| Pregnant women would be wise to limit the | | | | Yale University School of Medicine, had |
| amount of green tea they drink during | | | | similar findings on caffeine during |
| pregnancy, and should be careful about taking | | | | pregnancy. |
| any green tea supplements. Green tea is rich | | | | |
| in antioxidants, and has a host of health | | | | The concerns over caffeine were that it would |
| benefits relating to dental health, blood | | | | lead to low birth weight or miscarriage. And |
| sugar levels, cholesterol, and weight loss. | | | | this is still true of a very high daily |
| But researchers have found, whilst examining | | | | intake of coffee. The Yale team found that |
| the active constituent of green tea, the | | | | drinking about 600mg of caffeine a day, which |
| epigallocatechins, or EGCG for short, that it | | | | is about 6 cups of coffee, would reduce birth |
| may affect the way the body uses folate. | | | | weight to levels that were clinically |
| Folate is important for pregnant women as it | | | | significant. The rate at which birth weight |
| prevents neural tube birth defects in babies. | | | | was reduced was established at being 28 grams |
| | | | per 100 mg, or 1 cup, of coffee per day. But |
| The problem of green tea during pregnancy is | | | | they emphasized that this would not be |
| that the EGCG molecules are structurally | | | | significant for moderate caffeine |
| similar to a compound called methotrexate. | | | | consumption. |
| Methotrexate is able to kill cancer cells by | | | | |
| chemically bonding with an enzyme in the body | | | | The Danish study found that drinking 8 cups |
| called enzyme dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR). | | | | or more of coffee per day (this would be |
| Healthy people have this enzyme also - it is | | | | about 16 cups or more of tea), would increase |
| part of what is called the folate pathway, | | | | the chances of miscarriage, or stillbirth, by |
| which is the pathway, or steps, the body | | | | 60% compared to women who did not drink |
| takes to transform nutrients like folate into | | | | caffeine. They also found that moderate |
| something that can be used to support its | | | | coffee or tea drinking did not pose |
| normal functions. | | | | significant risks. For those drinking half a |
| | | | cup to 3 cups of coffee a day, the risk of |
| But this chemical similarity means that the | | | | fetal death was 3% higher compared to |
| EGCG in green tea also binds with the enzyme | | | | non-caffeine drinkers. And for those drinking |
| DHFR, and when it does this, it inactivates | | | | 4 to 7 cups of coffee a day, the risk |
| this enzyme. When this enzyme is inactivated, | | | | increases to 33%. One cup of coffee equals |
| the ability of the body to use folate is | | | | about 2 cups of tea when comparing caffeine |
| going to be affected. How much green tea is | | | | levels. The recommended amount of coffee |
| able to be consumed, or precisely how much | | | | drunk is up to 3 cups daily, or 6 cups of |
| folate absorption is affected, is unclear. | | | | tea, by the UK food agency. |
| Though the research article did say that | | | | |
| drinking 2 cups of green tea a day can stop | | | | References: |
| cancer cells (which is what methotrexate is | | | | |
| targeting) from growing. | | | | 1. nutraingredients-usa.com/news |
| | | | ng.asp?id=58807 |
| The good news on caffeine drank during | | | | |
| pregnancy, from coffee and tea, is that a | | | | 2. nutraingredients-usa.com/news |
| moderate amount is fine. Two studies, one by | | | | ng.asp?id=24747 |
| Danish scientists who interviewed more than | | | | |
| 88,000 pregnant women, and the other by the | | | | 3. foodnavigator.com/news/ng.asp? |