Pregnancy Do's and Don'ts

Many practitioners recommend limiting caffeine to about two servings a day. Some studies have shown a link between high caffeine consumption (6+ servings a day) and miscarriage, and fewer others link it to low birth weight and birth defects. Plus, caffeine is a diuretic and it is important to stay well hydrated in pregnancy as well as in general. Also, drinking lots of coffee or soda would likely be replacing or limiting healthier beverage choices like water.
Moderation is key, although some people prefer to abstain altogether just to "be on the safe side."

I do not think there is anything wrong with 1-2 cups of coffee/day , the same goes for the occasional glass of wine , you are right you cannot deprive yourself of every little thing , just be sensible and maybe reduce the amount of some things.

I write for a pregnancy health column and wrote about coffee and pregnancy:
http://www.examiner.com/x-29454-Pregnancy-Health-Examiner...

It will explain how coffee acts in your pregnant body, how it effects the fetus and fetal development. I have coffee on occasion, but did give it up and drink green teas a few times per week. Chocolate does not nearly have as much caffeine as coffee and eating chocolate produces happier babies (yes, they did a study on this)

I just came across this recent study on caffeine and breastfeeding
http://www.parentinglogic.com/2010/02/caffeine-and-breast...

Hope it helps answer your question.

J. W. MPH
National Pregnancy Health Examiner

My doctor always said a cup of coffee in the morning is fine. He said the concern is dehydration & the amphetamine effect of caffeine. If you aren't consuming caffeine to the point where it causes either of those things, it should be fine, meaning one cup of coffee or one can/glass of cola a day was ok. I know the primary time they worry about this is in the first trimester, but I had my morning coffee on the train every day through both pregnancies & didn't have any complications related to caffeine. I think it also depends on your general health, if you're having a healthy pregnancy, etc.

my doc said that you need more than one or two cups to affect the baby.

Chocolate does not have that much caffeine - only 5 milligrams for 8 ounces of chocolate. Decaf cofee (5 ounces) has 3 ounces of caffeine. But, regular coffee has 115 milligrams in 5 ounces of coffee. From ADA Complete Food and Nutrition Guide by R. L. Duyff, MS, RD

From the same book, they recommend 1 or 2 serving per day of caffeine-containing drinks - or keep the caffeine intake below 300 milligrams per day. There's no conclusive evidence about the effects of caffeine on fetal development.

M. in Elk Grove

You can go to babycenter.com or webmd to get a full list of what is and isn't safe. If all else fails, discuss it with your ob.

If everything is going fine with your pregnancy, a little coffee is no big deal. It's actually the recommended treatment if you are prone to migraines, since it is safer than migraine meds and will help you avoid them.

I gave it up (almost) completely. Caffeine is a stimulant, and it is recommeded not to take stimulants while pregnant. I didn't need much caffeine to begin with, so it wasn't too hard. I occasionally had a cup of coffee or a soda, and occasionally ate chocolate. But it is better to do without if you can. Drs will recommend to abstain if possible, just to be on the safe side.

Now while nursing- I cut out caffeine. The amount of caffeine that enters your baby's system through breastmilk is a LOT and caffeine actually stays in their systems a long time. If you drink a cup a day, by day 3 they have something like the equivalent of a whole pot for an adult, or something like that. I can't remember the exact measurement, but it was a TON. If I ever did cheat and have even an iced tea, he was jittery and fussy and wouldn't sleep. And they can become caffeine addicted. To me, it's much more important to quit caffeine while nursing than while pregnant.

Congrats!!! My friend...Drink your coffee and eat your chocolate but as in everything do it in moderation....I drank 2-3 cups a day while preggy with all three of my kids and yes ate chocolate not by the pound though! :) Unless you are high risk for some reason or have high blood pressure you should be fine......

Updated

Congrats!!! My friend...Drink your coffee and eat your chocolate but as in everything do it in moderation....I drank 2-3 cups a day while preggy with all three of my kids and yes ate chocolate not by the pound though! :) Unless you are high risk for some reason or have high blood pressure you should be fine......

