Green Tea HP

[skalenfehl]

When I was a missionary we taught that the Word of Wisdom meant to avoid

-Tobacco

-Harmful Drugs

-Alchohol

-Coffee

-Tea

I have known of members who drink herbal teas like peppermint tea, etc. What teas are we to avoid and what teas are ok? Black tea is the one I know of to avoid. I find it interesting and ironic that there is something called "Mormon Tea" which is of the ephedra genus.

Green Tea HP is a new health product with many benefits, but is this categorized in the teas that falls under the Word of Wisdom?

[ruthiechan]

You want teas that do not have caffiene in them. It is possible to obtain green tea without caffiene. Though some teas have tannins in them. Not all things with tannin is bad, such as berries, and same with caffiene such as chocolate. I am thinking in the case of tannins it might have something to do with the hydrolization process. I'd have to do more research on that though.

Tannin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

EDIT: I also just found this link, I'm going over it right now and thought you'd might be interested in taking a look at it regarding tannins. Regarding monogastrics like humans who only have one gastric chamber, stomach it says "Animals fed diets with a level of tannins under 5% experience

depressed growth rates,

low protein utilization,

damage to the mucosal lining of the digestive tract,

alteration in the excretion of certain cations, and

increased excretion of proteins and essential amino acids.

In poultry, small quantities of tannins in the diet cause adverse effects

levels from 0.5 to 2.0% can cause depression in growth and egg production,

levels from 3 to 7% can cause death.

In swine, similar harmful effects of tannins have been found.

The addition of additional proteins or amino acids may alleviate the antinutritional effects of tannins.

Levels of tannins above 5% of the diet are often lethal."

Tannins

[skalenfehl]

Thank you. I have heard about the tannin. Are there any bishops here than can shed light officially?

[Guest GreenMum]

This is not "religious" related, but my DH is an MD, and Green Tea is actually not that great for you. It can really mess with your heart.

Just an FYI.

You usually hear about it being so great from homeopathic avenues... MD's really don't like the effects of it on the human body.

[skalenfehl]

Thanks, GreenMum. That settles it for me. As one who takes supplements for a healthier lifestyle, I'm very careful about what I consume. There are plenty of other foods with just similar benefits that I can use.

[Moksha]

I would recommend those antioxidants only to those who wish to live longer. Remember what green tea did for Gollum.

[sixpacktr]

This was covered in another thread. Green tea falls under the same category as Lipton. If you drink green tea in Japan (and it is the national drink) you can't have a TR.

[Cally]

What is all the hipe about drinking tea? we all eat chocolate, or drink sodas, right?

[Maya]

I suppose Noni tea is really good for you... I use and sell noni products myself ...I hope I am selling stuff that is ok.

[Aphrodite]

You want teas that do not have caffiene in them. It is possible to obtain green tea without caffiene. Though some teas have tannins in them. Not all things with tannin is bad, such as berries, and same with caffiene such as chocolate. I am thinking in the case of tannins it might have something to do with the hydrolization process. I'd have to do more research on that though.

Why do you want green teas with no caffeine or tannin? Would you show me where it says that in the word of wisdom?? In that case eating chocolate is banned. It winds me up that people assume the word of wisdom is to do with caffeine. It has nothing about caffeine in it. In that case, drinking de-caffeinated coffee is ok yes????

[VisionOfLehi]

This was covered in another thread. Green tea falls under the same category as Lipton. If you drink green tea in Japan (and it is the national drink) you can't have a TR.

Yes! I brought it up, because I'd been wondering about it for a long time, myself.

The teas to avoid are the ones made from the actual Tea Leaf. This includes:

Black tea, green tea, white tea, and oolong!

Herbal "tea" is actually a tisane, and not a tea!

Also: Decaf tea still has a lot of caffeine in it. It's decaffeinated, not caffeine free.

[skalenfehl]

Good info, Vision.

I'll continue to stick to what I taught as a missionary.

[sixpacktr]

You are 100% right Aphrodite! Caffeine is NOT the reason we are not to drink coffee or tea. The Lord did not put a reason in there at all--simply "don't drink these". We don't know the reason at all. If it were caffeine, 90% of the current TR holders would lose their TRs because of chocolate, cokes, aspirin, etc., etc., etc.

We need to quit trying to justify 'why' and simply obey.

[Moksha]

I suppose Noni tea is really good for you... I use and sell noni products myself ...I hope I am selling stuff that is ok.

I think there is even a song about these products. It goes:

"Beauty sat bathing by a spring where fairest shades did hide her

the winds blew calm the birds did sing the cool streams ran beside her

my wanton thoughts enticed mine eye to see what was forbidden

but better memory said "fie" so vain desire was chidden

hey Noni Noni, oh hey Noni Noni...."

[Shell72]

I thought it wasn't the caffiene that was a problem but the "hot drink" that was?

[ruthiechan]

You are 100% right Aphrodite! Caffeine is NOT the reason we are not to drink coffee or tea. The Lord did not put a reason in there at all--simply "don't drink these". We don't know the reason at all. If it were caffeine, 90% of the current TR holders would lose their TRs because of chocolate, cokes, aspirin, etc., etc., etc.

We need to quit trying to justify 'why' and simply obey.

Yes, yes it is. However, in very small amounts, such as what is in chocolate, caffeine is okay.

Here is an article about why we are not to consume caffeine.

CAFFEINE AFFECTS THE BRAIN AND IMAGING FINDINGS

April 26, 2006

by Daniel G. Amen M.D.

Caffeine's effects need to be considered in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies of blood circulation in the brain, according to a study appearing in the April issue of the journal Radiology.

