If you’re a migraineur who has managed to give up coffee, but you’ve replaced it with green or black tea as many people do, I have some not so great news for you: drinking tea from the camelia sinensis plant may be contributing to your migraines (but don’t worry, there are many tasty alternatives which I will share below).
As many of you know, over the years my work and research has led me to believe that fluoride is playing a huge role in the incidence of chronic migraine, which is merely a symptom of hypothyroidism. Fluoride displaces iodine needed for the thyroid to work, so ANY exposure to fluoride – however “natural” – will put a roadblock in your healing process, especially if you are iodine deficient.
There are many exposure sources for fluoride, but green and black tea are one source often overlooked, that contribute hugely to fluoride burden in the body. And, “while authorities in the US and the European Union have imposed restrictions on the fluoride content in bottled mineral waters, no action has been made to minimize the fluoride content in tea” (source).
I am so concerned about this issue that I’m considering going back to school to get a masters in toxicology to try to specifically help address the widespread fluoride poisoning that is occurring. Keep in mind that fluoride has no known essential function in human growth and development and no signs of fluoride deficiency have been identified in humans.
With the aim of sounding the alarm about this potent toxin, I have written a few articles exploring different aspects of this widespread poisoning that is occurring. Please read these for more information about fluoride beyond the problem of fluoride in tea:
Why You Need to Avoid Toxic Halides
The Nitty Gritty on Fluoride Toxicity
Migraine Trigger Alert: Metal Contaminants and Fluoride in Conventional Toothpaste Brands
Tea is a Major Contributor to Fluoride Burden in the Body
In a paper titled, “Risk Assessment of Fluoride Intake from Tea in the Republic of Ireland”, the researchers point out that Ireland has the highest per capita consumption of tea in the world. This is quite amazing, considering the high consumption of tea in places like China, India, and the Middle East.
When I lived in Turkey, I consumed copious amounts of tea. My acne was also TERRIBLE there (yes, acne is caused in part by iodine deficiency from fluoride poisoning). After moving there from Brooklyn, where I had received a round of antibiotics, I then compounded my exposure to fluoride from the antibiotics with daily drinking of black tea, totally unaware I was adding more fluoride to the already-fluoridated water it was brewed in.
“The major sources of internal exposure of individuals to fluorides are the diet, dental products, dermal absorption from chemicals or pharmaceuticals, ingestion or parenteral administration of fluoride-containing drugs, tobacco consumption, exposure to industrial emissions and ingestion of fluoride-containing soil.
It is now acknowledged that of all the common foodstuffs, tea has one of the highest potentials for increasing the daily fluoride intake” (source).
One very high exposure source to fluoride that is not mentioned in the above study is non-organic Calfornia-grown grapes and wine. These grapes, unlike grapes grown elsewhere across the globe, are sprayed with a fluoride-based pesticide called cryolite, to address a moth pest that lives only in that part of California. The levels of fluoride from cryolite-sprayed grape wine are in a similar, or slightly higher range to the exposure levels of fluoride from tea. Since most migraineurs avoid wine due to its triggering effect, this is unlikely to be the main fluoride exposure source for migraineurs. On the other hand it is important that migraineurs and others who care about their health eat organic food, as many non-organic foods (especially lettuce, tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage, raisins, and citrus) are sprayed with fluorinated pesticides.
Tea is but one in a category of “preference beverages” – beverages drunk habitually and in large quantities, which also includes alcohol and coffee. The literature on fluoride levels in coffee, is variable, in keeping with the many factors and conditions that go into its cultivation and processing: “Mean fluoride content in coffee drinks is rather low. Content ranged from 0.10 to 0.58 ppm and is much less than those in tea infusions. Unlike the tea infusions, there is no statistically significant difference between caffeinated and decaffeinated coffees” (source).
Camellia Sinensis: a “Hyperaccumulator” of Fluoride?
