How can excessive tea drinking cause adverse effects? It is common knowledge that wine and other alcoholic drinks can make someone drunk. Though unknown to some, this same effect can occur from overindulging in tea, causing repercussions similar to what comes from consuming too much alcohol. Some of the most common effects of overindulgence in tea may be tinnitus, which is a persistent ringing in the ears, or a feeling of bloating or nausea from drinking tea on an empty stomach. This article focuses on how to decrease the chances of tea causing these adverse effects.
How Can Excessive Tea Drinking Cause Adverse Effects
There are many ways that tea can cause symptoms similar to drunkenness or sickness:
● Drinking tea, especially stronger varieties, on an empty stomach can cause nausea and a dizzy feeling similar to being drunk.
● Tea can aggravate digestive or stomach problems such as ulcers or acid reflux.
● People used to drinking higher-oxidized teas such as black, oolong, and pu-erh can experience these effects in greater amounts when they switch to tea of a much lower oxidation level, such as green or white teas.
● Freshly picked tea leaves can make these effects stronger, and if you’re unused to drinking tea or don’t do it often, you might be more sensitive to these effects as well. No matter what, if you drink a large amount of tea in a short period of time, you can possibly get “tea drunk”.
How to Decrease the Chances of Tea Causing Adverse Effects While Drinking
Avoid freshly-picked teas
First-flush tea leaves picked during the spring are usually the highest grade and therefore best quality of leaf. Because these leaves have been stored for less than a month, they often contain a much higher concentration of caffeine, active alkaloids, and other aromatic compounds. This heightened chemical load can stimulate the central nervous system and stomach, which can cause that feeling of inebriation or illness. Because of this, it might be better to let the tea age for at least half a month before drinking it.
Never drink tea on an empty stomach
Drinking tea on an empty stomach dilutes your natural gastric acids, and prevents the digestion of foods as well. Additionally, the ease with which the water in tea can be absorbed by the stomach will also allow the caffeine in tea to be absorbed more easily, potentially causing dizziness, stress, and even weakness or tingling in the hands or feet. If you do feel a little bit tea-drunk, you can consume something with a high sugar content or meat to help alleviate the feeling.
Keep Your Tea Light
People who seldom drink tea should keep your tea light since the excessive theophylline and caffeine contain in strong tea will both affect your mental state and physical health.
Try Not To Overindulge
As with overindulgence of any kind, drinking too much tea can bring negative consequences. Even though tea is known to have health benefits, if you steep more than 10g worth of tea leaves a day, it can irritate the stomach and esophagus lining. Hot tea presents a greater risk of this, and can also lead to the development of ulcers and acid reflux, and can exacerbate the symptoms of GERD and IBS.
Along with all of these, it is also generally a good idea to have a snack with your tea so that there’s something in your stomach to help absorb it. Foods high in salt or sugar provide sodium for your body,as well as increase your blood sugar levels, providing a bit of defense against any adverse effects of drinking tea.
When it’s drunk at the proper time and in proper amounts, tea can be one of the best drinks for the health of your body and mind, and by following the above guidelines you can take full advantage of the many benefits of drinking it.