So how does one go about kicking caffeine?  Whether your weapon of choice is coffee, soda, Rock Star energy drink, other forms of energy drinks, or all of the above, there is a solution if you are trying to quit caffeine. 

This secret alone will "ween" you off of America's top drug of choice instead of trying to go cold turkey.  The problem with cold turkey is that you can get massive headaches – ones that resemble migraines from what I am told – nausea, fatigue, and that overall mental fogginess that is associated with kicking coffee to the curb. 

I won't keep you waiting. Green tea is the secret. Try it. No seriously. Though I am still in the process of kicking caffeine completely, I have been able to cut down considerably due to green tea's magic. Green tea contains caffeine, but only about the equivalent of half a cup of regular coffee. 

What you do is immediately substitute green tea for coffee.  ood news is you can even do it today!  If you typically drink 3-4 cups of coffee each day, you can substitute this by having 3-4 cups of green tea and see if you notice a difference. Or, if you really want to ween slowly, you can have 2 cups of coffee, 2 of green tea, and then each week reduce it by a cup (ex: 1 cup of coffee, 1 cup green tea) until you are only drinking green tea.  Then you can quit green tea and should not have any withdrawal symptoms.    

People who have quit coffee have noticed an immediate change in their concentration levels. A man who was interviewed in Health and Personal Development magazine was quoted saying, " It has become easier to focus just on the task in front of me and shut out the rest of the distractions. I'm less prone to procrastination.

I didn't really notice it while I was drinking coffee but my mind seemed to wander off in all kinds of ways a lot of the time. Now it's easier to single-task and focus on one thing and I don't feel the same need to check email or other distracting stuff. I'm calmer. I'm a calm person to begin with but getting off coffee calmed and slowed my brain down. So I feel more relaxed more of the time. And it's easier to think with clarity." 

Green tea also packs many great health benefits. It has been used in China as a medicine for quite a long time too. Green tea is reported to help ward off diseases like cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, high cholesterol levels, infection, cardiovascular disease, and impaired immune function.  The secret of green tea lies in the fact it is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is a powerful anti-oxidant: besides inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, it kills cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. It has also been effective in lowering LDL cholesterol levels, and inhibiting the abnormal formation of blood clots. 

So whether you are trying to cut caffeine or just trying to help your immune system, green tea makes sense as an alternative to coffee and harmful energy drinks.  



Dan Olson writes for KSTW-TV in Seattle. All opinions expressed in this column are his.