Can you consume caffeine during pregnancy?

Recent studies have correlated in eventual cases the intake of caffeine with the risk of spontaneous abortions, premature births or the birth of low-weight babies in pregnant women.

For these reasons, this stimulant psychoactive alkaloid is in the spotlight of various pediatric investigations. Knowing the factors that predispose to a pregnancy failure is essential, since it is not only put in risk to the life of the fetus, but also the physical and emotional integrity of the mother and the nucleus familiar.

It is clear that the consumption of alcohol, marijuana and other drugs stigmatized by society is deleterious to the health of the fetus that is developing in the mother's womb. The reality is that caffeine is a substance that generates addiction much more established in our culture, but it is not exempt from side effects. Discover here if you can consume caffeine during pregnancy.

• Related article: "The 3 phases of intrauterine or prenatal development: from the zygote to the fetus"

Can you consume caffeine during pregnancy?: a gray scale

According to the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language (RAE), a drug is defined as "any drug substance or preparation with a stimulating, depressing, narcotic or hallucinogenic effect". Based on this description, there is no doubt that caffeine is a drug.

This alkaloid of the xanthine group, with a bitter taste, has various effects on the human body.. Some of them are the following:

• It stimulates the central nervous system, which produces a temporary effect of restoring alertness and reducing drowsiness.
• Increases blood pressure.
• It has a diuretic effect, that is, it facilitates the elimination of water and salt by promoting urine production.

The caffeine It is the most widespread psychoactive substance in the world, since it is estimated that an average of 120,000 tons per year are consumed throughout the globe. In more specific regions, such as North America, it is estimated that 90% of adult individuals consume caffeinated products on a daily basis.

How much caffeine is too much?

The half-life of caffeine (that is, the time that this compound remains in the blood) varies according to the characteristics of the individual who consumes it. It is a fact that the elimination of this substance from the blood of pregnant women is a slower process, since it is included in a time range of 9 to 11 hours, while in adult non-pregnant individuals this time is 4 to 9 hours maximum.

Caffeine is metabolized in the liver, so people with severe liver disorders can experience complications in which the compound remains in the blood for up to 96 hours.

The World Health Organization recommends that pregnant women consume no more than 300 milligrams of caffeine per day. to avoid the risk of loss of the fetus during pregnancy, but how is this amount reflected in food? energetic?

It is estimated that a cup of coffee has a wide range of this compound, from 95 to 200 milligrams per dose. On the other hand, a cup of tea contains much less caffeine concentration, since it is calculated from about 14 to 60 milligrams per dose.

Therefore, the consumption of three cups of tea a day should not be a long-term problem for a mother pregnant, but two "well loaded" coffees can already exceed the maximum dose recommended by the World Health Organization health. Caffeine can certainly be consumed during pregnancy, but being careful with the dose is essential to avoid serious unpleasantness.

Beyond the tips

Despite being widespread ideas in the general population, various studies have tried to elucidate the effect of caffeine on the fetus during the first trimesters of pregnancy, and as surprising as it may seem, many results are not conclusive.

This is due, in part, to the fact that the mechanisms by which this substance would correlate with spontaneous abortions are not yet known, although there is evidence that the compound crosses the placental barrier and reaches the fetus. We go further, since it is estimated that the concentration of caffeine in the bloodstream of the fetus would be similar to that of the mother, with the added complication that its permanence in the baby's blood would be even longer, since the liver enzymes capable of degrading it appear from the eighth month of gestation.

Still, overall it is difficult to establish a direct correlation between caffeine and complications during pregnancy, since other factors also play essential roles, such as the symptoms of the pregnant woman or fetal viability.

Despite all these impediments, after extensive literature reviews with sample groups of pregnant women considerable (more than 1,500 participants, some who suffered spontaneous abortions and others who did not) the following can be elucidated results:

• Caffeine intake during the first trimester of pregnancy is correlated with spontaneous abortion in fetuses with normal karyotypes.
• A positive association was also found between tobacco use and the probability of a spontaneous abortion.
• Caffeine intake is not related to the risk of spontaneous abortion in fetuses with abnormal karyotypes.

