Now that you're planning to have a baby, each one of your lifestyle choices will directly affect another life. While some pregnancy "no-nos"--smoking and drinking alcohol, for example--are clearly stated, there's not an overriding consensus on how much caffeine a pregnant woman can safely consume. However, new evidence confirms that large amounts of caffeine could have deleterious effects on a fetus.
Impaired Fetal Development
Because a fetus can't readily break down the caffeine that transfers into his body through the placenta, caffeine could remain in his body for a longer period of time than it does in an adult, according to Epigee.org, a pregnancy resource. High levels of caffeine may increase a fetus's heart rate and alter how he moves in the womb. Moreover, since caffeine is a diuretic and may cause a pregnant woman to absorb fewer nutrients, it may also reduce the amount of nutrients the fetus receives.
Fetal Miscarriage
A study in the 2008 issue of the "American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology," as noted on BabyCenter.com, showed that pregnant mothers who consumed 200 milligrams or more of caffeine per day had twice the risk of miscarriage when compared to pregnant women who consumed no caffeine. Therefore, BabyCenter.com notes that the March of Dimes recommends that pregnant women consume no more than 200 milligrams of caffeine per day. 200 milligrams of caffeine is comparable to about a cup of coffee or four, 8-oz. cups of green tea. Caffeine is also in chocolate, soda, energy drinks and coffee-flavored ice cream.
Stillbirth
A Danish study discussed on BabyCenter.com found that, when compared with women who consumed no coffee, women who drank between four and seven cups of coffee per day had an 80 percent increased risk of stillbirth, and women who consumed eight or more cups per day had a 300 percent increased risk. The study pointed to a few potential reasons for this increase. First, because caffeine causes a constriction in blood vessels, it could potentially decrease the amount of oxygen that reaches the placenta. Second, because the caffeine directly flows into the fetus, the fetus may experience an irregular or dangerously high heart rate.
Undescended Testes
A 2007 study in the "American Journal of Epidemiology" by Mongraw-Chaffin et al found higher instances of undescended testes in male infants born to women who consumed the equivalent of three cups of coffee per day. Although the condition may not be discovered until a baby is born, it occurs when his testes don't move from his pelvis into his scrotum as they are supposed to in the late stages of fetal development.
References
- Epigee: Caffeine and Pregnancy
- AJE: "Maternal Smoking, Alcohol Consumption, and Caffeine Consumption during Pregnancy"; Mongraw-Chaffin et al
- APA: What's the Real Scoop on Caffeine During Pregnancy
- BabyCenter: Caffeine During Pregnancy
- BMJ: "Maternal Consumption of Coffee During Pregnancy and Stillbirth and Infant Death in First Year of Life"; Wisborg et al
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