The list of what you can and can’t eat and drink when you become pregnant can often be hard to abide by for some. One of the items that is often listed to be avoided is caffeine which can be hard to withdraw from for 9 months if you are used to your daily morning coffee.
The concerns about caffeine consumption were around the development of the baby. For many years it was also believe caffeine could increase the risk of miscarriage but the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists undertook a study that found “moderate” amounts of caffeine in a mum’s body was unlikely to cause a miscarriage.
With all those concerns about caffeine, it’s any wonder mums-to-be have been avoiding drinking it.
Except until now.
If you’re pregnant and have been abstaining from coffee since you fell pregnant, you will be interested in the results of a recent study that looked at what the side effects of caffeine consumption were during pregnancy.
It’s been found that caffeine for pregnant women isn’t as bad as previously thought.
The American Journal of Epidemiology, published a study that looked at 2197 mother-child pairs who took part in a Collaborative Perinatal Project which collected data between 1959 and 1974. In this era, women smoked, drank alcohol and coffee while they were pregnant – not knowing if it was affecting their pregnancy.
With the data they measured the child IQ rates at between 4 and 7 years old to understand what the long term effects of caffeine intake would have on the kids. The researchers found that there was no difference to the intelligence and obesity levels in the children, despite the mums consuming caffeine.
A recent study that focused on IQ found: “There were no consistent patterns between maternal caffeine ingestion and the development and behavior of those children at those points in their lives. Taken as a whole, we consider our results to be reassuring for pregnant women who consume moderate amounts of caffeine or the equivalent to 1 or 2 cups of coffee per day.”
Pregnant women can rejoice and enjoy their coffee once again, providing they drink it moderately.
Of course it is recommended to talk with your doctor with any concerns you may have. It can be confusing being told not to do something one minute, but then be allowed to do it the next.
The good news is, there is no harm in drinking 1 coffee (not over 200 milligrams of caffeine) each morning. If you know you’ll be tempted to drink more than 2 coffees, it might be worth abstaining to reduce the temptation of drinking more.
Did you abstain from drinking coffee during your pregnancy?
