A soft, low-caffeine blend built on Bancha green tea with nettle, wheatgrass and moringa leaf, and a calming group of herbs — lemon balm, chamomile, valerian and St John's wort — finished with mint, coconut, mallow and marigold. Organic.
Read this before you buy — it contains St John's wort
St John's wort (Hypericum perforatum) has one of the most clinically important drug interactions of any plant. On most listings for this tea it sits in the middle of a list of pleasant-sounding ingredients with no warning at all, and that is not acceptable for what it is.
St John's wort induces the liver enzyme CYP3A4 and the transporter P-glycoprotein. In plain terms, it makes your body destroy certain medicines faster, so they stop working. Documented consequences include:
-
Oral contraceptives failing — there are documented unintended pregnancies. This is the interaction people are least likely to know about and most likely to be affected by.
-
Ciclosporin and tacrolimus levels falling — there are reported cases of transplanted organs being rejected.
- HIV antiretrovirals losing effect.
-
Warfarin, digoxin, some anticancer drugs and many others reduced.
-
Serotonin syndrome when combined with SSRIs, SNRIs, triptans or tramadol — a potentially serious reaction.
It also causes photosensitivity: it can make skin burn more easily in sunlight.
The amount in a cup of blended tea is far smaller than in a St John's wort supplement, and a single occasional cup is a different matter from a daily habit. But if you take any prescription medicine — above all a contraceptive pill or an antidepressant — check with a pharmacist before drinking this regularly. It takes them two minutes and it is exactly what they are for.
Valerian
Also in the blend. Valerian causes drowsiness in some people, adds to the effect of alcohol and sedatives, and should not be used in pregnancy or breastfeeding. Do not drive shortly after drinking it until you know how it affects you.
A word you will not find here
This blend is normally sold as a "detox" tea. There is no authorised health claim for detoxification in the EU, and no herbal infusion detoxifies anything — your liver and kidneys do that continuously, without assistance. It is a marketing word and we would rather use the space to tell you what is in the blend.
Bancha
The genuinely nice thing here. Bancha is Japanese green tea made from the later harvests and the larger, coarser leaves left after the fine spring picking. Those older leaves hold less caffeine and fewer of the sharp catechins, which makes bancha mild, slightly woody and easy to drink late in the day. It is the everyday household tea of Japan, and it is the right base for a blend like this.
Tatasse
Tatasse
Tatasse
Tatasse
