Training & Nutrition - Mate de coca tea

This is a tea made from the leaf of a coca plant . Its is used in peru by the locals and others for high altitude Illness . Is this banned for people who compete in the tour de france .You can can purchase it in most countries and also buy it on the net . Just curious .
jarhead#42

I have no idea. But I do know it tastes like ***. I spent a month in peru on a humanitarian aid mission and the staples in the villiage I was at was guinea pig roasted over a fire pit and that tea. Needless to say I lost a lot of weight.

I'd liken the taste itself to something similar to the smell of a fresh mowed lawn.

I used to drink it while trying to cure the fatique syndrome I had from a severe concussion . This lasted for many years . Its what gave me the little boost to actually hop on a bike and ride . Very mild stimulant . You dont get the coffee thingy , you know jittery and all , You just have a tiny bit of energy . I think it must be banned because Youd probably test positive for a drug thats refined from these leaves .
peace
jarhead#42

Hi,
I think it would be ok. I drank the stuff for a while when I had a stomach problem. You can find a blend of matte and STRONG black tea in Morning Thunder. Be warned! This is not a 'tiny bit of energy'. This is the strongest matte and tea available. The name is descriptive! http://www.celestialseasonings.com/products/black/mt.php

These are links that describe matte
http://www.nature1.org/p/partea05.html
http://www.healthandfitnessforums.com/yerba.html

Yup, that's right - tea made from the leaf of the coca plant. And you know what that's an ingredient of, don't you? Cocaine!

In fact, in Peru and Bolivia, where's it's legal to grow it, the locals use it to give them energy. It does not give any noticeable "buzz", but actually allows you to work hard for hours on end without any hunger. All the farmers and 'paysanos' chew coca leaves.

You stick a wad of leaves between your gum and cheek, throw in a bit of lye to get the reaction going, and just chew for hours. Makes your mouth go numb. Poorer people use it when they need to go to a dentist.

When the Spanish banned it, they found that all the peasant farmers, etc were A LOT less productive. So they allowed them to keep on chewing the coca leaf.

The stuff definitely has some effect. Mind you, I honestly don't know how powerful the tea made from the same stuff is. Probably a fair bit less effective.

Subtle works like a lead balloon on the internet. The coca plant is a member of the order Geraniales and the family Erythroxylaceae. Matte comes from Ilex paraguarensi. They are not the same.

does anyone know where coca tea can be bought in, say, toronto? i had it in bolivia a few year ago and i'd really like to get some more!
thanks

I drink Mate very often with a bombilla which means stronger than any "mate tea bag" some people like it with sugar (not my case). It has a bitter flavor, you have to educate your pallette I guess... I don't think it should be "illegal" afterwards it is better then coffee.

Guess what: MATE IS HEALTHY! It has nothing to do with "cocaine"

I too drink it. Actually found a site that is giving away free samples (pay for shipping) check it out www.perutea.com

Just to clear up a few things, there are two different teas folks are talking about here.

Yerba mate - from Argentina, Paraguay, Uraguay, etc. Very common nowadays, kind of tastes like grass, perfectly legal, not related to cocaine at all. This is what Wanna learn drinks with a bombilla and gourd.

Mate de coca - from Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador. Not common to find in U.S., made from the coca leaf which is the base ingredient in cocaine. This is what peasants in the Andes chew on and climbers drink at high altitude. Probably not specifically banned for the Tour, but would probably lead to a positive drug test.