As the researchers of “Risk Assessment of Fluoride Intake from Tea in the Republic of Ireland” point out:
“Indeed, the tea plant, Camellia sinensis has been known since the 1930s to be a hyperaccumulator of fluoride. Tea trees accumulate and store fluoride by absorbing it from the air and soil. Fluoride accumulates mostly in the leaves of the tea plant. A substantial amount of fluoride is released during tea infusion. Because soluble fluoride is easily absorbed by the gastro-intestional track, the bioavailability of fluoride from tea is close to 100% which is similar to that from drinking water. Only the water-soluble ionic fluoride ingested is relevant to human health” (source).
The word hyperaccumulator seems sensationalistic, but it is a technical term: “Hyperaccumulators are plants that typically live on metal-enriched soils . . . . and accumulate unusually high tissue concentrations of an element or its ions. . . . [It has been hypothesized] that toxic ions hyperaccumulated by plants could be considered as an inorganic defense by plants against herbivores and pathogens . . . . The defensive function of hyperaccumulated inorganic compounds has been referred to as the Elemental Defense Hypothesis” (source).
Whelp, that strategy hasn’t seemed to work when it comes to human consumption of tea. On the other hand, a plant wouldn’t have much motivation to defend against an animal that grows, tends, proliferates, and enjoys it.
In the case of camellia sinensis, the minerals of concern in the literature that hyperaccumulate are: aluminium (Al), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), fluoride (F) manganese (Mn), and nickel (Ni). Hyperaccumulators are now being recognized for their potential ability to clean up soil contaminated with heavy metals.
Because fluorosis from tea is such a big health issue, researchers have been studying the mechanisms by which fluoride accumulates in tea, and devising strategies to reduce the amount of fluorine uptake by the plant:
“It can be seen that reducing the absorption of fluorine by tea plants and changing the mechanism of fluorine transportation in tea plants can reduce the content of fluorine in different parts of the tea plants. From the mechanism of fluorine absorption, the most effective way is to directly change the form of soil fluorine to reduce the absorption of water-soluble fluorine by roots. From the perspective of fluorine transport mechanism, the toxic effect of fluorine on tea plants can be reduced mainly by promoting the function of transporter proteins to exclude fluorine from the cell or transport it to the vesicle” (source).
The Main Source of Fluoride in Camellia Sinensis is from Uptake in Soil
Fluorine-based pesticides are on the rise: “Between 2015-2020, over 70% of new pesticide products approved were fluorinated”). However, fluorinated pesticides are not widely used on camelia sinensis, although other contaminants like lead can show up in teas grown with pesticides. Instead, the high fluoride content is a feature of the plants’ ability to uptake fluoride from soil as a hyper-accumulator:
“It has been suggested that the toxicity of fluorine to the plant is attenuated by the simultaneous uptake of aluminum, but the exact mechanism of detoxification in tea plant is still poorly understood. The fluorine and aluminum content in the plant is influenced by various environmental factors . . . . Nevertheless, the greatest variations in the total content of fluorine and aluminum, which mainly accumulate in tea leaves, are associated with the age of the leaves, genetic varieties of the plant, the plucking method (mechanical or manual), and the duration of the wilting period” (source).
Although I wasn’t able to find a map of fluoride deposition in soils globally, it is known to be present across a wide swath of the globe. Below is a map for the parts of the world with the highest levels of fluoride naturally-occuring in the groundwater. High fluoride levels in soil often correlate with high fluoride concentrations in groundwater. Around 180 million people worldwide are exposed to naturally-occurring fluoride contaminated groundwater. Due to this high level of exposure globally, much is known about how fluoride negatively affects human biology.
Is the Fluoride Content of Teas Responsible for its Antioxidant Levels?
The hyperaccumulation of metals that cause oxidative stress (as fluorine/fluoride does) is likely what triggers these plants to produce the antioxidants (polyphenols and catechins) so appreciated in green and black teas.
“Increases in the activity/abundance of antioxidant enzymes reduce intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species, leading to increased fluoride tolerance” (source).
“Phenolic compounds are known to neutralize stress-induced changes in plants and modulate the ROS signaling cascade, which forms the basis of their regulatory functions” (source).
