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Caffeine in pregnancy

Topics

In This Topic

KEY POINTS

• We don’t know a lot about the effects of caffeine during pregnancy on you and your baby. So it’s best to limit the amount you get each day.

• If you’re pregnant, limit caffeine to 200 milligrams each day. This is about the amount in 1½ 8-ounce cups of coffee or one 12-ounce cup of coffee. 

• If you’re breastfeeding, limit caffeine to no more than two cups of coffee a day.

Caffeine is a drug found in things like coffee, tea, soda, chocolate and some energy drinks and medicines. It’s a stimulant, which means it can keep you awake.

How does caffeine affect you and your baby during pregnancy?

Caffeine slightly increases your blood pressure and heart rate and the amount of urine your body makes. Caffeine may cause you to feel jittery, have indigestion or have trouble sleeping. During pregnancy, you may be especially sensitive to caffeine because it may take you longer to clear it from your body than if you weren’t pregnant.  It may also make you feel nauseous or lightheaded. 

When you have caffeine during pregnancy, it passes through the placenta to your baby. The placenta grows in your uterus (womb) and supplies the baby with food and oxygen through the umbilical cord.

You may have heard that too much caffeine can cause miscarriage (when a baby dies in the womb before 20 weeks of pregnancy), preterm birth (birth that happens before 37 weeks of pregnancy is completed) or low birth weight (when your baby is born weighing less than 5 pounds, 8 ounces). Some studies say this is true, and others don’t.

Until we know more about how caffeine can affect pregnancy, it’s best to limit the amount you get to 200 milligrams each day. This is about the amount in 1½ 8-ounce cups of coffee or one 12-ounce cup of coffee.  Be sure to check the size of your cup to know how much caffeine you’re getting. 

What foods and drinks contain caffeine?

Caffeine is found in: 

• Coffee and coffee-flavored products, like yogurt and ice cream 
• Tea 
• Some soft drinks 
• Energy drinks
• Chocolate and chocolate products, like chocolate syrup and hot cocoa 
• Some medicines 

The amount of caffeine in foods and drinks varies a lot. For coffee and tea, the amount of caffeine depends on:

• The brand
• How it’s prepared
• The type of beans or leaves used
• The way it’s served (for example, as espresso or latte) 
• The size of the cup. Not all coffee cups are the same size, even though you think of them as a cup. Check to see how many ounces your cup has, especially if you’re buying a cup of coffee or tea. If you’re making coffee or tea at home, measure to check the size of the cup.

Some energy drinks contain large amounts of caffeine. For example, a 24-ounce energy drink may have up to 500 milligrams of caffeine. Energy drinks may have a lot of sugar, too, and they may contain ingredients that may be harmful to your baby during pregnancy. Because we don’t know a lot about all the ingredients in energy drinks, it’s best not to have them when you’re pregnant.

The amount of caffeine you get from food and drinks throughout the day adds up. So if you have a cup of coffee in the morning, you may want to limit or give up having other food and drinks during the day that have caffeine.  

The list below shows the amount of caffeine in common food and drinks. The caffeine amounts are averages, so they may change depending on the brand or how the food or drink is made. Check the package label on food and drinks to know how much caffeine they contain. 

What medicines contain caffeine?

Some medicines used for pain relief, migraine headaches, colds and to help keep you awake contain caffeine. The Food and Drug Administration (also called FDA) requires that labels on medicine list the amount of caffeine in the medicine. 

If you’re pregnant, talk to your health care provider before taking any medicine that contains caffeine. This includes prescription and over-the-counter medicine.  A prescription is an order for medicine given by a health care provider. You can buy over-the-counter medicine, like pain relievers and cold medicine, without a prescription.

Some herbal products contain caffeine. These include guarana, yerba mate, kola nut and green tea extract.  Herbal products are made from herbs, which are plants that are used in cooking and for medicine. The FDA does not require that herbal products have a label saying how much caffeine they contain.  If you’re pregnant, don’t use herbal products because we don’t know how much caffeine they contain.

Is caffeine safe during breastfeeding?

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says it’s safe for breastfeeding moms to have caffeine. A small amount of caffeine does get into breast milk, so limit caffeine if you’re breastfeeding. Breastfed babies of women who drink more than 2 to 3 cups of coffee a day may become fussy or have trouble sleeping.  You may want to drink less caffeine if your baby was born preterm or newborn because she may digest caffeine more slowly.

Last reviewed: April 2020

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Energy drinks - why energy drinks are harmful: the effect on the body of men and pregnant girls

№1. What are energy sources made of?

