Coffee During Pregnancy?

Drip coffee has the most caffeine (about 400mg per 16 ounces), so I avoided it all together.
Lattes (contrary to popular belief) actually don't have much caffeine. Most espresso is 70/75mg caffeine per shot. I actually called Starbucks to get this information.
My first trimester I was SOOOOO sick that coffee grossed me out, but after that I had a half decaf latte nearly every day (so only 75mg of caffeine or so). I would get headaches if I didn't have any caffeine at all and I figured a little coffee every morning was not as bad as taking Tylenol every day.
The Light Frappucinos (if I recall correctly) have 180 calories and 1.5 grams of fat in a grande. I *think* 130mg of caffeine. That was my little treat to myself when I was 9 months preggers in swealtering hot august.
Anyhow, my doctors and everyone else said it was completely fine if you are otherwise healthy and have a low risk normal pregnancy. So, if you love it, I would say go for it.
You can call Dunkin Donuts and ask them for specific caffeine content of particular drinks too. They will have that information. Starbucks told me that was a very common question.

Aslo, everything I read or was told stated that 300mg was an OK amount to have in a day.

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.

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

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!!!!

M.:

All things in moderation/ whether while pregnant or breastfeeding.

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

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.