Tea and Pregnancy

I had a blog reader recently ask me the following:

Would you be so kind as to recommend a tea that I might enjoy? I'm a long-time serious coffee drinker and have to stop for pregnancy. I'd like to have a cup of tea in the morning with no caff or at least less than coffee (100+ mgs) a little would probably be helpful. I know a lot about selecting good coffee but little to none about selecting good tea.

What a great question! Below are my thoughts, and I'd love for others who prefer caffeine-free (or light) teas to contribute their thoughts, too.

Consider Rooibos

First, I would recommend that you give Rooibos a try. Rooibos (ROY-boss) is a naturally caffeine-free alternative to tea. It's from an African "red bush" plant. It's become very popular in the US in the past few years and is quite flavorful. I find that it has a slightly nutty flavor. It's not truly "tea" because it does not come from the camellia sinensis bush. However, it has many qualities of tea, such as a pleasing flavor and aroma, and blending well with herbs, spices and fruit oils. One of my friends who has been recently pregnant highly recommends this tea.

If you have a natural foods store (your local coop, Whole Foods, Wild Oats, etc.) or tea shop/retailer (local tea room, Teavana, Tealuxe, etc.) near you, it will be easy to find loose Rooibos (sometimes called red tea). If these sources are not near you, look for bagged varieties from Republic of Tea or other brands.

Go for herbals

Also consider herbal teas (also called herbal infusions or tisanes). Again, these technically are not tea because they don't contain any of the tea leaf itself. They are made from dried herbs (mint, chamomile, etc), roots, berries and spices (cinnamon, ginger, etc.). There are many varieties to choose from. I like the Celestial Seasonings brand. Do read this article from the American Pregnancy Association for its advice on consuming herbal teas.

Double-steep
If you would prefer a true cup of tea, I suggest you go for the double-steeping method. Caffeine is highly water soluble. In the first steeping, a cup of tea gives up ~60% of its caffeine. Simply drain this first steeping, and reuse the leaves for a second steep. (Loose leaves work better than tea bags for this double-steeping.) I can't give you exact amounts of caffeine per cup, as it varies greatly by the tea itself, but that second steeping will contain significantly less caffeine than the first.

Decaf teas

Decaf teas are another option, tho they are last on my list for two reasons. 1 - The name is misleading. Realize that it still has trace amounts of caffeine in it. No tea is truly caffeine-free, even decaf ones. 2 - Some methods for making decaf tea use very harsh chemicals. Not what you want to put into your body at this time. Look for the "CO2" process.

OK, those are my ideas - what tips do the rest of you have to offer?