As we can see, We are facing relatively contradictory results.. This is further complicated when the study highlights that in female smokers and caffeine consumers (both at the same time) no positive correlation was found between these habits and the production of abortions. What sense does this make if both factors separately seem to promote pregnancy complications?

Another reason that makes us doubt a 100% reliable correlation between caffeine and abortions is that both parameters are not found to be related in fetuses with abnormal karyotypes, that is, with an atypical number of chromosomes (such as the syndrome of Down). These results are counterintuitive to say the least, since it would be expected that the baby's genetic mutations would predispose him to fatal events after the interaction with caffeine.

For all these reasons, the studies emphasize that the results must be taken with extreme caution, but nevertheless, not consuming caffeine during pregnancy or reducing its intake will always be the most prudent option according to them.

Caffeine and fetal growth

In any case, we are not moving in a field of whites or blacks (life or abortion), since the effects of caffeine on the fetus can manifest themselves in a wide range of grays.

Other studies have found, for example, that caffeine consumption does is correlated with decreased newborn weight. This could be explained because the compound increases the concentration of placental and fetal adrenaline, which it promotes vasoconstriction and hinders the direct nutritional supply through the bloodstream to the fetus.

In countries such as Uruguay, where it is estimated that more than 32% of pregnant women consume a value higher than the maximum amount of caffeine established by the WHO (in form of mate, above all), knowing a clear correlation can be key to making the population aware of healthier habits, especially during the gestation period maternal.

Even so, these own studies show that despite having shown concordant results between both parameters, not all the investigations carried out have reached the same result. This, more than lessening the credibility of the observed facts, could show that there are many more factors that condition fetal viability beyond caffeine intake: diet, stress, health structure and other parameters difficult to quantify.

conclusions

As you may have seen, we do not have an entirely conclusive answer to the question of whether caffeine can be consumed during pregnancy. Such is the world of research, where nothing can be considered as inalienable dogma or reality unless irrefutable evidence is presented.

What is clear is that a high daily caffeine consumption is correlated with eating disorders. health in the patient, which of course would also extend to the integrity of the fetus in a pregnant woman.

Although the results are not entirely conclusive in many studies, it will always be a good idea not to exceed the limit established by the WHO of 300 milligrams of caffeine per day in pregnant women. After all, with a daily coffee and cup of tea, the desired effect is obtained in most cases, and a possible miscarriage or a fetus with an underweight weight is not encouraged.

Bibliographic references:

• Caffeine, Medlineplus.gov. Collected on September 1 in https://medlineplus.gov/spanish/caffeine.html
• Duro Mota, E., Causín Serrano, S., Campillos Páez, M. T., & Valles Ugarte, M. (2001). Caffeine consumption and risk of miscarriage in the first trimester. Medifam, 11(8), 105-108.
• Lozano, R. P., Garcia, Y. A., Tafalla, D. B., & Albaladejo, M. F. (2007). Caffeine: a nutrient, a drug, or a drug of abuse. Addictions, 19(3), 225-238.
• Magri, R., Míguez, H., Parodi, V., Hutson, J., Suárez, H., Menéndez, A.,... & Bustos, R. (2007). Consumption of alcohol and other drugs in pregnant women. Archives of Pediatrics of Uruguay, 78(2), 122-132.
• Moraes, M., Sosa, C., González, G., Umpiérrez, E., Berta, S., & Borbonet, D. (2014). Relationship between mate consumption in pregnancy with birth weight. Archives of Pediatrics of Uruguay, 85(1), 18-24.
• Restriction of caffeine intake during pregnancy, World Health Organization (WHO). Collected on September 1 in https://www.who.int/elena/titles/caffeine-pregnancy/es/