I'm right along with the posting from Chris G. When I was pregnant with my first, a friend who was pregnant with her second told me that she ate sushi during her pregnancies. She and her husband only had it on Friday nights when it was freshest for sushi restaurants for the weekend. I asked my doctor about the risk and if any parasites are transmitted to the baby. My OB said the risk is if I get food poisoning and the limited options for treatment, along with dehydration due to vomiting, diarrhea, etc. So I followed my friend's lead and only had it on Friday or Saturday. Turns out it was one of the few foods I could tolerate during my first trimester. In the first trimester of my 2nd pregnancy, I had issues with the texture of sushi so I ended up avoiding it. Both of my boys are happy and healthy.

Everything I have ever read always said 2 cups per day is fine. I don't drink coffee, but I drink soda a little, and of course eat chocolate. Have with 2 prior pregnancies and am with this one too

I drank 1-2 cups every day with all three pregnancies. I took a lot of flak for it even though my doctors said it was fine in small amounts. My three children came out perfect; normal birth weight and no developmental issues. If you can't function without it, don't deprive yourself.

I"m pretty sure caffeine is one of those "okay in moderation" things--I know for sure one or two cups a day are okay! I've never heard anything against chocolate. Good luck!

I drank a cup of coffee every day or half decaf and half regular. If you normally drink the stuff it is fine. I think if you just went from zero cups to 3 cups then your hear rate can go up and that might be bad for the baby. Caffeine is fine and so is chocolate.:)

I drank coffee in the morning and had a diet Dr. Pepper everyday at lunch while I was pregnant both times. I can't imagine how a little caffine would hurt anyone.

I, too, am a coffee lover. My daughter is now 20 months old...I drank a cup of coffee every morning...no problems while pregnant and she is a healthy, happy little girl. I never heard anything about chocolate though.

My friends mom had 8 kids and a Manhatten every night before bed! I figured a cup of coffee would be fine.

Ha! I remember being told that with my 1st kiddo 22 years ago :) I didn't touch the stuff once the entire pregnancy because I was so worried what would happen! Now, 6 kids later, I believe in moderation of things like that, rather than total abstinence. I suppose maybe it stems from the fact that some women are prone to high blood pressure when they are pregnant and caffiene could make it worse?

You can have some caffeine but they recommend you keep it limited. Drinking 6 cups of coffee a day would probably be a bad idea! But the 2 you had were just fine. As far as chocolate, that is a dumb one as far as I'm concerned. There's not enough caffeine in it to do any harm unless you are eating like 10 bars a day. The biggest issue with caffeine is actually that it is a diuretic, meaning it makes you have to pee a lot. Pregnant women already have enough of that problem! Which is why I steared clear of caffeine during pregnancy. Anyway, as with most things in life, moderation is the key.

Interestingly, with sushi, my doctor explained that the problem with it is more related to parasites. If you pick one up, it won't hurt the baby but they can't treat it because the medication for it would hurt the baby. So you pretty much have to live with it until after you delivery. GROSS! I am an avid sushi eater but the risk just didn't seem worth it to me. Even though the chances of picking up a parasite is pretty low, it would just be my luck that it'd happen to me while I was pregnant!

Anyhow, at the end of the day, my doctor always reminded me that there are women living in 3rd world countries who are delivering their babies in rice fields who do just fine. We have access to the best medical care in the world and our doctors know the most so they give us their best recommendations for a healthy pregnancy. But just keep in mind that there are babies in the NICU right now being weaned from crack. So when you put it in that perspective, that babies can survive being born addicted to crack, I don't think a couple of cups of coffee is much to worry about.

Everything in moderation. Coffee is fine, so is chocolate.

As many others have stated, it's ok to have 2-3 coups of caffeinated beverages a day (because of it being a diuretic and because of the link with miscarriages) but I was also told it's because most women who drink coffee and other caffeinated beverages also add sugar (pops have tons of sugar) and when you're pregnant your body holds onto sugar longer - that's why some women develop gestational diabetes...I actually just got a yeast infection because I was drinking too much ginger ale (and I"m 7 weeks) and any infection while you're pregnant can lead to miscarriage or early labor. As to chocolates and other candies, it's the same - they're fine in moderation for the sugar reason mentioned above.

This one's a myth. The only risk of too much coffee is preterm labor, and that doesn't seem to go into effect unless you're drinking 5+ cups per day. I drank coffee, with my midwife's blessing, throughout both my pregnancies. Then again, I also had a half a glass of wine on rare occasions during the third trimester of my pregnancies. All things in moderation.