Green tea in pregnancy: yes or no?

By now we all know that Chinese and Japanese green tea is a real remedy for our body. They have antioxidant, antitumor, antibacterial, hypoglycemic and draining properties .

Sometimes, however, it is mistakenly thought that what is "natural" is necessarily harmless, it does not hurt. In reality it is not so and indeed, some natural remedies are so effective that in certain circumstances they must instead be reviewed, such as green tea in a condition as delicate as that of pregnancy .

The period of pregnancy, in fact, although many want to cancel its peculiarity, is very delicate and some balances break. Habits must necessarily be modified to protect the new life in formation.

Let's see in detail how it can interfere with green tea during pregnancy.

Green tea in pregnancy? No thanks

Yeah, who would have thought! No thanks, we do without it for nine months. And not only of green tea but also of black tea and oolong tea: these teas are characterized by important polyphenolic compounds, catechins, in particular epigallocatechin-gallate, which are fundamental because they protect us against some cancers and make green tea an effective remedy to control cholesterol and triglycerides.

On the other hand, however, these catechins inhibit particular enzymes (such as dihydrofolate reductase) which reduce the possibility of folic acid absorption, which is essential for ensuring the health of the fetus.

The same University of Tokyo in a study on the interactions of green tea with the absorption of folic acid in the intestine, has shown the reduction of folate when accompanied by the use of tea rather than for example water.

For simple precautionary principle it is therefore not recommended to use catechin-rich green tea, black tea and oolong tea during pregnancy, despite the countless beneficial effects that characterize them.

Discover the other types of green tea

Pregnancy and folic acid

Folic acid is the essential vitamin B9 for the development of the fetus and should be taken even before pregnancy and during, to prevent various problems such as spina bifida, neural tube defects in general, reduced growth of the fetus, congenital diseases, premature birth.

With your gynecologist, possible pathologies of the mother are evaluated which can slow down the absorption of folic acid, such as celiac disease, diabetes mellitus, forms of obesity to establish the right intake of daily folic acid.

In our own small way, we can therefore contribute to avoiding the intake of tea in these months, which can be replaced with tasty relaxing herbal teas such as lime, digestive like mallow, immunostimulants such as dog rose .

No also to chamomile, since it stimulates uterine contractions, would you ever have said that ?!

Pregnancy and other natural remedies to avoid

There are officinal herbs that should not be used during pregnancy because despite their beneficial effects they can cause unpleasant reactions, such as uterine contractions, hormonal changes, dilation of the uterine vessels, intake of phytoestrogens .

Here is a short "balck list" of easy consultation of herbs to avoid when expecting a baby:

Among the stimulants of uterine contractions or release of uterine vessels: