouldn’t add sugar or milk. R’ Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (Halichos Shlomo p8) and R’ Ovadia Yosef (Yabia Omer 4:11) however, allow milk and sugar, as these are no longer considered such luxuries (See Aruch Hashulchan 89:23).
The Shulchan Aruch (OC 89:4) writes that anyone who is too weak to daven before eating may eat first. The Mishna Berura (89:24) allows one to take any medication or vitamins before davening even if it can wait till later, though in Biur Halacha (89:3), he writes that one should ideally recite the Shema first (See Aruch Hashulchan OC 89:24). Some (including minhag Lubavitch) are more lenient, and allow all to eat if it will aid their davening.
He then goes on to discuss whether this applies to women and children.
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