The phenolic and catechin content of camellia sinensis has a direct relationship to fluoride content, with higher levels of antioxidants in younger teas with less fluoride. In other words, the presence of fluoride stimulates antioxidant production, but there is a threshold point of fluoride accumulation, after which point polyphenol levels decline in its presence. Therefore, the healthiest camellia sinensis tea would be the one that has the lowest levels of fluoride and highest levels of polyphenols – ie, young tea.
Fluoride in Green and Black Tea Raises Serotonin
Camellia sinensis has been enjoyed through the centuries – it is “the most widely consumed beverage in the world, next to water”, and as I already mentioned, it contains potent beneficial polyphenols and amino acids like l-theanine that have huge health benefits (as mentioned, the antioxidant benefits are higher the younger the leaf is). The question is whether those benefits outweigh the hazards of fluoride consumption in the tea (a personal choice, hopefully an informed one).
One thing that could explain widespread compulsive consumption of tea worldwide is its ability to raise serotonin levels. Camellia’s ability to do so is due both to its fluoride content and its l-theanine content. Although fluoride generally inhibits enzymes throughout the body, it is well established that it also raises serotonin, while lowering dopamine.
One cause of the lowered dopamine may come from fluoride’s antagonistic relationship with iron, needed for dopamine biosynthesis. The lowered dopamine, combined with the pleasurable effects of heightened serotonin (however temporary), could explain why black and green tea’s use can become so habitual.
(Incidentally, tobacco, which is another plant that uptakes fluoride, is also highly addictive, perhaps for the same reasons – when you combine heavy tea intake with heavy tobacco use, you can cause fleurosis – even in the absence of water fluoridation).
On the other hand, one way that the camellia sinensis plant is hypothesized to protect itself from fluoride toxicity, is by way of aluminum uptake. Aluminum levels have also been shown to be high in tea – and aluminum lowers serotonin.
While migraine is a condition characterized by low serotonin, getting your serotonin temporarily boosted with fluoride, at the expense of your thyroid health, is not a good idea.
Once serotonin is metabolized, the withdrawal as levels decline can lead to more anxiety and depression-like symptoms – which might explain the rebound effect when people get off of SSRI’s. Most SSRI’s incidentally, also contain fluoride. While the fluoride may be part of the mechanism of action whereby the serotonin levels are affected, the side-effects of SSRIs can persist for years after discontinuation, probably by way of the way fluoride accumulates in the body, calcifying tissues and organs at the expense of your health.
Fluoride has been shown to accumulate in blood vessels, contributing to heart disease as arterial calcification. We know migraine is a cardiovascular disease, so we should be doing everything possible to protect our vascular tree.
If You Choose to Drink Green or Black Tea
If you choose to drink green or black tea and want to minimize fluoride exposure, then drink looseleaf over bagged teas or instant; organic over nonorganic teas – and younger green or white teas over black, Pu-ehr, instant, or decaffeinated teas. Most importantly, avoid instant black tea at all costs, as it contains astronomically high levels of fluoride, at 897 ppm.
You could even try to purchase teas harvested in summer rather than spring: “When the temperature in summer and autumn is high, the growth rate of tea leaves is fast and the growth period is short, so less fluoride is absorbed and accumulated from the soil and air. This explains why the fluoride content in fresh tea leaves was higher in spring and relatively lower in summer and autumn” (source).
Steeping tea for a shorter time period, and using water that is not boiling and is not floridated, also has an effect on the fluoride content of the teas. Also, considering drinking kukicha twig tea. Kukicha is the lowest in fluoride, because less fluoride accumulates in twigs than in leaves.
Camelia sinensis teas from Kenya are known to have some of the highest fluoride content: China banned imports of tea from Kenya due to extremely high fluoride levels in its tea.
Although washing and processing of black tea leaves leaches some of the fluoride out, levels of aluminum, which bioaccumulate in the plant alongside fluoride, were found to be higher in black teas due to the frying of the leaves, “which is thought to stop the fermentation process and is carried out with Al–Cu alloy pans”).
