I can’t believe I quit coffee.

I LOVE COFFEE. I mean, lo-oooove it.  I’ve been drinking coffee for 20 years and have never considered stopping.  So I still don’t quite understand what came over me a few weeks ago when one morning I decided that I should switch to tea.  Right now.

It seemed to be an impulsive decision, but the idea must have been brewing for awhile.  I think the continuous caffeine intake makes me jumpy.  Like Tweek. I start with coffee first thing in the morning and then am on a cycle of highs and crashes all day.  If I don’t replace the coffee with more caffeine then I start snacking on sugary treats.  Also, I think it was contributing to having difficulty sleeping (in addition to my annoying work schedule of course).

Anyway, I quit drinking coffee cold turkey.  I had a headache for three days.  Then sporadic headaches for another week or so.  One would think this would make me grab and glug the closest latte available, but it just made me more determined to kick the habit addiction (a habit is something one does routinely, an addiction must to be done).

On the positive side I am surprised at how much easier to get up in the morning.   Usually nothing, let me emphasize NOTHING else happens until I start the coffee.  Now, by the time get into the kitchen I’m pretty much awake.  Sometimes I make and eat my oatmeal before I even start the tea.  It’s crazy.

According to the Mayo Clinic if you drink 200 to 300 mg of caffeine a day you might want to consider cutting back if you experience any of a long list of effects.  200 to 300 is considered moderate usage.  500 to 600mg a day is heavy usage.  I estimate my 20 or so ounces of morning coffee was about 300 mg, followed by another 150 to 200 mg in the afternoon.  Plus black tea sometimes.  So maybe that was a little much.

I was still drinking tea while suffering coffee withdrawal (I can’t imagine  the headaches if I’d had no caffeine).  Which brings me to the subject of this post:  Caffeine Content in Tea Versus Coffee.  Several people have made a point of informing me there is nearly as much caffeine in tea as in coffee and that green tea in particular has a lot.  So I thought I would research this topic a bit.

It is difficult to assess the exact caffeine content of beverages due to the individual bean or tea leaf variations, roasting process, brewing time, etc. but the sources I looked at all show the same trend.  This is a compilation from several sources which are listed at the end of the post.

Brewed Coffee, 8 0z.

95 – 200 mg caffeine

150 – 200 mg

60 – 120 mg

5 oz.  average: 80 mg

.

Black Tea, 8 oz

40-120 mg caffeine

60-90 mg

45 mg

one tea bag average: 40 mg

.

Oolong Tea, 8oz.

50-75 mg caffeine

one tea bag average: 30 mg

.

.

.

Green Tea, 8 0z.

30-70 mg caffeine

one tea bag average: 20 mg

.

.

White Tea, 8 oz.

30-55 mg caffeine

one tea bag average: 15 mg

.

.

.

.

Who stops at 8 ounces?

Ben & Jerry’s Coffee Fudge Frozen Yogurt, 8 oz.

85 mg caffeine

.

.

.

Basically, a cup of black tea has about 2/3 the caffeine of a cup of brewed coffee.  A really strong green tea could have as much caffeine as a very weak cup of coffee, but most likely has less than either coffee or black tea.  And trust me friends, I was not drinking weak coffee. Also, if you re-brew with the same tea leaves then the caffeine content will be very little the second time around.  I do that anyway because I’m cheap and lazy.

I’m still enjoying a home-made espresso on Saturdays, but that’s it.  This may not last forever, but for now I’m loving it.

More info:

According to Stash Tea, “One of the more confusing aspects of caffeine content is the fact that coffee contains less caffeine than tea when measured in its dry form.  The caffeine content of a prepared cup of coffee is significantly higher than the caffeine content of a prepared cup of tea.”

According to MayoClinic.com, “Research suggests that men are more susceptible to caffeine than are women.”  O. M. G.  Something that effects men more than women.  Pick me off the floor.

If you want to learn about the different type of tea, I suggest this easy guide by The Tea Source.

Sources:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/caffeine/AN01211

http://www.choiceorganicteas.com/caffeineintea.htm

http://coffeetea.about.com/library/blcaffeine.htm

http://www.stashtea.com/caffeine.htm

http://www.choiceorganicteas.com/caffeineintea.htm

http://grande.nal.usda.gov/ibids/index.php?mode2=detail&origin=ibids_references&therow=196672

http://www.medicinalfoodnews.com/vol10/2006/green_tea

Happy brewing.