[nuumite]

My doctor said it's ok for me to drink one small coffee a day. I was drinking 1or 2 and also a diet soda a day before i became pregnant. So i have cut down to one very small cup a day (skip it on days i don't work) but i still feel guilty. How do you feel about caffeine...did you stop all together?

[junebug41]

I did not stop, but I did cut back a lot. I have a cup of coffee in the morning and sometimes some tea in the afternoon.

The recommendation is not to exceed 200mg a day, which equals a grande latte from starbucks (150mg) and a can of soda (44mg). There is a slight increase in miscarriage, but that is with very heavy consumption. Some women choose to avoid it altogether- better safe than sorry. I've seen a few doctors now within my obgyn practice and none of them have a problem with my current intake. Plus, I can't take migraine medication anymore so it helps keep them at bay.

Honestly, most (if not all) doctors will ok a cup of coffee in the morning (and a regular or small cup- not like 32oz of coffee ) but if it really does bother you and you aren't getting any benefit from it, then why not just quit? My doctor did mention I will have to stop eventually anyway if I want to breastfeed. I'm still mentally preparing for that one

[Gale02]

I stop drinking caffeine completely about 6-8 weeks before I deliver, just to make sure it's all out of baby's system (and to give me a chance to learn to deal without it before baby arrives.) Otherwise, I have 1-2 cups of (homebrewed, LOTS less caffeine) coffee per day and maybe a soda here or there.

I know women that have been able to have caffeine while breastfeeding, I'm not one of those. My kiddos were so sensitive to it that I couldn't even have the negligible amount that's in chocolate.

Good luck!

PS - Good on you for giving up those diet sodas! The chemicals in them are more worrisome to a pregnancy/nursing than the caffeine is.

[theCandEs]

I quit for my pregnancies. It was hard, but I think it was for the best. I had one cup when I was pregnant with my oldest, and he was jumping and twitching around in there so much, I felt horrible! I quit cold turkey after that. I don't think it's good for growing a baby.

[Munchy]

I would drink a 20oz coffee when pregnant, but half-caf. My doctor said it was fine.

[nuumite]

I am working on weening myself off of it...i am planning to breastfeed. I realize i have been using iced coffee (w sugarfree syrup) as a my little "treat" as i've lost the weight. guess it's just one more thing i will have to change in my life/diet. thanks for the feedback!

[PacSunMama]

Ahhh, welcome to parenthood... and guilt.

Coffee in moderation isn't bad at all. I worked at Starbucks for the entirety of my first pregnancy, actually. I didn't limit anything though (with the approval of my OB and our pedi) including raw sushi, caffeine, hot tubs and an occasional sip or two of wine to taste with a nice dinner.

I'm certain the coffee is just fine.

[Gale02]

Originally Posted by PacSunMama

Ahhh, welcome to parenthood... and guilt.

Such truth in this!

Nuumite - I would encourage you to give up artificial sweeteners as much as you can. There's been no conclusive evidence either way, but the general consensus is that they certainly aren't doing anything *good* for your baby by consuming them. Some of them actually have warnings on them about consulting your Dr if you're pregnant or breastfeeding. Just some food for thought.

[sacha]

I drank tons of coffee and diet pops when pregnant. I still worked overnights (7pm-7am) and I had the most fussy, colicky, sensitive to stimuli baby ever. Connection? I will of course never know, but I won't do it again.

[April Snow]

I cut out all caffeine once I knew I would be starting ttc, and I stayed off for my pg. And my son is hyperactive anyway - so I don't know that there is any direct cause and effect.

I think a small cup of coffee a day is fine, I just didn't because I was older (in my 40s) when I ttc so I didn't want to do anything to lower my chances of getting pg even a tiny bit.

[Gale02]

Originally Posted by sacha

I drank tons of coffee and diet pops when pregnant. I still worked overnights (7pm-7am) and I had the most fussy, colicky, sensitive to stimuli baby ever. Connection? I will of course never know, but I won't do it again.

My first was calm, great sleeper, etc. and I stopped drinking caffeine 2 months before I had him. My second was (is) an awful sleeper, had colic, etc. and I didn't stop until the day he was born.

An experiment of 2 is by no means definitive, but I won't be taking any chances with the next one!

[jitterfish]

Honestly I think it depends on how much you drink now as to how you deal with this. If you are a heavy drinker, yeh you need to cut it out but don't do it cold turkey. One or two cups a day is fine (as long as they aren't massive cups).

As for breast feeding, it takes about 1hr for caffeine to get into breast milk, and about another hour for it to be removed (it doesn't sit or store in the breastmilk). So if you like your coffee and have baby that is fussy then you can fed bubs, then drink your coffee Most babies don't react to caffeine, my first was sweet, my second is a bit more fussy so I try to feed him then have a drink.

As for artificial sweeteners, if you are pregnant yes you want to stay away from them. Very little research has been done on artificial sweeteners in regards to foetal development (ditto for children, basically if they are under 18 they should not drink the stuff because of the way the developing brain deals with things different to adult brain). If you are breastfeeding you are fine having a couple sodas a day because none (or negligible amounts) pass into breast milk. That's if you are like me and love your diet soda. Btw I'm a scientist so I looked at some of the actual research papers not just web search for info.