Coffee During Pregnancy?

There's good clinical evidence now that as long as you limit your caffiene consumption to less than about 6 cups of coffee per day, there are no adverse effects on the baby. I myself drank about 2 regular mug-fulls per day while pregnant and while breastfeeding (well, still breastfeeding, and I still have about 2 cups). It was fine.

I would not bother giving it up - it's not worth the headache (literally). 1 14-oz cup is fine. Relax! If you're really worried, switch to half-caf.

Btw - a number quoted by another poster is erroneous - there is about 80-90 mg of caffeine in an 8-oz cup of coffee. Darker roasts (espresso, for example) have less than lighter roasts (such as breakfast blends). So yes, Lattes, which are made with espresso, tend to have a bit less - maybe 60 mg per shot. But bigger lattes may have 2-3 shots.

Edited 5/31/07: I stand corrected - apparently the 80-90 mg is average, but Starbucks has about double that (not surprising considering how strong it is!) so I guess it can be pretty variable. Either way, I wouldn't sweat it.

M.:

All things in moderation/ whether while pregnant or breastfeeding.

P., RLC, IBCLC
Pres. Lactation Support Group, Inc
www.lactationsupportgroup.com

I drank one cup of coffee a day while pregnant, however now that I am nursing, I've completely cut caffeine out of my diet. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I think you are fine and congrats on your baby!!!!

I have a cup of coffee a day, sometimes 2 cups. I'm 26 weeks pregnant with my second baby. Congrats to you!

Hi M.,

First...congratulations.

I gave birth to our beautiful daughter in November 2006. I had a medium extra extra 4 times a week from Dunkin Donuts. I'm not sure of the daily in-take, but Rose is fine.

It helped me more toward the end when I had to sleep sitting up because of heartburn and was exhausted.

I had a cup of coffee every day, or some other sort of caffeine. This was a definite cut-back from my non-pregnancy coffee drinking but I couldn't go without any caffeine at all. As far as I know, it had no affect on my pregnancy or on my baby. Everything in moderation!

Good luck!
L.