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green tea and tummy problems

11K views 34 replies 31 participants last post by  zoebird 
#1 ·
i'm wondering if this happens to anyone else, and WHY it happens. i love green tea. but most of the time when I drink it, my stomach feels weird after. especially on an empty stomach, but even after I've eaten. it makes me feel nauseated. once I had a big cup of green tea while I was out and came home feeling sick. I spent a half an hour retching over the toilet but didnt throw up. its a terrible feeling and Im not so sure what it is. it couldn't be the caffeine could it? i mean I can drink like 8 cups of black coffee and my tummy wil feel fine. (yes I've done that) coffee doesnt bother me and other teas don't bother me...so what's the deal? does this happen to anyone else?
 
#5 ·
Are you sure the tea didn't have gingseng in it? (a lot of green tea has added ginseng, and some brands don't make it very clear on the packaging). Ginseng can cause your blood sugar to plummet very rapidly. I know because I'm very sensitive to it. On an empty stomach, ginseng tea has very nearly made me pass out from hypoglycemic shock. In the meantime I got hit with severe nausea, all-over cold sweating, and dizziness...a miserable feeling. Sounds kind of like what you're experiencing.

If you tea doesn't have added ginseng, I don't know what it could be.
 
#10 ·
black tea always makes me nauseaus on empty stomach, but green tea is usually fine, but i hardly ever drink it on empty stomach.

i was thinking if it IS the acidity, then i see why coffee is fine - because most people add a creamer to it, i think that might neutralize it a bit. I know black coffee also makes me sick....
 
#14 ·
Green tea is touted for its health benefits, so i think we should get to the bottom of what exactly it is that creates this problem. I'm so curious now! I know, often times at work i would force myself to drink it cause i'm always hearing how great it is for ya. sounds silly, but i thought the sick stomach may have been a sort of good sick, like a cleansing or detox. but if lots of people react poorly to it, then i really wonder what it could be. i wonder if it is the ginseng, as ludwig suggested. i'm gonna do a little research and see what i can find...
 
#15 ·
I used to feel especially nauseous after drinking a particular green tea that my mother had, which her friend had bought in Taiwan. I suspected that maybe that producer used more pesticides or toxic fertilizining agents...who knows. Anyway, I haven't touched that tea since, and other brands usually don't make me feel nauseous. Have you tried other brands or kinds of green tea? Maybe you won't react so strongly to other types.
 
#16 ·
It may be a good idea to try another brand- perhaps there is some additive that is irritating your stomach? I know people who are irritated by a certain brand of corn chip, cola, or licorice- so I would think it'd be possible with tea as well? You may want to try an organic variety.
 
#18 ·
hi. i find this with green tea. i think its because green tea has some sort of laxative affect. but when i drink green tea and it makes my belly go funny and sometimes i feel sick from it, i like it because it makes me feel like its working and detoxing me.

otherwise i dunno.
 
#22 ·
Normal tea has always made me sick - I literally often throw up if I drink it. It's a shame, because I really like it. I tried green tea last year in the hope that it would be different, and it wasn't, I was still sick. Red wine has a similar effect on me, so I wonder if it's something to do with the tannin? Although in your case that means you'd be affected by normal tea too.

I don't have a problem with coffee and herbal teas at all.
 
#24 ·
Thank goodness I came across this site. I thought I was the only crazy one with such an adverse reaction to Green Tea. I can eat or drink anything but I had a bottle of Fuze (green tea flavor) for lunch today and within an hour experienced such stomach pain like never before. I could barely walk and had to breathe shallow to lessen the pain. At first I didn't make the connection then recalled once before trying green tea and having an unpleasant stomach reaction. I won't forget anymore!! After about 5 hours, it subsided but it was awful. What in the world could be in green tea to cause such a reaction in some people??
 
#25 ·
You know when I told people that green tea make me ill they always gave me looks like the nice men in white jackets were comming any moment.

At least I am not alone in this.

I can however drink mint tea's and most flower tea's without issue.

Even coffee empty stomach or not and never have issue but green tea for some reason makes me very nausious.
 
#26 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by porvida View Post

i'm wondering if this happens to anyone else, and WHY it happens. i love green tea. but most of the time when I drink it, my stomach feels weird after. especially on an empty stomach, but even after I've eaten. it makes me feel nauseated. once I had a big cup of green tea while I was out and came home feeling sick. I spent a half an hour retching over the toilet but didnt throw up. its a terrible feeling and Im not so sure what it is. it couldn't be the caffeine could it? i mean I can drink like 8 cups of black coffee and my tummy wil feel fine. (yes I've done that) coffee doesnt bother me and other teas don't bother me...so what's the deal? does this happen to anyone else?
Yeap the same thing happenes to me... I recommend trying this new green tea, that is mixed with other stuff and it's awesome... it doesn't make me nauseated!! Yogi Tea - Green Tea Kombucha! Good luck
 
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