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Tea, good, bad or ugly?

Bobo

New member
Hey guys i was wondering if tea is good or not. I was drinking errr about 10 cups of green tea a day and then i read that caffeine is bad and haven't had a cup since. I know there is something in tea thats supposed to counter the effects of caffeine so is it ok or not? Is it all teas or just some?

Cheers,

Bobo
 
As far as i know Green Tea is good for you as long as you dont load it up with sugar. High in Antioxidants and it doesnt contain as much caffeine as a coffee.


Green Tea Health Benefits
 
Tea, good, bad or ugly?

Green tea has a tannin that is peculiar to it called catechin. Black tea’s fermentation processing reduces the content of this very powerful antioxidant. Tea contains four main catechin substances: EC, ECg, EGC and EGCg, all of which are inclusively called catechin. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) is the most powerful of these catechins. EGCG as an antioxidant is about 25-100 times more potent than vitamins C and E. One cup of green tea provides 10-40 mg of polyphenols and has antioxidant effects greater than a serving of broccoli, spinach, carrots, or strawberries.

How about the caffeine content? Well a cup of green tea contains about/between 15 to 30 mg of caffeine, a stimulant affecting the central nervous system. It is an important quality in green tea providing some of its astringency.

Okay then, how about if I want to get the benefits of green tea, or even more of the benefits of green tea but with lesser caffeine content and with an added bonus that would work on calming my brain alpha waves but would not sedate me at the same time; does such a drink exist? You bet!

Enter my favourite drink of all; the great white (no, not shark) but tea instead!
http://www.cancerrd.com/FAQs/FAQ61.htm

You see Bobo tea, be it black, white, or green comes from the same exact tea leaf; Camellia sinensis . It’s the processing of that leaf that turns it into one of the three types. Young tea buds contain high levels of l-theanine, which gets converted to catechins as the leaves mature. Therefore, tea buds harvested early in spring will contain much higher levels than mature leaves harvested later in the year.

So what is so special about white tea and its level of L-Theanine? Well what I’m about to say has not been backed up by science (yet), however I’m basing it on an eductaed and not a so unlikely right guess. You see, white tea is known as a relaxant of the mind, it sort of makes you feel cool, calm,and collected (and alert of course). L-Theanine is a caffeine antagonist. And since white tea has less caffeine than both of its brothers,namely Mr. Green and Mr. Black, then one can safely assume that the content of L-Theanine found in it would have more of an effect on curbing anxiety and calming of the mind then the other two teas would (since their caffeine content is higher).

So after all the above, what would I recommend? I’d recommend 1 or 2 cups of green tea a day when you need more physical energy boost (without the jitters), and to rip the benefits of even more of its most powerful antioxidants with less caffeine; I'd have 3 to 4 cups of that Great White.

http://www.web-us.com/l-theanine_anxiety_reducer.htm

PS: No green tea on none workout days.


Fadi.
 
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Lol i just tryped up this epic post which apparently took long enough for me to somehow get logged out :(

Firstly i noted that Fadi's wealth of knowledge was both astounding and humbling and i take my hat off to you and also the tahini mentioned in one of your posts is delicious.

Noobs the rooibos tea seems very interesting i like the no caffeine alot gonna have to try some.

I also mentioned that i didn't accurately account the intake of tea as i was having 2-3 bags of it in my 1 litre glass after every meal so thats an equivalent to a minimum of 14 cups a day.

The reason i drank tea was for flavour/health benefits not energy boost, in fact I've felt much better since i stopped drinking it a week ago, mainly in the sleep department, falling asleep easier and waking up feeling alot better, though i imagine most of those issues came as a resultof the overkillin dosage.

So if i can get the same health benefits from white i'd be happy to just stick with strictly white.

Also is tannin bad or not i mean it says "shrink proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids" and then later says that it can be beneficial " at low dosages (0.15-0.2 %) in the diet can be beneficial.[6]Some studies suggest that chestnut tannins have been shown to have positive effects on silage quality in the round bale silages, in particular reducing ammonia and NPN (non protein nitrogen) in the lowest wilting level" depending on chemical structure.

So the options are as follows:

1.Strictly white 3 cups a day
2.On workout days 1 green 2 white/ Non workout 3 white
3.Try and get the health benefits elsewhere and continue without

Though i do want to try this rooibus.

Opinions?

Cheers,

Bobo

p.s. this forum is just astoundingly wonderful.
 
So the options are as follows:

1.Strictly white 3 cups a day
2.On workout days 1 green 2 white/ Non workout 3 white
3.Try and get the health benefits elsewhere and continue without

Though i do want to try this rooibus.

Opinions?

Cheers,

Bobo

p.s. this forum is just astoundingly wonderful.

I'd take (more like hold onto with both arms) option #1 because it is simply too good to let go!

Wishing you the best of health Champion.

PS: I'm on my first cup of white as I'm typing here Bobo...


Fadi.
 
Just on a side note relating to the caffeine in tea.

Coffee releases its caffeine content quickly it just dumps it, which is why a cup of coffee gives youthat KICK so to speak.

Tea can actually have more caffeine than coffee if left to draw for ages esp if using diffuses, or leaves in a pot rather than tea bags. But the caffein in tea is released more slowly as it is bound to other compounds (name escapes me just now)

So tea tends to give you a more sustained feeling of alertness rather than the peak and trough effect of coffee..
 
Alrighty Fadi, sounds good, an suggestions on which white tea and where to buy?

Cheers,

Bobo
 
I was going to post something on this as Im drinking 1.5L of green tea (made wit three tea bags) a day. I also add fresh citrus juice as I read it helps the body adsorb the antioxidants better. I just might make the change to white!

Fadi is the citrus thing something you know about?
 
Fadi is the citrus thing something you know about?

Sure, sorry I didn't mention it before Gauche. But yes my friend, a squeez of lemon juice would help your body assimilate more of the tea's powerful antioxidants. You can even eat an orange here if you so prefer. It's all about synergy.


Fadi.

Alrighty Fadi, sounds good, an suggestions on which white tea and where to buy?

Cheers,

Bobo

Here you go Bobo. I get mine from good old Woolies.

nerada-fairtrade-white-tea.jpg


Fadi.

Just on a side note relating to the caffeine in tea.

Coffee releases its caffeine content quickly it just dumps it, which is why a cup of coffee gives youthat KICK so to speak.

Tea can actually have more caffeine than coffee if left to draw for ages esp if using diffuses, or leaves in a pot rather than tea bags. But the caffein in tea is released more slowly as it is bound to other compounds (name escapes me just now)

So tea tends to give you a more sustained feeling of alertness rather than the peak and trough effect of coffee..

Really great info; thanks a million Mick.


Fadi.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
oh awesome, good to know it's easily accessible. Cool tip with the citrus, thanks guys.

cheers,

Bobo
 
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