The truth about caffeine. The good, the bad and the ugly...caffeine.

What do you know about caffeine? Watch how we bust 5 myths and learn the real truth about caffeine. Is it good or bad for health?

She don’t lie, She don’t lie, She don’t lie… Caffeine.

Caffeine is the most used psychostimulant for improving cognitive abilities. For better concentration and memory.

The truth about caffeine is more complex than meets the eye. This substance and its impact on humans have been researched for many years and new facts are constantly coming to light. It is found in cocoa, guarana, coffee, tea and energy drinks. From natural drinks it is most abundant in coffee.

It is also found in other plants, about 60 of them. Its main role is to protect plants from insects, thus as a natural pesticide. And how does it affect a person? Read in the following lines.

HOW DOES CAFFEINE WORK?

Caffeine is a chemical compound Methylxanthine, a stimulant that attaches to receptors in the brain reserved for Adenosine. We can call it a little impersonator of Adenosine. Due to various reasons, the amount of Adenosine increases during the day and acts on the receptors in the brain, which makes us sleepy. Then caffeine comes to the rescue, or Methylxanthine, which mimics the form of Adenosine but works differently. It "restores" "relives" the feeling of sleepiness, which has the effect of improving cognitive abilities, improves performance and increases endurance. However, if excessive amounts are taken, a counter-effect occurs: nervousness, anxiety, increased blood pressure and even blockage of blood vessels.

5 MYTHS ABOUT CAFFEINE

Myth no. 1 – Caffeine is bad for health

THE TRUTH ABOUT CAFFEINE

It is credited to Paracelsus who expressed the classic toxicology maxim "All things are poison, and nothing is without poison; the dosage alone makes it so a thing is not a poison." This is often condensed to: "The dose makes the poison" or in Latin, "Sola dosis facit venenum"." It is clear that if we consume it in moderation, caffeine is not dangerous for our health, but on the contrary, it can become a preventive tool for: cardio-vascular diseases, Parkinson's disease and even some types cancer.

Myth no. 2 – Caffeine dehydrates the body

THE TRUTH ABOUT CAFFEINE

Caffeine is a diuretic. But the truth is that everything depends on the amount we consume. It is concentrated in coffee, due to the higher/stronger coffee:water ratio in favor of coffee. But in tea, this ratio is the opposite: less tea: more water, while it should be taken into account that there is much less caffeine in tea than in coffee. Thus, the tea will refresh and rehydrate us nicely.

Myth no. 3 – Tea does not contain caffeine but thein

THE TRUTH ABOUT CAFFEINE

When caffeine was first discovered in tea, it was called thein. But it is exactly the same chemical compound.

Myth no. 4 – White tea has the least caffeine, and black has the most

THE TRUTH ABOUT CAFFEINE

Things are much more complicated than it seems at first glance.

Sometimes green tea can have much caffeine than black tea.

The amount of caffeine in the leaves depends on the time of year they were harvested and how they were processed.

If they are harvested in the spring, when there are still no insects, or there are not many of them, the plant does not need to protect its young leaves (those near the top of the stem) from them, so it does not develop caffeine in them. However, a month or two later, in the summer, when there are already a large number of insects, the plant defends itself against them as best it can, developing a larger amount of caffeine in the young leaves, which the insects do not like. Frying the leaves during their processing can also reduce the amount of caffeine in them.

Therefore, the young leaves, which are harvested in the summer (second or third harvest of the year), contain the most caffeine, that natural pesticide. Plant, camelia sinensis , with its home-made, natural pesticide, caffeine, it makes its leaves less palatable to insects, so they avoid it.

Older, more robust leaves, lower on the stem, are not so tasty for insects, so they don't even touch them. Therefore, the plant does not need to create caffeine in them. That's why they contain less caffeine. Such slips are used mainly for oolong teas. Black teas are produced from young and older, more robust leaves and are further processed, which is another important factor that we need to take into account when evaluating how much caffeine is in which tea.

Myth no. 5 – By rinsing the tea leaves, we reduce the amount of caffeine in the tea.

THE TRUTH ABOUT CAFFEINE

This applies to those who they prepare their tea from leaves, not from a bag. A myth that comforts people who are hypersensitive to caffeine, but already after the first attempt, they are convinced that this is not the case.

There are two basic ways of preparing tea: western and gong-fu.

The so-called western method is the preparation of tea in bags, which are used once. If the leaves are used, they are covered with water only once and are used much less than in the gong-fu method.

In the Gong-fu method, in the preparation of tea we use a larger amount of leaves and soak them several times. It is more complex than the Western one, but with such a preparation you will get more from the tea leaves you use.

