Do You Know How Much Caffeine Is In Your Tea?
With so many incredible benefits in each sip of your tea, it’s hard to believe that there’s another element that even a seasoned tea lover (like you) doesn’t already know. We get that. But you may not know that your favorite tea can be just as important to your morning pick me up like a cup of coffee!
That’s right! When it comes to caffeine, tea is no slouch. There are three categories of tea with many different variations within each — and when it comes to a jolt of instant energy, here’s what you need to know: Tea comes caffeinated (teas that naturally contain caffeine), decaffeinated (teas that have had most of the caffeine removed) and non-caffeinated (teas that don’t normally have any caffeine).
What’s in the tea you love?
The amount of caffeine in any given tea varies based on what you pick. In fact, due to the nature of tea production, the caffeine content can vary between different batches of the same teas!
For example, many experts think that black teas contain more caffeine than green or white teas, but this isn’t always true. Some green teas can contain more caffeine than black teas and vice versa.
The average amount of caffeine in a cup of tea can be between 15mg for a very low-caffeine tea to around 70mg for a higher-caffeine tea. (Just to give you an idea, 200mg per day is your daily recommended allowance.) Here are the four most common teas and their caffeine content:
- White Tea - 30-55mg per cup
- Green Tea - 35-70mg per cup
- Oolong Tea - 50-75mg per cup
- Black Tea - 60-90mg per cup
There are, however, exceptions to all of these teas — white tea can contain more than 55mg of caffeine and a black tea can contain less than 60mg. If you’re looking for a totally caffeine-free variety, herbal blends actually don't have any caffeine in them at all.
How much caffeine are we really talking about?
When compared to drinks such as coffee or energy drinks, tea is actually very low in caffeine. A cup of coffee can contain anywhere between 150 to 200mg for a medium-sized cup. If you were to buy one of the largest sizes in a typical shop, you could be looking at up to 400mg of caffeine!
Energy drinks actually contain quite low amounts of caffeine when compared to coffee, with an average can containing between 70 and 85mg. A cup of black tea could give you more than that. Most of the immediate energy you get from an energy drink, however, actually comes from the enormous amount of sugar inside, not so much the caffeine.
Caffeine affects people in very different ways, depending on their tolerance. Regular coffee drinkers probably won’t feel any effects when they drink white tea like our organic Silver Needle, but someone who rarely uses caffeine may be strongly affected by it. Just remember that if you drink caffeine regularly, your body will build up a tolerance to it (and this can only be undone by lowering daily caffeine amounts).
If you feel you consume too much caffeine on a daily basis, the right tea could be the best substitution for a smaller dose, as well as more health benefits and a taste that can’t be beaten! And if you rely too heavily on energy drinks and coffee for a pick me up, tea may be the option you forgot to consider!
Shop Art of TeaLearn more about various teas and their caffeine levels here.