Caffeine is the main component that belongs to the group of stimulants. It replaces substances important for the nervous system (neurotransmitters) that conduct nerve impulses. So, the more caffeine, the more active the nervous system works. Hence the surge of vivacity, and increased physical and brain activity.
Taurine is an amino acid accumulated in muscle tissue. It is generally accepted that taurine has a positive effect on the functioning of the heart. However, there is no scientific study that proves this for sure.
L-carnitine is an amino acid that the body can produce on its own. It really helps to reduce fatigue and increase stamina. But in ordinary energy it is so small that its effect is difficult to feel.
Glucose and carbon dioxide - i.e., in fact, a classic soda.

No. 2. Energy drinks contain vitamins and natural extracts of exotic herbs. This is true?

True. As a rule, energy drinks contain vitamin C and almost the entire range of B vitamins.
Vitamins are a useful thing, but not in such a chemical company. Vitamin B in large quantities causes tremors, heart palpitations and allergic reactions. Vitamin C reacts with preservatives and flavors - as a result, carcinogenic substances are produced.

Also, energy drinks often contain herbal extracts: guarana, mate or ginseng. It may seem that they add benefits to the drink, but in fact they are just an additional source of stimulants, the name of which looks beautiful on the package.

No. 3.

No. In short - "forced." As it became clear from the composition, the action of energy drinks is aimed at the nervous system. The brain, under the influence of caffeine, decides to activate the “emergency reserves” of the body, which it has in store for a “rainy day”. Those. an energy drink in itself does not contain any energy, but simply deceives the body, makes it actively spend the stored forces quickly and right now. The effect of cheerfulness lasts 3-4 hours. Then a decline follows and the person's condition becomes even worse than before use. There is fatigue, irritability - up to depression.

No. 4.

It's like with fast food: if rarely and wisely, then the use of energy drinks is safe for health. Nothing good, but nothing bad either. Drink no more than two jars at a time and be sure to let your body recover: eat healthy food, drink more water and get enough sleep.
If you drink energy drinks regularly, then you will experience nervous and physical exhaustion, which, in turn, can become the basis for a number of diseases. And the increased content of carbon dioxide and sugar leads to exactly the same consequences for the stomach as the consumption of ordinary soda.

No. 5.

True. As we said earlier, caffeine replaces neurotransmitters. If our body sees that they are constantly coming from outside, and in larger quantities than it is used to, then it gradually ceases to produce them on its own - there is no need to waste internal resources.
And when after a long consumption of energy drinks you stop drinking them, your condition will worsen significantly: drowsiness, decreased efficiency, bad mood and, of course, an acute desire to use a new “dose” of energy drinks. In addition, the "dose" must be constantly increased to achieve the same effect. In other words, a real addiction.

No.6.

Drinking coffee is less harmful to health. In one jar, the energy of caffeine is like in four cups of strong coffee. And several other types of stimulating ingredients. Therefore, the energy drink has a stronger effect on the body: the heart rate changes, blood pressure increases significantly. But on the other hand, the effect of vivacity from coffee lasts 1-2 hours, and from the energy drink - 4 or more.

No. 7.

This is the most negative scenario for using energy drinks. The fact is that the energy drink belongs to the group of stimulants, and alcohol belongs to the depressants. In fact, they are antagonists and their confrontation is the strongest load on the body. The cardiovascular system suffers the most - the pressure rises to extreme levels. Fatal outcomes from such "cocktails" are not uncommon. Therefore, if you have heart problems, in no case do not use energy drinks with alcohol. In addition, the state of intoxication under energy drinks comes on more slowly, so it is difficult to control the measure.

No. 8.

It is highly undesirable to drink energy drinks for children and adolescents, pregnant and lactating women, people who have problems with the gastrointestinal tract, heart, blood vessels and pressure, as well as with increased excitability, nervousness, sleep disturbances and sensitivity to caffeine.

No. 9.

Energy drinks are easily available in 170 countries, but with some caveats:

• In December 2010, caffeine-containing alcoholic energy drinks were completely withdrawn from sale throughout the United States based on the authorities' conclusions about their harm to health;
• Lithuania introduced a ban on the sale of energy drinks to minors;
• In France, Denmark and Norway, energy drinks can only be bought in pharmacies.

Coffee and energy drinks during pregnancy - is it possible or not?

Drinking coffee and energy drinks has become a habit for many, so many women are worried about whether they can continue to drink during pregnancy?

One of the main components of coffee and energy drinks is caffeine, which stimulates the central nervous system and causes cheerfulness in the body. For this reason, coffee or energy drinks are usually drunk to focus on important work or stay awake. However, excess caffeine in the body can lead to disorders such as hypertension, heart palpitations, nervousness, dizziness, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.