Caffeine intake in pregnancy

[elvislives2012]

Hi all. Am 36 weeks PG with first baby. For the first 30 weeks I went right off tea and coffee (very strange as I would have at least 5 cups of tea/coffee a day prior to pg). Now am starting to crave them again and tea in Particular. Online it says up to 200 mg caffeine is ok but not clear what this equates to. What is everyone else drinking?

I still love tea and coffee (19 weeks) but I've just switched to decaf and to be honest, especially decaf tea I can't tell the difference and neither can anyone that drinks tea in my house! :)

Hope this helps

Copied from an NHS website:

The amount in food and drink will vary, but as a guide each of these contains roughly 200mg or less of caffeine:

Two mugs of instant coffee (100mg each)
One mug of filter coffee (140mg each)
Two mugs of tea (75mg each)
Five cans of cola (up to 40mg each)
Two cans of 'energy' drink (up to 80mg each)
Four (50g) bars of plain chocolate (up to 50 mg each). Caffeine in milk chocolate is about half that of plain chocolate

So if you eat a bar of plain chocolate and drink one mug of filter coffee, or if you drink two mugs of tea and a can of cola you'll have almost reached 200mg. But don?t worry too much if you occasionally have a little more because the risks are likely to be very small.

I've been having one cup of filter coffee in the morning in the mornings at work and one at the weekend made with half espresso/half decaf. This isn't against the guidelines but I do still feel a tiny bit guilty about it at times.

Ugh, please excuse the apalling sentences there, I clearly need more coffee :)

I used to be a big tea and coffee drinker, so have cut down rather than stopping completely.
I did try decaf tea, but it tastes nothing like ordinary Yorkshire Tea, so I only drink it in a dire emergency. Now I'm 34 weeks, I've started on the raspberry leaf tea too.

I'm mainly just being sensible - ie still having hot drinks, but not touching very strong coffees/ energy drinks/ cola.
In an average day I probably have 3/4 cups of tea and a square of dark chocolate. Perhaps a chocolate biscuit as well.
If I treat myself to a coffee, I'll cut back on the tea, and maybe have one coffee and one or two cups of tea. I'm not sticking to any particular rules though, as I think the "risks" are so minute they're almost non-existent.

That's interesting. I think in early PG I was so anxious about everything that it's spilled over to the third TM. have been limiting to one cup of tea but I'll go on and have another.
Am such a daredevil. Such is life on may leave :)

*mat leave

I'm now 33 weeks, and for most of the pregnancy I've had one cup of tea and/or one milky coffee (maybe two milky coffees - lattes - if work is exceptionally busy and I'm exceptionally tired) per day.

So I think I reach 200mg per day, and sometimes go a bit over. I don't drink caffeine at the weekends.

I think that's ok, I've tried not to stress myself out. I'm in a busy demanding job, and was so tired in early pregnancy, and now in late pregnancy, that I need some caffeine to do it, and to work until 38 weeks. My bump measurements and scans all looking fine, say doctors.

I was a big tea drinker and have now cut down to 2 a day. I have tried a couple of decaff tea's but think they are revolting! Decaff coffee on the other hand is not too bad.

I like you used to drink lots of tea prob about 6 cups a day. When i fell pg i spoke to mw who said 3 cups a day is fine and nothing to worry about. I do make the a little more milky and sometimes very occasionally have 4!

I've been drinking exactly the same as before. irrespective if what the nhs says, from what I can find out the supposed risk with caffeine is purely speculative and there is no substantive evidence that shows any causal connection between caffeine consumption during pregnancy and any problems.

I don't consume loads anyway, and if you drink loads every day is probably sensible to cut down in general.

I'm the same, completely went off it until realising it helped my nausea a bit. Now at 35+2 and want coffee so much! I think 2 coffees or 3 teas is a rough guide. I've not been factoring chocolate in there though, literally cant be bothered and past monitoring intake of certain things now.