If you use tea from a bag, then you will not rinse the tea at all, but will prepare it only once, according to the manufacturer's instructions.

For the purposes of debunking this myth, we will assume that you prepare the tea in the gong-fu way, that is, you use tea leaves. If you soak it for 10-30 seconds and throw away that water/tea, a small percentage of caffeine will be lost in it, which frankly is not helpful if you are sensitive to caffeine.

To get rid of a lot more caffeine from the tea, they would have to soak the leaves for 6-15 minutes and discard that water/tea. With that water, you would throw away most of the ingredients useful for health, so you have nothing left for the next soak. Such tea is not tasty to drink.

It's always good to know as much information as possible about the tea you're drinking, because that way you'll know how it's processed, how it's going to be prepared, and how much caffeine it contains. Will it be too much for you?

HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?

Whether caffeine is bad for health is an individual concept. It varies from person to person, according to their body weight, health condition and natural/genetic sensitivity to that substance.

New research is constantly appearing, but the following values are most often discussed:

400-500 mg is a tolerable daily dose

150-200 mg is a dose that pregnant women should not exceed; but they should always consult a doctor first if they are allowed to drink tea during pregnancy, because of the caffeine in it

1 mg per 2.5 kg of body weight is the dose that children from 4 years of age and older should not exceed

children under 4 g should not consume beverages containing caffeine at all

1000 mg (1 g) already becomes a health problem

10,000 mg (10 g) can be fatal

CAFFEINE IN TEA

The amount of caffeine contained in tea leaves is 1-5% of the weight of the dry leaves. In this small range, the percentage depends on several factors. The first is the time of year when the leaves are harvested.

In spring (especially early spring), when there are insects, which happily nibble the leaves of the bushes camelie sinensis, small number, the plant almost does not have to defend itself against small predators and does not create protection, its own pesticide-caffeine.

In summer the number of insects increases significantly and they have a good appetite. They attack the young leaves of the bush, which are located at the top of the branch. In order to defend itself as best as possible, the plant creates its own, home-made pesticide that is not to the taste of small predators. So they go somewhere else, to some other "restaurant" where they won't have to taste that, for them, disgusting addition to the meal.

The amount of caffeine in tea depends on many other factors, apart from the time of harvest

Another important factor is the plant variant of the camellia. Assamica has more caffeine in its leaves than sinensis.

Thirdly, it should be taken into consideration that cloned plants of the same species have more caffeine than those grown the good old way, from seeds.

The fourth factor, important for the amount of caffeine in tea, is the preparation of the plant and its leaves before harvesting. If you place the bushes on which the leaves are growing under the shade for a week, two or three, the amount of caffeine in the leaves increases (the most famous is the Japanese Gyokuro).

Processing of the leaves after harvesting also affects the amount of caffeine in the tea. Longer drying increases the concentration of caffeine (to a lesser extent), while longer oxidation and longer roasting reduce its amount.

Tea on average, depending on all the factors listed, can have 10-60 mg of caffeine per cup, so according to the dosages from the beginning of this article, you could drink up to 8 cups of tea a day.

Research shows that an athlete who drinks more than 8 cups of tea that day would be considered doped.

COFFEE AND CAFFEINE

Now that you've learned so much about caffeine in tea, you're probably wondering how things are with coffee.

According to data from numerous studies, a cup of espresso (approx. 1 dcl) contains 70-80 mg of caffeine, while a cup of filter coffee (approx. 2 dcl) contains 120 mg. If we remember the daily doses from the beginning of this article, this would mean that you could drink 5 cups of espresso or 4 cups of filter coffee a day without significantly feeling the effect of caffeine.

WHAT IF YOU ARE (OVER)SENSITIVE TO CAFFEINE?

If you don't want to give up coffee or tea (or both), and you are (too) sensitive to caffeine, one of the options could be decaffeinated coffee or tea. But before you jump in the air, like when the Flames score a last-second goal and advance to the World Cup finals, there are a few things you need to know about the process of de-caffeination.

Expensive equipment and special processes are used to remove caffeine from coffee or tea, which increases the price of the final product. After decaffeination, less than 3% of caffeine remains in the tea, but many other useful ingredients that are good for our health as well as those that give the tea a nice taste disappear from it. When the tea leaves are "tortured" with various solutions, acids and CO2, the result is a drink that has not lost much caffeine, but is of significantly lower quality in terms of health and taste.

What to do then?

You can control the amount of caffeine in your cup yourself, without using solutions, chemicals or CO2. You control the dose of caffeine in the cup through 4 basic parameters in gong-fu method of preparation.

Let's remember that green teas are prepared at temperatures of 50-80 C, steeping for 0.5 to 2 minutes. By managing these parameters, you can get a drink that is exactly to your liking and with unquestionable benefits for your health.

