Tag: True teas

According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), approximately 80% of adults in the United States consume caffeine daily, often in their tea. However, the notion that all teas contain this stimulant is a common misconception, leading many to wonder: do all tea have caffeine in it?

According to scientific research, tea plants naturally produce trace amounts of nicotine, but the levels found in a brewed cup are minuscule and not harmful. This may come as a surprise, given the strong association of nicotine with tobacco products. Understanding the reality of whether nicotine exists in tea can help clarify this lesser-known fact about the world's second-most popular beverage.

Tea is the second most consumed beverage globally, after water. For a beverage to be considered a true tea and not herbal, it must come from the leaves of a specific plant, *Camellia sinensis*. This foundational fact is the key to understanding the difference between a real tea and an herbal infusion, also known as a tisane.

While many people associate caffeine exclusively with coffee, an 8-ounce cup of standard green tea actually contains about 30 to 50 milligrams of caffeine. The answer to "Does green contain caffeine?" is a definitive yes, but its energizing effect is different and often gentler than other beverages due to its unique chemical composition.