Making Tea Without Caffeine

Although caffeine is the most widely used stimulant in the world, sometimes you want decaffeinated tea.

Photo: ©Mary Ann Rollano

Caffeine is the world’s most popular drug. It is a central nervous system stimulant that directly affects the cardiovascular system, stimulating the heart rate. It also increases the activity of neurotransmitters like dopamine, heightening brain activity. Because caffeine increases heart rate, it’s not always suitable for everyone.

Tea from the Camellia sinensis plant contains over a hundred chemical compounds, including caffeine. Decaffeinated tea must undergo a process to remove the caffeine from the leaves.

In The Science of Caffeine: The World's Most Popular Drug, the American Chemical Society states,

“Scientists have found 400 milligrams is the safest average dose of caffeine for adults. To put that in perspective, that’ll be around three eight-ounce cups of coffee, five eight-ounce Red Bulls or a whopping eight cups black…