If we add two more parameters to the equation: the amount of leaves, i.e. the ratio of water to leaves and the number of soaks, the preparation becomes even more complicated, but also leaves us with the possibility of greater control.

4 BASIC PARAMETERS – GONG-FU METHOD OF TEA PREPARATION

1. number of leaves – less leaves, less caffeine
2. preparation time – shorter soaking, less caffeine
3. number of soaks – less soaks, less caffeine
4. water temperature - lower temperature, less caffeine

Black, dark and oolong teas are prepared at higher temperatures, 80 – 100 C, and the steeping time can be managed in a wide range, as with green teas. These types of teas are prepared with water at a higher water temperature, but more complex processing (roasting, fermentation of the leaves...) reduces the amount of caffeine in the final product, so a higher water temperature does not increase the dose of caffeine in a cup of tea.

Japanese green teas Gyokuro and Matcha are the only green teas that have the same or slightly more caffeine than coffee, 120 – 140 mg per cup. These teas are a frequent substitute for coffee, not only because of the amount of caffeine, but also because of its effect, which is different and more favorable than that of coffee.

THE EFFECT OF CAFFEINE IN COFFEE AND TEA

So far we have learned that, with a little practice and knowledge, it is possible to control the dose of caffeine in tea by the method of preparation itself. This is not possible with coffee. We have to pour hot water over the ground coffee, so the caffeine is extracted immediately in the maximum dose.

With teas in filter bags, it is similar to coffee, because the bags contain leaves crushed into powder. We have to pour hot water over such tea and it happens the same as with coffee. You get the maximum dose of caffeine and bitter taste from the tea right from the first preparation. After one preparation, the bag can be thrown away.

Although we prepare tea in a bag in a similar way to coffee, caffeine affects the human body in a completely different way. There is an even bigger difference if we prepare tea in leaves.

The caffeine in tea has a completely different effect on humans than the caffeine in coffee.

The difference in effect is due to the method of preparation, but also due to some ingredients that tea has and coffee does not.

When we prepare coffee with hot water, the maximum amount of caffeine is immediately extracted. It has a powerful effect in a short time and in a short time that effect wears off, leaving us tired and sleepy and in need of more coffee.

As we said, when it is prepared in the gong-fu (master) way, the tea is prepared in a large time and temperature range. Lower water temperature and short tea preparation (0.5 - 2 min, depending on the type of tea) releases only a part of the dose of caffeine from the leaves, so such a drink has less caffeine in each cup. Through a large number of preparations (soaking), the extraction of caffeine is gradual and dosed with an almost unchanged taste and aroma.

The total amount of caffeine from the leaves, which is less than in coffee, will be distributed over several preparations.

Unlike coffee, caffeine from tea does not have a "shock" effect, but its effect gradually increases. Conversely, after it reaches its peak, it does not fall suddenly but stays at a high level and after a long period gradually decreases

The effect of caffeine in tea is more favorable than that in coffee, because tea contains theanine, an amino acid that can only be found in tea. It can cross the blood barrier in the brain and have a positive effect on mood. It stimulates and soothes at the same time. It introduces us to a state similar to meditation. Buddhists are known to use green tea to meditate better.

Teanin s kofeinom djeluje u sinergiji. Podržava pozitivne učinke kafeina i smanjuje njegove negativne učinke.

Tea, conversely from coffee, contains significant amounts of polyphenols and catechins (EGCG), which also affect the effects of caffeine. They keep it under control, they gradually "release" it, so it doesn't suddenly "hit" with all its force like with coffee, but moderately stimulates for a long time.

FINAL THOUGHT

Caffeine is not harmful to health if it is consumed in moderate amounts.

Drinking coffee can have positive effects on health if you are careful with the daily dose.

There is less caffeine in tea than in coffee. Exceptions are the Japanese green teas Gyokuro and Matcha, where the amount of caffeine is the same or slightly higher.

Caffeine from tea has a more favorable effect on the human body than that from coffee, because tea contains theanine, polyphenols and catechins (EGCG). It works milder, more gradual and longer, in one word: more favorable

Furthermore, people who are sensitive to caffeine will tolerate tea better than coffee, if they follow the basic rules:

• they don't drink tea late in the afternoon or evening
• they prepare tea in leaves in the gong-fu way (control of the dose of caffeine in the tea)
• they drink tea that is harvested in the spring (less caffeine in the leaves), such as shincha
• they drink tea from older, more robust leaves that are lower on the branch of the bush (less caffeine in the leaves)
• they drink tea from leaves that have gone through the roasting process; longer roasting time = less caffeine
• they drink kukicha tea; green tea from green tea stems (less caffeine)