O
ne of the first things most of us women prepare to say goodbye to once we see the two pink lines on our pregnancy tests is caffeine. Many women stop smoking cold turkey from caffeine for fear of just making some kind of damage to the new life growing within them. She swore by it that has caffeine in coffee, soda and even chocolate. Here are some of us still drink caffeine but cut. Instead of drinking five cups of coffee a day can reduce at least a cup of coffee for us throughout the day.
Our mothers and grandmothers will probably tell us who drank the same amount of caffeine pregnant as they were when they were not pregnant and their children turned out fine. However, more research is done because the time and studies show that caffeine in excess can cause complications such as premature delivery and / or low birth weight.
So how much caffeine is too much caffeine? The doctors tell their patients that moderate amounts of caffeine will not harm their babies. Although caffeine can cross the placenta, anything less than 300 milligrams a day (8-ounce cup of strong coffee) will not hurt. Anything over 300 milligrams puts your baby at risk and the study also showed that women who drank more than 300 milligrams of caffeine a day during the first quarter slightly higher risk of miscarriage.
The study also showed that women who have more than 500 milligrams of caffeine a day had babies with faster heart rate and respiratory rate faster. The babies also spent more time awake in their first days of life rather than peacefully sleeping after their long journey.
There are a number of other reasons why women may want to reduce the amount of caffeine we drink during pregnancy. For starters, it has no nutritional value. If ever there was an opportunity for us to meet our nutritional needs, is when we are pregnant. Second, caffeine is a stimulant that increases heart rate and can cause insomnia and headaches which can put stress on your little grows. Third, caffeine can cause heartburn. If you are pregnant before know that heartburn can be a burden to start, and the caffeine only makes things worse. Finally, it is a diuretic which means it can cause loss of fluids that can put you at risk of dehydration.
Although not required to give up caffeine for the duration of your pregnancy, you should learn to drink in moderation or not drink at all. If you can not manage with only a cup of coffee a day, then you might be better to drink coffee at all. Continue with caffeine free sodas and even decaf. Remember though that decaf coffee still contains small traces of caffeine so make sure to keep in mind.
