Who doesn’t like their coffee, right? Coffee means so much more than a boost of energy. It’s a part of our culture—a part of the western aesthetic. It is literally “cool” to drink.
I struggled with this for a long time. Coffee always evoked complicated emotions in me—nerves being one of them. It took a lot of trial and error for me to realize that my “seemingly casual” use of coffee was seriously affecting my life. After I quit coffee, I was more in control. That may sound extreme, but it is true. I discuss the effects of coffee and how eliminating it could benefit you, here.
For a while I went cold turkey. I allowed nothing caffeinated into my system. This helped with the jitters, but ultimately felt limiting. I always felt so strange meeting people for coffee, or going for breakfast and not ordering something. Sure, you can go with non-caffeinated beverages, but the temptation was too much. So I started to search the web for an alternative drink.
Turns out, I wasn’t the only one interested in finding an alternative.
Green Tea, or Camellia Sinensis, is an excellent replacement of coffee for a number of reasons. Matcha, which is just a more concentrated form of green tea (made by taking young tea leaves and grinding them into a bright green powder), is even better. Here are a few reasons why you should consider the shift from coffee to the green stuff:
(1) It has lower caffeine than the average cup of coffee
At first this point might seem moot. Less caffeine?! If you are in the camp that use coffee only for its morning jolt, you might be thinking “what’s the point?”
The point is, too much is too much
Caffeine is an extremely powerful psychoactive stimulant. In fact, it is the most widely used and abused stimulant in the world.
As Dr. Matthew Walker (the world’s leading sleep specialist) puts it, the consumption of caffeine represents one of the longest and largest unsupervised drug studies ever conducted on the human race. The only other rival is perhaps alcohol… but even alcohol has been more supervised. I talk about caffeine in its most potent and readily available form, coffee, here.
The main takeaway is this: Less is more!
Caffeine is a naturally occurring chemical found in many plants that blocks the effects of a neurotransmitter called “adenosine” which helps indicate to your body that it’s time to take a break (by making you tired).
The average amount of caffeine in a cup of green tea is about 35 mg
This is in comparison to the whopping 100 mg in coffee. Caffeine has a half life of about 7 hours. Because of this, having too much of the stuff can really disrupt your sleep cycle which will cause its own chaos.
Like any drug, it is always best to titrate your dose. You can’t undue the cup you drank. So start with a lower dose and add more if needed. Titrating doses, so you can test out your tolerance to the stuff, is how I found my sweet spot: for me, green tea was the key.
In today’s day and age it is not uncommon to have two, three, or four (or more) cups of coffee. In terms of sleep disruption, this can take its toll. Green tea might be the solution to reducing your caffeine while still enjoying some of the benefits of that bump. Paired with number (2) of this list, it might make you rethink that drink that’s become the ‘boire du jour’.
(2) Camellia Sinensis contains a compound called L-Theanine
Green Tea (and Matcha) contains a compound called L-Theanine. L-Theanine is a rare amino acid that promotes a state of relaxation and supports the adrenal system. This, in turn, boosts your body’s ability to react to stress (and the common stress hormones that accompany it). This means that L-Theanine works very well with caffeine. L-theanine counteracts the effects of caffeine while keeping you alert.
Samurai warriors drank matcha and green tea before battle because of its energizing and calming effects. Zen Buddhists drank matcha and green tea to allow them to sit for long periods of meditation and remain alert. Matcha and green tea have been around for millennia. But why has the green stuff been largely eclipsed by coffee? Well, in much of the world, it hasn’t… Green tea is drank far more than coffee in East Asia.
Whatever issues may have presented themselves in point (1) are counteracted in (2). In other words, you can have the best of both worlds with green tea and matcha!
(3) Green tea and matcha are loaded with antioxidants
It is truly impressive how healthy the green stuff is for you. Healthline boasts it as the “healthiest drink on the planet”. It has many antioxidants and nutrients that improve health, brain function, metabolism, physical performance, fight cancer, fight infection, and basically everything else. And, apparently, it doesn’t have diminishing returns with the more you drink; in fact, 3-5 cups a day are optimal! 3-5 cups! 5 cups a day of coffee would be extreme for even some of the biggest consumers.
Basically, the more you drink, the better it is for you
In conclusion I will say this: I had a “love-hate” relationship with coffee. I have a “LOVE-LOVE” relationship with green tea and its powdered counterpart, matcha. I am able to have the little (and controlled) kick of the caffeine, with all of the calming and nourishing effects of the antioxidants and L-Theanine.
No endorsements. No bias. Green tea and matcha are the superior alternative to coffee. If you are struggling with any kind of nerves, “the jitters”, or poor sleep, consider making the switch. It might just have everything you’re looking for, and more.
For more on why switching from coffee might be the move, check out my piece here.
Al holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Ottawa, and a Bachelor of Arts Double Major in Linguistics & Political Studies from the University of Manitoba. He is currently working in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Al has a passion for language, meditation, health, travelling, business and tech. Al is one of the co-founders of ThoughtNotion. You can connect with him on his personal site or on LinkedIn.
