Can I Drink Oolong Tea During Pregnancy?
Pregnant women who are concerned about what they eat and drink may wonder if drinking oolong tea is a good idea. While tea has a reputation as a "healthy" drink, its caffeine content raises some concern in the medical community. Does this Spark an idea?
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Oolong Tea
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All tea, whether black, oolong, green, white, or yellow, is made from the same plant. The distinction between each "color" of tea is made on the basis of how the tea was processed. Black tea is the most oxidized, while green tea is the least oxidized. Oolong tea's oxidization level is somewhere between the two.
Sometimes spelled "wu long", "oolong" means "black dragon" in Chinese. Oolong teas are shaken in baskets to bruise their edges, and are allowed to oxidize for varying lengths of time. Some oolong teas are barely oxidized and are "green" in color, while others are allowed to oxidize almost to the point of becoming black teas.
Caffeine
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Caffeine is a stimulant drug that is found in all tea (including "decaffeinated" tea). Consumption of caffeine can result in increased heart rate and blood pressure, as well as mental alertness. While tea averages about 40 mg of caffeine per cup, the actual caffeine content in a cup of tea varies widely.
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Caffeine in Oolong Tea
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The amount of caffeine in oolong tea depends on a number of factors, including where the tea was grown, the position of the leaf on the tea bush, and its processing. All oolong tea contains caffeine.
Caffeine During Pregnancy
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Some research suggests that consumption of high levels of caffeine during pregnancy can increase the risk of miscarriage and may contribute to low birth weight. The March of Dimes recommends that pregnant women restrict their caffeine consumption to no more than 200 milligrams per day. Pregnant women should discuss their caffeine consumption with their doctor and follow her advice.
The Self-Decaffeination Myth
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Many people will tell you that you can decaffeinate your own tea by allowing it to steep for 30 seconds, throwing the first infusion away, and then resteeping your tea as you normally would. However, as noted tea expert Nigel Melican points out in his article "Caffeine and Tea: Myth and Reality," scientific studies have shown that this method of self-decaffeination simply does not work.
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- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Jennifer L. Sovanski
