The Best of Tea

Caffeine is present naturally in the leaf of the tea plant, Camellia sinesis. This caffeine with its characteristically bitter taste is thought to lend the plant protection from its predators.

By weight, tea leaves contain roughly 3-4% caffeine content. Translating that into milligrams per 8 oz. cup is no easy task. The caffeine content in your cup depends on a number of factors. Among these are the type of tea; the surface area of the tea; the temperature used to prepare the tea; the steeping time; and, the total weight of the leaves used.

As a rough estimate, you can assume that tea has about 30 to 90 milligrams per 8 oz. cup. This represents one-fifth to one-half of that in a similarly-sized cup of coffee.

But tea has something you won’t find in your cup of coffee: L-Theanine. This is a naturally occuring amino acid that has been shown to counter the stimulative effects of caffeine. L-Theanine exerts a relaxing effect on the body and mind. Remarkably, it has been shown to increase alpha waves in the brain. Though it may sound very new-agey, brain waves are a well-researched phenomenon. The brain’s electrical activity can be measured and categorized into number of these wave states. Alpha waves are those associated with clear, relaxed thought like that which occurs during quite meditation.

L-theanine research has also pointed out the compund’s ability to lower blood pressure and to increase the production of the neurotransmitter GABA. GABA in turn is responsible for the formation of serotonin and dopamine.

To get the full benefits of L-Theanine you will want to use loose leaf teas. Instant and bagged teas may loose their effectiveness due to extra processing. But there may be another reason to avoid bagged teas if you want to reduce your caffeine intake: Bagged teas have been shown to deliver twice the caffeine content as loose leaf teas. If you want to experience th relaxing effects of L-Theanine it is important to avoid this extra caffeine, as the ratio of L-Theanine to Caffeine is critical.