How does Green Tea Affect Pregnancy?

There are many controversies regarding the consumption of green tea during pregnancy. As we all know, there are many health benefits of green tea, but is it safe to drink green tea during pregnancy? Yes, it is safe to drink green tea during pregnancy but in limited amounts. Due to its wide-range of health benefits, pregnant women go on drinking cup after cup of green tea, being unaware of the negative effects the tea has on their babies. Drinking three or four cups of green tea daily would probably be a sensible limit.

The reason for avoiding green tea during pregnancy is that it may affect the body's folate levels by blocking the enzyme. Folate is an important nutrient during pregnancy, which is very important for the proper nervous system development of the baby. Folate deficiency may result in retardation or birth defects. One such birth defect found in the babies of the women who consumed large amounts of green tea during pregnancy is neural tube defect like spina bifida. Spina bifida occurs when the neural tube fails to close completely.

But how does green tea affect folate levels? Studies have shown that epigallocatechins (EGCG) present in green tea is responsible for this. EGCG is structurally similar to methotrexate, a compound that binds with a particular enzyme (dihydrofolate reductase) to kill cancer cells. Due to its structural similarity, EGCG also binds with that enzyme in the body and inactivates it. When this enzyme is inactivated, it prevents folate from being taken into the blood stream. Absence of folate may result in possible retardation of the growing child.

Drinking how much of green tea will affect folate levels is unclear. But avoiding the consumption of green tea during pregnancy may reduce the risk of neural tube defects. However, more research is required for proving this.

Another reason for avoiding or reducing the consumption of green tea during pregnancy is that it contains caffeine, which should be avoided during pregnancy. Some pregnant women have great sensitivity to the caffeine in green tea. Excess consumption of caffeine may increase the risk of miscarriage. Therefore it is unwise to drink large amounts of green tea during pregnancy.

You can reduce the content of caffeine in green tea. Firstly pour little boiling water over the dry tea leaves and strain it after 30 seconds. Then prepare the tea as usual.

Iron, calcium and minerals are required in high amounts during pregnancy. Green tea like any other teas makes it difficult for our bodies to absorb iron from food. The absorption of iron and minerals may be affected by the compounds (phytates) present in the green tea or by the oxidation process. This is another reason for drinking limited amounts of green tea during pregnancy.