I just returned from ten days in Japan where I enjoyed REALLY GOOD green tea, properly brewed from high quality tea leaves. Previous to my visit, I was not aware of how green tea has morphed into so many products—green tea cookies, green tea bread, green tea ice cream, green tea fondue, etc.
Most people are familiar with the fact that green tea can be good for our health because it contains anti-oxidants . These anti-oxidants scoop up the waste products of cells that are harmful to health. These waste products include dead cells, extra cholesterol,etc.
This is a good thing of course, but there are some facts that consumers should know.
Green tea is relatively high in caffeine, and can therefore raise blood pressure, keep us awake at night, and can stimulate the nervous system causing tremors or headaches. It can also cause stomach upset in sensitive people as caffeine stimulates stomach acid.
While the anti-oxidants effects are good for people struggling with infertility, the vaso-constriction action of caffeine could be detrimental to an early pregnancy. That is, in theory, as the capillaries constrict in response to the caffeine, the blood supply to a baby embryo could be compromised.
So if you are trending up in your blood pressure, have problems getting to sleep, or are actively trying to conceive, brew your tea on the weak side, and limit yourself to just a couple of cups per day.
