Green Tea During Pregnancy

Origin of Green Tea 

Green tea is originated in China. It is produced in countries like India, New Zealand, Taiwan, Japan, Bangladesh and South Carolina.

Green tea is processed from the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis which are dried and oxidized.

It involves minimal oxidation during processing. The process also avoids fermentation and makes sure that the leaves do not lose their antioxidants.

Its flavour will be grass-like, earthy, vegetal, seaweed-like and toasted. It will be dark green, yellow and brown in colour.

Properties of Green Tea 

Of the different varieties of tea, the most commonly found on the market are white, green, oolong and black tea. And over the last few years, green tea has been subjected to many scientific and medical studies on its potential health beneficial effects.

Green tea is considered the tea with most medicinal properties in it. Green tea consists of antioxidants that help to prevent free radicals from damaging the cells. It consists of polyphenols and catechins mainly EGCG (Epigallocatechin Gallate). It has powerful antioxidants and bioactive compounds that prevent various diseases.

Green Tea during pregnancy 

Most women today are very active. They are smart and take good care to keep themselves healthy. By doing exercise and eating healthy food in daily routine a woman can maintain good health. And to help them, green tea can be used as a wonderful beverage.

If you are expecting then you may be concerned whether it is good to consume green tea or not.

But it is not as harmful when taken in the limit as it has remarkable health benefits. The key is in moderation. It gives maximum health benefits when consumed hot. It contains antioxidants, potent compounds and caffeine that have a good impact on your health.

Health Benefits

16 major health benefits of having green tea during pregnancy:

• Cell damage: The polyphenols present in green tea helps in preventing cell damage. 
• Gestational Diabetes: Pregnancy is a time where you may have an abnormal craving for sweets. That may sometime lead to gestational diabetes. Green tea helps to regulate the glucose levels by slowing the rise of sugar levels.
• Skincare:  When you are pregnant you may face acne due to hormonal changes. The antioxidants and the anti-inflammatory properties present in green tea helps to prevent acne. It also prevents skin inflammation and makes the skin look youthful.
• Protecting teeth:  Green tea consists of a compound called ‘catechin’. This compound helps in maintaining healthy teeth and gums. It also helps in reducing the toothache. It manages to destroy the bacteria and prevent against dental issues.
• Depression: During pregnancy the hormonal levels will vary to higher levels. The fluctuations in hormone levels may sometimes lead to depression. The compound called ‘ Theanine' present in green tea, is an amino acid, which helps you to have a relaxing effect and minimizing depression.
• Weight loss: As the green tea consists of antioxidants they help in the reduction of weight and help in gaining ideal weight during pregnancy.
• Hair: It boosts the growth of hair.
• Immune System: According to clinical studies, green tea helps in keeping your immune system robust and strong.
• It helps to boost resistance.
• It increases the metabolic rate that helps to burn the fat very fast. Helps to lower the cholesterol levels.
• It has amino acids which enable to relieve from stress and anxiety.
• It helps in controlling blood pressure levels efficiently.
• It helps in controlling the pregnancy-related mood swings.
• It enhances bone strength.
• Gingivitis: Due to hormonal fluctuations during pregnancy, some women suffer from gingivitis. This problem can be averted by using green tea.
• Anti-Cancer: It prevents many types of cancers like prostate cancer, breast cancer and colorectal cancer.

Permissible Limit

Excess of anything could be harmful and as far as green tea is concerned moderation is the key.

• An average cup of tea (10 g of tea leaves in 1 L water) contains around 300 mg of crude solids with 30–42% catechins and 3–6% caffeine.
• As the green tea contains some amount of caffeine. It is not advisable to exceed more than 150 -200 mg of overall caffeine every day.
• However, the amount of caffeine is three times less than that of drinking coffee. Still It is not good if you drink more than 2 to 3 cups of green tea per day.

Side effects

There are no major side-effects associated with consumption of green tea apart from the fact that it can interfere with folic acid absorption and the caffeine present in green tea might cause insomnia or increase in blood pressure.

To read about the importance of folic acid, CLICK BELOW

• Avoid drinking green tea between the meals. As the folic acid present in fruits or vegetables will not be absorbed properly. During pregnancy folic acid plays an important role in baby’s neural development. Folic acid is an important nutrient for the first 12 weeks. Folic Acid prevents defects associated with spine and brain and green tea is known to affect its absorption in the body.
•  It may lead to an iron deficiency when taken in more amounts. This causes improper production of haemoglobin which may cause anaemia in mother and baby.
• Green tea consumption increases the metabolic rate. As the metabolic rate anyhow will be high during pregnancy and a further increase in metabolism may be harmful sometimes.

References