Are There Any Benefits In Drinking Decaffeinated Green Tea?

Opinions vary about the benefit of drinking decaffeinated green tea. Primarily, the debate has to do with the process used to reduce the caffeine content. The most common method is called the "direct" approach, which requires the use of toxic solvents.

In days gone by, benzene was the most common solvent used for decaffeination, but eventually it was learned that benzene causes cancer in humans, so the solvent is no longer used. The solvents that are used today are believed to be less toxic, but not much.

Dichloromethane is the most commonly used solvent, today. It is considered a "possible" human carcinogen. In other words, it may cause cancer. Another chemical that is sometimes used is called ethyl acetate and companies that use it may say that their decaffeinated green tea is naturally processed, because ethyl acetate can be derived from various fruits and vegetables. But, the truth is that gathering it from natural sources is expensive and impractical. So, the chemical used for decaffeination is synthetic.

The CO2 process of decaffeination and the Swiss water process are the safest methods for mass-production. But only one facility in Vancouver, Canada uses the Swiss water method. If the company does not list the method of decaffeination, you are better off buying caffeinated teas and using the "do-it-yourself" method, which follows.

Steep the leaves for up to a minute and discard that cup. Then add the leaves to a second cup of boiling water and steep to your desired color. Most of the caffeine is extracted from the leaf in the first 20-30 seconds. So, this method effectively reduces caffeine-content, but may reduce flavor, as well.

Health supplements don't require the use of decaffeinated green tea extract, because the caffeine-content of a 100mg supplement, for example, would contain less than 4mg of caffeine, much like what you would find in a leaf that had been run through a decaffeination process. Some people mistakenly believe that decaffeinated is the same as caffeine-free, but regardless of the method used, some caffeine will remain.

Health supplements that contain the extract are promoted for weight loss purposes, but the manufacturers of those supplements add caffeine. They are also used to relive arthritis, because of the natural anti-inflammatory activity of the antioxidants present in the teas. Those antioxidants may reduce our cancer risk, but to get the best value for your money, I recommend a supplement that contains a variety of different antioxidants and anti-inflammatories.

A multi-nutritional formulation will do a lot more for your health than drinking decaffeinated green tea. Of course, if you like the taste, then go ahead and drink it. Now that you are aware of the processes used for decaffeination, you should be able to find a safe product or just do it yourself.

I would suggest organically grown teas, if you can find them. They are less likely to contain environmental contaminants. The better supplement manufacturers test the raw ingredients to avoid those potentially hazardous compounds. Those are the facts about decaffeinated green tea. Hope you learned something. If you have a few minutes to spare, please take a look at my website now.

by Gordon Hall