The study, from Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C., confirmed that a dose of caffeine equivalent to two or three cups of coffee can constrict the blood vessels in the brain and cause a reduction in cerebral blood flow. It also found that heavy caffeine users had more blood flow to the brain when they were in a withdrawal state, indicating a direct correlation between blood flow measurements and the amount of regular caffeine intake.

"The more caffeine you drink on a regular basis, the higher your cerebral blood flow will be when you do not consume caffeine," said lead author Aaron S. Field, M.D., Ph.D., now assistant professor of radiology at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

Functional MR images depict areas of the brain that are activated in response to a cognitive or motor task or a visual or auditory stimulus. The fMRI scan can be designed to emphasize different features of brain anatomy and physiology, which is especially useful for those at risk for stroke and for evaluation of brain tumors prior to surgery.

"When studying cerebral perfusion, or blood flow to the brain, it is best to have patients consume their regular daily amount of caffeine before imaging," Dr. Field said. "Our research showed that the brain adapts to the level of caffeine typically consumed and adjusts cerebral blood flow accordingly. Simply telling people not to drink caffeinated beverages before fMRI is not a feasible solution, because the withdrawal state will skew results."

Previous research has shown caffeine consumption diminishes blood flow to the brain. For this study, the researchers used quantitative perfusion MRI (a type of functional MRI) to evaluate the effects of caffeine consumption and withdrawal on cerebral blood flow in 20 healthy adults. According to the study, the daily per-person caffeine consumption in the United States is approximately 238 milligrams, or a little more than two cups of coffee. Half of the study group was categorized as "low" caffeine consumption (average of 41 mg of caffeine daily), and the other half as "high" caffeine consumption (average of 648 mg of caffeine daily).

The patients were scanned with perfusion imaging at approximately the same time of day on two different days. Patients were randomly selected to receive a placebo on one day and a 250 mg dose of caffeine on the other day approximately 90 minutes before the scan. To induce caffeine withdrawal, patients abstained from caffeine for at least 30 hours before the test.

The researchers found that caffeine reduced cerebral blood flow in gray matter areas by approximately 23 percent in all patients. The cerebral blood flow was reduced in the gray matter in the front of the brain by 26 percent in heavy caffeine users and 19 percent in the light caffeine users. During withdrawal, cerebral blood flow in heavy caffeine users exceeded that of the light users by more than 30 percent.

"Dramatic differences in cerebral blood flow measurement can be seen from one day to the next based on a single cup of coffee," Dr. Field explained. "This shows researchers need to control for caffeine effects."

Dr. Field noted that the ramifications of this study apply only to very specific types of MR scans that are not routinely utilized. "The average person will not need to worry about caffeine consumption when having an MRI," he said.

The researchers suggest that future studies might address the potential effects of tobacco, alcohol and over-the-counter and prescription medications on cerebral blood flow and fMRI.

Link to Article:

Brain SPECT Imaging/Scans,ADD,ADHD,Depression,Tests,Symptoms,Diagnosis,Treatments, Amen Clinics

With all that, I do understand that caffeine is not the only thing, but I do believe the negative affect of tannins on animals such as humans (which I posted in my first post of thise thread) is the other reason which would explain not being able to drink decaf (though decaf still contains 8-13mg of caffeine in an eight ounce cup).

[kona0197]

My missionaries drank Mountain Dew. caffeine is a personal choice. I have never seen anyone in the Church tell the members not to use caffeine.

Otherwise as stated we would not eat chocolate or use aspirin to name a few.

As for myself I still drink black tea, coffee and even beer. I'm actually thinking about smoking again as well. Half my health problems started after I quit.

[skalenfehl]

As for myself I still drink black tea, coffee and even beer. I'm actually thinking about smoking again as well. Half my health problems started after I quit.

Interesting. I don't smoke, drink, or take any kind of drugs or anything against the Word of Wisdom. Aside from an occasional flu I haven't had any health problems in all my life.

[kona0197]

Well after I quit smoking I developed sleep apnea. Nasty little problem it is too. I've also noticed a distinct loss of energy and motivation.

[sixpacktr]

Ruthie-chan,

I'm not arguing about the effects for good or bad as it pertains to caffeine. I personally think it isn't a good thing to drink a lot of. I myself have stomach problems that caffeine exacerbates, but sometimes it is better to suffer later than to die in a car wreck...

However, nowhere is it written in the D&C what the reasoning was behind no 'hot drinks'. We can talk till we're blue in the face of the pros and cons of caffeine, beer, wine, etc., etc., etc. My point was that the Lord simply said 'don't do this'. Ours is not to try and find the reasons behind it so that it is easier for us to justify to ourselves or the world. All we know for sure is that the Lord said 'don't' so we shouldn't.

Kona, that is weird about the sleep apnea after you quit smoking. I have terrible insomnia...maybe I should start smoking??:))

Or better yet, get off my fat behind and do some exercise...

[kona0197]

Caffeine usually puts me to sleep.

I do exercise - I ride my bike to and from work. Round trip is about 3 or 4 miles. Still doesn't help. I wake up around 12 times a night.

[MorningStar]

I read an article years ago that said hot chocolate has even more antioxidants than green tea and wine. YESSSSSS!!!!

[ConstitutionMan]

Why is hot chocolate okay to drink? I know it is served at church functions all the time. If D&C says no HOT DRINKS then what makes it okay?

[skalenfehl]

That's a good question. Maybe at the time of the revelation a "hot drink" was a term used for something other than our beloved hot chocolate with mini marshmallows at scouting trips.

[ruthiechan]

Why is hot chocolate okay to drink? I know it is served at church functions all the time. If D&C says no HOT DRINKS then what makes it okay?

Well, you make it hot so it'll dissolve, but then you wait for it to be warm before you drink it so by the time you drink it, it's not actually hot anymore. Doesnt' everyone do this?

EDIT: Also, at the time, alcoholic drinks were called "fire water" by the Native Americans.