Reducing Tea / Coffe - help please

Taylor’s decaffeinated ground coffee (or beans) is what I used. I substituted half my ordinary Taylor’s for decaf in each cup, then went back to full caffeine for the first two cups of the day, just drinking decaf after lunchtime. The caffeine is removed using the water system, so there are no chemicals in the decaf version. It tastes fine.

I don’t drink tea, so can’t help with that.

Try Rooibos Earl Grey. Tastes good if you already like Earl Grey and is caffeine free. I like Rooibos anyway but find the Earl Grey better.

If you mix the fruity and herbal teas with fruit juice (e.g. clear apple juice with fennel tea, or a blackcurrant or grape juice with a fruity tea) you may find that more palatable. Also fine : just fruit juices with hot water, 50/50. You can add cinnamon, cloves etc, for a non-alcoholic Christmas drink.

Green tea is great. But take the bag out after max 3 minutes. The water is supposed to be only 70-80°, too - not boiling. Here in Germany you can get flavoured versions, or add lemon, honey, ginger or vanilla yourself.

There should also be caffeine -free teas and coffees available. A matter of trying the different brands.

And as a calorie-laden treat occasionally, how about a cup of creamy cocoa.

I don't drink much coffee - I can't stomach it, caffeine or no caffeine doesn't make any difference. But I do enjoy a cappuccino or better still a latte macchiato - lots of frothy milk with a tiny shot of coffee. That must have less caffeine than a whole cup of coffee.

I love Teapigs lemon and ginger. I use one teabag in the cup and a slice of lemon and leave it to sit for about 5 minutes.

If I am in need of a little indulgence a teaspoon of honey or the syrup from the stem ginger jar added.

I have caffeine drinks up until mid day then herbal after.

Hi there, I’m in a situation where too much caffeine does affect me, I can’t even get by on de-caf, as you might know there is still caffeine in this. Occasionally I will get by ‘as a treat’ decaf coffee if out. Failing that I’m on Red Bush teabags/Rooibos tea (normal), I believe some have vanilla flavoring. Bought from all major supermarkets, And for coffee from Holland & Barrett is a coffee alternative, called Whole Earth organic no caf made with barley & chicory. I like it, but my guess is if your a real coffee person it may not be your taste.
I’m more of a tea drinker but keep a jar of this at home & work for when I ‘want to be good’ (no caffeine). I also have a stash from Lidl’s deluxe super fruits tea bags. Good luck.

I like quite a few of the Pukka herbal/fruit teas.

Don't expect them to taste like black tea though as they are a different thing altogether.

I haven't found a decaf coffee that I like yet (including Taylors) but I tend to drink Italian style coffee anyway so the choice is less.

Personally I've been making my coffee gradually weaker so that instead of drinking a double espresso I'll maybe have a single and then I'm now happy with an Americano type later. It means I drink less coffee overall.

Tea could be made less strong too.
I only use loose tea - it would be easier to do this with leaf tea rather than teabags.

These are the 6 we most frequently use in the colder weather it seems. I also have several other Pukka ones that are nice in my opinion.

I would say be wary of exchanging one not-so-good habit for another: many fruit teas are acidic and pretty harmful to your teeth, as are fruit juices which will also play havoc with you blood sugars. Maybe a better approach would be to be mindful and reduce the number of cups of tea and coffee you drink with enjoyment per day and drink a glass of plain water in between times. Sometimes we put the kettle on just out of habit.

I’m not a fan of fruit or herbal teas but I’m happy drinking slightly cooled boiled water. A splash of lemon juice and a squirt of ginger purée (or a piece of root ginger which I keep sliced in the freezer) in hot water also works for me. I drink far too much caffeinated tea.

Green tea is a lovely mild drink. The secret is to only leave the teabag in for a very short time so it doesn't become bitter

Fruit teas used to give me migraines. I mostly drink un caffeinated coffee because even one cup of normal coffee keeps me awake all night. I read that you need to drink your last coffee 12 hours before you need to sleep. I’ve been awake all night before now because I mistakenly drank normal coffee in the evening. I’ve just gone on the 16/8 diet (it’s more lifestyle than diet though) because I was snacking and drinking tea and coffee late into the night. I do vary the timescale sometimes and may reduce it to 14/10. But once I’ve had my last tea or coffee @ 6 or 8 pm I know that’s it. I do sometimes have a black coffee which is allowed ( it’s good for you, too). And I’m not getting up in the night to go to the loo so often. I do feel really good for it. I didn’t think I’d be able to stick to it but it’s become a way of life now. I must drink more water, though. And when I have my first cuppa I really enjoy it!

pinkquartz

Green tea is a lovely mild drink. The secret is to only leave the teabag in for a very short time so it doesn't become bitter

And make it with water not quite boiling. My friends Chinese students told her that. It’s so good for you. I’ve seen adverts for buckwheat tea but not sure what it’s like. May try some. I tend to put green tea in smoothies.

Try decaffeinated tea. Waitrose own essential brand is good. TBH you can't tell the difference.

My go to drink nowadays is fresh chopped lime (or lemon) with a little fresh ginger. Micro for 2 minutes. Strain the liquid and sweeten to taste with honey. Wonderful.

I can't bear herbal teas.. in fact I call them horrible teas! I use Lavazza caffeinated in the morning to get me going and then a few decafs thought the day. I experimented long and hard with alternatives.. some were just ok and some were quite awful.

I do make proper Indian Chai with decaf tea bags sometimes... its delicious but involves a bit of prep. I use fresh ginger root, cardamon pods - broken up a bit in a mortar and pestle and a bit of cinnamon or cloves and black pepper.. these last three can be omitted. Boil the spices first for a couple of minutes, add the tea bags and then boils for another few minutes... then add milk and bring to the boil. Serve with some honey or just as is. Very good for health in the winter especially.

I'm not a fan of fruit teas but I do like Dorset Tea Ginger & Sunshine Lemon. It is refreshing and warming at the same time and I usually put a little honey in with it

I made a cup of tea at my daughter’s house yesterday and was sitting enjoying it when she arrived home and apologised for only having decaffeinated tea bags. I hadn’t even noticed and would have been none the wiser. They were Typhoo.

I

Used to drink way too much tea and coffee…so understand your dilemma…have switched to hibiscus teas made by twinings…so lovely and way better than the fruit teas made with tealeaves. Also drink copious amounts of water, filtered with a slice of lemon

Daisymae
I will have to give waitrose decaff tea a go at the moment I use Tesco's decaff tea bags and coffee I use Azera Americano decaff very nice in fact it's the best I've tasted.

I stick to Nescafé Gold Blend decaf because I read that it was naturally decaffeinated.

I have weaned myself off caffeine a few times now. Last time I bought a jar of caffeinated coffee and another of decaf, mixed them together in the mixing bowl and so ended up with two jars of half strength caffeine.
Then used that in the morning but just decaf or fruit teas - I like any of the red ones - in the afternoon. That way I avoided the dreadful headaches I got when I cut caffeine out before.

I find Nescafe decaf the best I have tried so many and much prefer this. I also occasionally use decaf tea bags and tetley are pretty good

I now have decaf tea and can’t tell the difference. I still have normal coffee but have reduced my caffeine intake by half

I drank Redbush tea for years and enjoyed it, but then one day just couldn't bear the taste so stopped. I tried green tea, fruit teas, camomile, mountain tea from Crete etc.

Sometimes I drink these herbal teas, however, because I wanted to reduce my caffeine intake but like the taste of tea and coffee I drink decaffeinated Yorkshire tea and decaffeinated coffee, mainly Douwe Egberts.