Pregnancy and Caffeine
What is Caffeine?
Caffeine is legally a drug. It produces Central Nervous System stimulation. It can raise your blood pressure and cause your heart rate to speed up. It can interfere with your ability to sleep or rest well and can make you feel nervous and jittery. Most of these symptoms are caused by drinking too much caffeine and there are guidelines regarding what is ‘too much,’ however there are no recommended daily allowances because this is not a substance you need in your diet. Also, you have to remember that people react differently to all medications.
It is generally recommended to avoid caffeine altogether during pregnancy and breastfeeding. If you drink caffeinated beverages then you would want to greatly decrease you intake and limit it on a daily basis. For instance, drink only one cup of coffee or tea or one soda per day. There are always decaffeinated choices out there too. The latest studies indicate that women who drink two or even three cups of coffee a day are probably not putting their babies at risk. However, the chance of miscarriage does increase slightly in women who have five to six cups of coffee a day. It’s also important to remember that caffeine isn’t just found in coffee. It is also found in soft drinks, coffee yogurt, tea and chocolate.
How Can Caffeine Affect My Child?
Caffeine easily passes from the mother to her unborn child through the placenta. Because the systems for breaking down and eliminating chemicals are not fully developed in the unborn child, blood levels of caffeine may remain elevated for longer periods in the unborn child compared to the mother. Higher amounts of caffeine could affect babies in the same way as it does adults.
Some reports have stated that children born to mothers who consumed more than 500mg/day were more likely to have faster heart rates, tremors, increased breathing rate and spend more time awake in the days following birth. Also, caffeine has a diuretic effect, which results in fluid and calcium being drawn out of your system. This will prevent your child from getting some of the important nutrients and fluids it requires during growth. Further, coffee and tea, especially when taken with cream and sugar, are filling and satisfying but don’t provide you with the nutrients that are required during pregnancy. Caffeine may even prevent the absorption of vital things such as iron. Though mild caffeine consumption probably does not cause any serious birth defects, it is probably best to try and limit your caffeine intake throughout your pregnancy.
Coffee and Miscarriage
A recent study performed in Denmark has found a link between coffee intake during pregnancy and miscarriage. It appears that the more coffee you drink during the early stages of pregnancy, the higher your risk of suffering from a miscarriage becomes. Danish researchers from the University of Aarhus polled over 88,000 women to find out about coffee intake during pregnancy. The majority of these women consumed no coffee during pregnancy, however, those that did reported increased risks of miscarriage. Women who consume more than eight cups of coffee a day appear to be at the highest risk, illustrating a 59% increase in the rate of miscarriage. Researchers are still unsure why coffee appears to affect the risk of miscarriage.
How to Cut Down on Your Caffeine Intake
Tips to Help Minimize These Symptoms
 | Visit the forum to find out how other women cut out caffeine from their diet while they were pregnant |