Oh no, I've not factored chocolate in at all either. That's a step too far!

Yes, two coffees or three cups of tea sounds about right to me.

I've also been coffee guzzler, but have somehow managed to limit my intake to 2 instant coffees or 1 filter coffee a day.

I have friends who drank bucket-loads of tea throughout their pregnancies to no ill effects.

I just need to work on my junk food diet now...

Everything I've read about caffeine and pregnancy has to do with a Danish study which suggested a possible link between high consumption and increased risk of miscarriage.

I'm not sure what particular benefit (or rather what risk you're avoiding) there is in making sure your caffeine consumption is low at 30weeks+

I'll go and have a hunt for the study.

I already drink decaf tea as caffeine gives me migraines and I've tried quite a few different types.

I've found that Yorkshire Tea and Lidl (yes really) are the best tasting decaf teas and I really can't tell the difference between those and 'normal' tea. Typhoo/PG Tips decaf are rank as are Tesco and Sainsbury's own brand (if you can get them).

Twinings Decaf Earl Grey is also lovely.

Hope that helps?

I'm drinking 2-3 cups of instant per day, and not consciously doing anything different to normal - however I have gone off it a bit, as I'd normally down at least 5. Only instant mind. I am a coffee pleb.

Ok it sounds like I am waaaay over thinking this, then.
paranoid pregnancy emoticon
I've managed to avoid all the other pregnancy obsessions and it's just this one that's continued. I shall brew my tea with pride!! .... And have that third cup

I used to be a massive coffee drinker but I've rationed myself to 2 cups of instant a day (both of which are normally drunk before 9am at work!)
I also read online that you need to be careful about how much caffeine is in coffee from coffee shops as it varies greatly so I've been avoiding Starbucks and Cafe Nero hits.

I haven't been too rigid with this as I went off coffee pretty early on anyway and just allowed myself tea when I fancied it. But I found that was always late at night and then I'd be kept awake so I did get hold of a nice decaf tea - Clipper decaf. Probably one of the more expensive ones but tastes like real tea! Yorkshire was a second best and all others were pretty bleurgh.

I'm 36 weeks and I switched to decaff tea as I couldn't stand caff tea for the first 15 weeks! PG Tips decaff is pretty good - can't tell the difference I don't bother too much about how much coffee I drink, it's not often and it tends to be latte if I do. If I do get a humoungous one though, I will get decaff . I still like my cola drink (can't abide caffeine free - boak) but only have it occasionally. Thing is, this is my second pregnancy and the guidelines have changed since my first - they've nearly halved the the recommended allowance from what it used to be.

Mainly switched to decaf but generally trying to stick to one filter coffee or 2 teas/instant coffee. Hsvent factored in chocolate at all and don't drink coke much so vaguely count that.

Have a feeling it's a bit like booze i.e. you'd have to go WAY over the guidelines to cause any damage, hence my lack of strictness.

The evidence of harm seems pretty shaky. I had no caffeine at all for the first few months as was v. ill (severe hyperemesis). Still queasy at 30 weeks but I find a cup of coffee in the morning actually makes me feel better and I can't believe it does any harm at this stage. Occasionally I might have a second cup later in the day, but not usually. The man serving me in Pret this morning tried to tell me I should have a decaff instead and I was quite cross!

I avoided tea and coffee early on but am drinking lots of tea since going on mat leave. I was sure I'd read you could have more than 2 cups of tea! I also had lemonade or fanta instead of diet coke. given the choice I would rather save my allowance for chocolate!

Since ttc more than a year ago everyone who visits our home has drunk de caff everything, no one knows and no one has complained!

Beware of sleepless nights if you've avoided caffeine for so long (consider me the voice of experience!) - after a sleepless night I had a google and it turns out that the average halflife of caffeine is 4hrs for a normal person but it extends throughout your pregnancy to reach 15-18hrs by 36 weeks. If you're not used to it anymore it can wreak havoc with your sleep!