Is Green Tea Good For Breastfeeding Mothers 

Is it safe for a breastfeeding mother to drink green tea?

Is Green Tea Good For Breastfeeding Mothers: Green tea is one of the healthiest herbs found on mother earth, which is the raw and least processed form of tea-leaf. It has many medicinal properties and most important it can cut calories. Green tea also helps in burning extra fat and hence it is very popular among health-conscious people as well as new moms because they gain some extra weight due to pregnancy. But there is a Question always breastfeeding mothers ask is Green Tea Good For Breastfeeding Mothers.

As maximum new moms are lactating mothers, they are very much confused if it harms their baby because what they drink can be transferred to their baby through breast milk.

Here are some popular confusing thoughts regarding this topic. You can read these thoroughly to enhance your knowledge and remove your doubts.

Can you drink tea during lactation?

Is Green Tea Good For Breastfeeding Mothers: You should be concerned about what you eat or drink in your diet during breastfeeding because it can be directly transferred to the newborn through breast milk. 

Pregnant and breastfeeding women are advised to avoid caffeine, alcohol, tobacco, cocaine, heroin, etc. These all psychoactive drugs may cause toxic effects on your baby.

Green tea is full of antioxidants and contains a lot of healthy bio compounds. Which are absolutely good for health in every health condition it has some properties due to the presence of caffeine and catechins these two components help to boost your metabolism rate. 

It also helps to refresh your mind and keep you energetic. These two things are necessary for the post-pregnancy period. It enhances the rate of fat burning, so consuming green tea is beneficial to losing some weight healthily, even in the case of a lactating mother.

Though it is highly beneficial, it contains caffeine, so please take it in moderation.

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How Much Green Tea Is Safe for a Breastfeeding Mother?

Though green tea is a healthy option to live your life healthily, nothing is good in excess amount. Every ingredient should consume in limited quantity, and thus green tea also should not be consumed in excess quantity.

Two to three cups of green tea per day are good enough. As it contains caffeine, so consume it in excess quantity is not recommended.

Side effects of green tea during lactation:

Green tea is a healthy drink to lead a better life. There is no solid proof that green tea has any side effects during lactation. Consuming green tea is completely safe if it is taken in a limited quantity.

As it contains caffeine and theanine It can cause various health issues if it is taken in excess quantity. Otherwise, it is good to be consumed even during lactation.

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Does consuming green tea reduce breast milk production?

There is no scientific proof that green tea can reduce the flow of breast milk. Production of milk depends on several factors, mainly it depends on the secretion of various hormones like prolactin and oxytocin which are also known as ‘mothering hormones’.

These two hormones are secret naturally during the post-pregnancy period. Breast milk is produced by the mammary gland and its production depends on those hormones. If those hormones are not functioning in the proper way and not secreting in the right amount then it may cause a reduction in milk flow.

Consumption of excess amounts of caffeine can affect the production of hormones and thus hormonal imbalance may happen that can affect milk production.

Can I have decaf green tea during lactation?

Decaf green tea or Decaffeinated green tea is one type of green tea that contains caffeine in less quantity than normal green tea. Decaf tea is normally acceptable to consume during breastfeeding due to the presence of caffeine in fewer amounts.

Though it contains caffeine in a minimal amount it is safer than normal green tea during breastfeeding.

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Can I have matcha tea during lactation?

Matcha is a type of green tea that is a healthier alternative than coffee. It contains more antioxidants and caffeine than normal green tea or decaf green tea, but it has several health benefits like it prevents cancer, decreasing inflammation, maintaining blood pressure, etc. 

These properties make it very popular even during the lactation period, but the caffeine percentage is higher in it than in normal or decaf green tea, so it is not recommended to take it on a daily basis during breastfeeding.

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Can I take green tea tablets or capsules during lactation? 

A green tea capsule or tablet is made up of ground or crushed raw green tea. Hence, it has the same properties which green tea has, but due to the process of tablets or pills formation.The addition of some other basic components and preservatives are required, which makes it worst than normal green tea. 

Sometimes steroids and other chemicals may present in those capsules as a hidden component.  So normal green tea is preferable to green tea tablets or capsules if you have no taste issue regarding this.

Does theanine, present in green tea affect lactation?

Theanine is an amino acid that is not produced in the human body, though it is not essential for humans. Generally, it is present in green tea and black tea. This amino acid is very much essential for mental stress as it may affect certain chemicals present in the brain that directly affects the secretion of some hormones like dopamine, serotonin, etc. 

These two hormones are neurotransmitters that provide to stimulate the massage of the brain. Mental health is controlled by Dopamine and, on the other hand, Serotonin helps to reduce depression. These two hormones basically help to handle mood swings.

So, it is clearly seen that this component present in green tea is highly beneficial in the post-pregnancy period as mental illness, mood swings and emotional breakdown are very common in this stage.  So it is completely safe during breastfeeding.

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What are the effects of excess green tea consumption during lactation?

1. Green tea is a healthy herb that has a lot of medicinal properties but it also contains caffeine and theanine and so if you consume it excessively it may lead to several health issues like:
2. Headache
3. Anxiety
4. Restlessness
5. The problem in the sleep cycle
6. Diarrhea
7. Irritability
8. Acidity
9. Stomachache
10. Increase heart rate
11. Constipation

Caffeine overdose may create a lot of health issues and if you are a lactating mom then it can impact both you and your child. So please consume green tea in moderation.

Some healthier alternatives than green tea during lactation:-

Here are some healthier drinks which can be prepared easily at home. These drinks can be consumed as an alternative to green tea. All the drinks given below are low in calories and have the power to boost your metabolism rate. All these drinks have their own medicinal property which not only help you to maintain body weight but also help to keep you hydrated. These drinks are :

1. Lemon honey drink
2. Ginger tea
3. White tea
4. Chamomile tea
5. Amla water drink
6. Cumin water
7. Cinnamon and clove tea
8. Fenugreek seed water
9. Turmeric tea
10. Paper meant tea

Conclusion: Is Green Tea Good For Breastfeeding Mothers

In this article above, we tried to clarify several confusing questions arising in your mind is “Is Green Tea Good For Breastfeeding Mothers”. Read those answers thoroughly hope it will help you to remove confusion. If you have more knowledge regarding this please inform us in the comment section.