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- 5 Must-know Green Tea Side Effects
- 1. It can Damage Your Stomach.
- 2. It can Harm Your Liver.
- 3. It can Lead to Iron Deficiency.
- 4. It’s Bad for Your Bones.
- 5. It’s Harmful during and after Pregnancy.
The most popular of the teas among today’s wellness enthusiasts, green tea has been around for ages. You’ll find this light, refreshing drink in loads of delicious flavours – and various claims of its beneficial qualities. It is known to improve brain function, promote weight loss, provide the body with antioxidants, reduce blood sugar levels, and may even protect against certain diseases. Moreover, several scientific studies support some of these claims. But can it do more harm than good? And would Ayurveda recommend green tea? Here are some of the green tea side effects worth taking note of.
5 Must-know Green Tea Side Effects
1. It can Damage Your Stomach.
Too many cups of green tea, and you stand a fairly good chance of causing damage to your stomach. Ayurveda encourages maintaining a balance of acidity and alkalinity in your system. Green tea contains tannins that push up the levels of acidity in your stomach. An imbalance caused by green tea can lead to constipation, pain and nausea. If you heat the water too much – more than 137 Celcius – you could end up with a heartburn. So, if you suffer from acid reflux, it’s best to keep in mind these green tea side effects.
2. It can Harm Your Liver.
Green tea contains a substance known as ‘catechins‘. Now, when you consume it in moderation, you can reap the anti-oxidizing benefits of these catechins. But take too much, and they will begin to harm your liver. Catechins interfere with the body’s metabolism and disrupt the functioning of cells. This puts you at risk of a highly weakened liver as well as illnesses like jaundice. Moreover, the caffeine in green tea is also bad for your liver. So, as you might have guessed – those with weak livers or liver diseases should limit their green tea intake to two cups a day.
3. It can Lead to Iron Deficiency.
Iron is a precious substance that your body needs to stay healthy. And studies have found that green tea can hamper your ability to absorb iron since it contains tannins. To prevent an iron deficiency, you can balance this side effect of drinking green tea by consuming sources of iron and vitamin C. Ayurveda encourages natural, whole foods like oranges, lemon, apple and beetroot. By providing you with vitamin C and iron, they can counter this side-effect of green tea.
4. It’s Bad for Your Bones.
Another essential substance for your body, calcium can get easily flushed out in high amounts through your urine when you drink too much green tea. With your calcium levels depleting, your bones will start to weaken. And you might find yourself at risk of developing osteoporosis. Therefore to protect your bones from green tea side effects, limit its intake to 300 mg a day so that your calcium levels stay balanced and your bones stay healthy and strong.
5. It’s Harmful during and after Pregnancy.
Add green tea to the list of foods you should limit during pregnancy as well lactation. This is because green tea introduces substances such as caffeine, tannins, and catechins to your body. These three have been proved to create complications for both the mother and child during these crucial months. In fact, they can even lead to miscarriages. Moreover, caffeine increases the heart rate, can create headaches, disrupt sleep and give you the jitters too. So, the recommended limit is two cups a day. This way, you can benefit from this tea’s relaxing effects without putting yourself or you precious child at risk.
In Conclusion…
So, is green tea good for health? As Ayurveda always says, balance is ever so important, even with the healthiest of foods. The bottom line here is that as long as you drink it in moderation, you will not experience the side effects of green tea. This brings us to the question of how much is moderate. The recommended amount is two to three cups a day – each cup made with not more than 2 teaspoons of green tea.
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