Did you say "Root beer"?
As its name suggests, it is a traditional recipe, made from roots.
Aromatic roots AND aromatic spices.
Usually very sweet, but the roots still have detox and digestive properties.
Tea and theine
Photo by Andrew Teoh on Unsplash
Theine (synonymous with caffeine) is a concern for many people.
Some want it, others want to avoid it.
Which teas contain how much?
Learn more here!
Theine or Caffeine?
Did you know? Caffeine and theine are actually the same molecule. Sometimes considered an alkaloid, caffeine is a molecule derived from purine bases, the molecules forming the base of our DNA. It has two very similar sisters, theophylline, found predominantly in tea, and theobromine, found predominantly in cocoa.
Caffeine has a particular action of binding to adrenergic receptors, which usually respond to adrenaline and cortisol, responsible for the stress response in the human body. This explains why caffeine overdoses will resemble anxiety attacks (palpitations, tremors, cold sweats). Caffeine has a stimulating action, meaning it gives a "boost" but does not nourish deep vitality.
Caffeine in tea is poorly available for our assimilation due to other molecules in tea leaves, notably catechins which bind to caffeine and inactivate it. This is why even if tea and coffee contain substantially the same percentage of caffeine, tea is less "stressful".
How much Caffeine/Theine does tea contain?
Generally, 1.5-3% of the dry matter of tea leaves is caffeine. (1)
The amount of caffeine varies greatly in tea. Factors affecting this variation include harvest time, cultivar, climate and season, rainfall, etc. (5)
Of course, the method of preparing the leaves affects the amount of caffeine present in the leaves, but not that much according to the consulted studies.
It should also be known that certain cultivars can be specialized to reduce the amount of caffeine present, but the caffeine level is still around 3% in general.
What are the effects of caffeine (theine)?
Broadly, the most known effects are:
-Sympathomimetic: activates the central nervous system, gives an impression of mental and physical energy. Increases respiratory capacity. Stimulation of skeletal muscles (large motor muscles). Diuretic.
-Modulation of adenosine receptors; which increases natural levels of norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin, prolonged use can result in desensitization of cells.
-Modulation of GABA receptors; effectively block their action, which causes nervousness in some individuals.
-Regulation of calcium levels; force the release of intracellular calcium reserves. (action on muscle contraction and neuronal reactivity)
-Inhibition of phosphodiesterase; impact on bronchodilation (more present with theophylline).
It is also attributed with properties that increase basal metabolism. This is why caffeine is found in weight loss formulations.
Green? Black? Pu Erh?
According to Arvay et al. (4), the caffeine/theine content seems to be highly variable from one type of tea to another, even within a single category such as green tea.
For example, they tested different green teas from different countries, with variations in caffeine content starting at 5.5mg/g and going up to 35mg/g of tea.
In the case of black teas, the variation ranged from 10mg/g to 19mg/g.
Pu Erh ranged from 8mg/g to 23mg/g.
It is difficult to generalize, but Arvay et al. conclude that green teas are generally richest in methylxanthines, including caffeine. But also richest in flavan-3-ols, also called catechins.
Aged/oxidized teas contain altered versions of catechins; theaflavins and thearubigins.
What about fermentation?
Theine/caffeine is generally stable throughout the evolution of tea leaves: green, white, oolong, and black/red.
However, during the block fermentation phase of Pu erh, the microorganisms responsible for fermentation can affect the caffeine concentration.
Zhou et al. tested some particular microbial strains and observed a decrease in caffeine content and an increase in theophylline in these test batches.
This modification appears only in teas processed by fungi called Aspergillus sydowii during aerobic fermentation (with access to oxygen). (2)
At the time of writing this article, it is impossible to know which Pu erh teas have been inoculated with Aspergillus sydowii, and therefore impossible to say that all Pu erh teas have a lower caffeine content.
A. sydowii, studied by Zhou et al., does not seem to be found naturally in traditional Pu erh productions. The study also reports that caffeine content can even be increased by the most common microorganisms.
Several traditional Chinese fermentation and aging methods include inoculations of selected microorganisms, potentially with variable results.
Roasting
Some teas undergo roasting, meaning the leaves are dry-roasted for a longer or shorter period depending on the desired flavor.
Preliminary unpublished Japanese studies seem to indicate a lower caffeine content, but unfortunately, there is little evidence to support this information.
This reduction may also be due to the fact that the roasting process causes carbonization of the leaf surface. For a quality infusion, a rinsing infusion, which is discarded, is recommended, as it carries with it a first extraction of caffeine.
It's up to you to test in this case; our tea master observes a difference in the stimulating effect in all cases.
Kukicha
Given its composition (leaves and twigs) and its harvesting method (throughout the year), it generally presents a weaker stimulating effect. Is this because it is more antioxidant? Hard to say!
- Monteiro, João P., Marco G. Alves, Pedro F. Oliveira, and Branca M. Silva. 2016. "Structure-Bioactivity Relationships of Methylxanthines: Trying to Make Sense of All the Promises and the Drawbacks" Molecules 21, no. 8: 974. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules21080974
- Zhou, B., Ma, C., Ren, X. et al. Production of theophylline via aerobic fermentation of pu-erh tea using tea-derived fungi. BMC Microbiol 19, 261 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12866-019-1640-2
- Sánchez, Juan. (2017). Methylxanthine Content in Commonly Consumed Foods in Spain and Determination of Its Intake during Consumption. Foods. 6. 109. 10.3390/foods6120109.
- Methylxanthines and Catechines in different teas (Camellia sinensis L.Kuntze) - Influence on antioxydant properties. Arvay et al. https://dx.doi.org/10.5219/796
- Wang, L.Y., Wei, K., Jiang, Y.W. et al. Seasonal climate effects on flavanols and purine alkaloids of tea (Camellia sinensis L.). Eur Food Res Technol 233, 1049–1055 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-011-1588-4
- Sari, F., & Velioglu, Y. S. (2013). Changes in theanine and caffeine contents of black tea with different rolling methods and processing stages. European Food Research and Technology, 237(2), 229–236. doi:10.1007/s00217-013-1984-z
Index - Pathologies and Properties
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Boost your energy naturally
Many people are looking for natural ways to boost their energy. They turn to plants, the most popular being, of course, TEA (!), coffee, yerba mate, and chocolate.
But if you want to avoid caffeine, what should you turn to?
Read this article to find out more!