Eden Foods is the only producer of green or black tea that I am aware of that, according to this article, tests it’s tea for flouride levels:
“Does EDEN green tea contain fluoride? Yes, but young green tea leaves contain far less fluoride and more beneficial antioxidants like EGCG than more mature green tea leaves. The fluoride content of green tea is part of the leaf and is in a beneficial context. All EDEN Sencha green teas are early, young, hand-picked Spring leaves. . . Some studies have suggested that organic teas may contain even lower amounts than non-organic teas. Eden’s fluoride test results to date are: 1.) EDEN Sencha green tea <1 ppm and 2.) EDEN Kukicha twig tea from older organic leaves and stems tested 1.2 ppm to 1.8 ppm, far below what might be expected” (source).
Note that even these lower levels in organic, young teas are still higher than what’s in most fluoridated water (.7 ppm), so are still a concern.
Bottom Line: Fluoride is a Cumulative Toxin
I have a dear friend who is a tea afficionado and so he’s understandably not convinced of the negative effects of fluoride in tea. And maybe he’s on to something other than the serotonin boost. The contemplative atmosphere and ritual of tea drinking and the huge and delicate variety of energetic qualities imparted by the plant is surely magical.
Unfortunately none of this changes the fact that fluoride is a cumulative toxin. Fluoride is chemically the most electronegative element on the table of the elements. In other words, it wreaks havoc on the body causing incredible amounts of oxidative damage – hence why most plants can’t grow well in it, and why the tea plant is genius in having found a way around that by increasing polyphenol content. While these polyphenols may be temporarily effective in mitigating the inflammation caused by the fluoride ingested alongside it, they are not able to prevent the fluoride from lodging in and accumulating in the body.
Because the body does not eliminate fluoride easily, but instead binds to calcium in the body, researchers rightly point out that the issue is not just fluoride content in individual teas, but also the biological factors of the person consuming it – ie, the status of their kidney function, age, sex, calcium intake, dose and duration of fluoride intake. To me, these considerations are just as important in assessing fluoride’s toxicity than the actual levels in the tea.
My Favorite Drinks to Replace Coffee and Black/Green Tea
In terms of caffeinated drinks, teas in the mate family are much lower in fluoride than camelia sinensis. My favorite in this family is guayusa – an Amazonian tea that is energizing and delicious. I drink mine steeped strong with cream and honey.
I also adore goldenmilk – turmeric is a potent anti-inflammatory and as many of you know, ginger is also supportive to those with migraine.
And of course there are many herbal teas that are soothing to the head and digestive tract: peppermint tea, sage tea, thyme tea, rosemary, nettle, chamomile, and lemon balm are all supportive to those with migraine. No, they don’t pack the same punch as caffeinated teas, but instead act as a soothing reminder to slow down, savor life, and get invigorated in a more nourished way.
Side-note! Water Fluoridation in the US May Soon End
I know it’s not fun to learn about another item to avoid consuming if you have migraines, so I’ll share a little good news to counterbalance it: in a landmark decision this past Fall (Sept 2024), a federal judge actually applied the EPA standard risk assessment framework to fluoride and rejected the EPA’s defense as “not persuasive”, because it rested largely on the fact that the exact level at which fluoride is hazardous is too unclear for the agency to determine whether the chemical presents an unreasonable risk.
Rick North, on behalf of Fluoride Action Network, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said: “What’s false is the CDC claiming that fluoridation is one of the 10 greatest health achievements of the 20th century. What’s true is that ending fluoridation will be one of the 10 greatest health achievements of the 21st century” (source).
This decision could end the practice of water fluoridation in the US! On the other hand, the decision could be appealed.
Such a ruling would not eliminate our widespread exposure to fluoride and fluorinated compounds – especially when they exist naturally in some of our favorite foods and beverages.
Want to Learn How to Detox Fluoride From the Body?
If you are wanting to learn more about not only avoiding fluoride, but actually removing its accumulation in the body, this is covered in the Repattern Migraine Masterclass.
