How much coffee you can drink during your pregnancy



 International guidelines recommend people limit how much coffee they drink during pregnancy—consuming caffeine – a stimulant – while pregnant has been linked to how the baby’s brain develops.

Some studies have shown that increased coffee consumption during pregnancy is associated 

with 

the child having neurodevelopmental difficulties. These may include traits linked to 

attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), such as difficulties with language, motor 

skills, attention, hyperactivity, and impulsive behavior.

But is coffee the cause? Our new research aimed to clear up the sometimes confusing advice

 about drinking coffee during pregnancy.

We studied tens of thousands of pregnant women over two decades. When other factors like

 genes and income were accounted for, the results showed no causal link between drinking 

coffee during pregnancy and a child’s neurodevelopmental difficulties. That means it’s safe to

 keep drinking your daily latte according to current recommendations.

What we were trying to find out

Past research has identified a link between drinking coffee during pregnancy and a child’s 

neurodevelopmental difficulties. However, it hasn’t been able to establish caffeine as the 

direct

 cause.

Biological changes during pregnancy reduce caffeine metabolism. This means that caffeine 

molecules and metabolites (the molecules produced while breaking down the caffeine) take

 longer to be cleared from the body.

Also, past studies have shown that caffeine and its by-products can cross the placenta. 

The fetus does not have the necessary enzymes to clear them, so it was thought that caffeine 

metabolites may impact the developing baby.

However it can be hard to identify whether coffee directly causes changes to the fetus’s brain

 development. Pregnant women who drink coffee may differ from those who don’t in a 

number of other ways. And it could be these variables – not coffee – that affect

 neurodevelopment.

These variables, known as “confounding factors” might include how much people drink or

 smoke while pregnant, or a parent’s income and education. For example, we know people 

who tend to drink coffee also tend to drink more alcohol and smoke more cigarettes than

 those who don’t drink coffee.

Our study aimed to look at the effect of drinking coffee on neurodevelopmental difficulties,

 isolated from these confounding factors.

What we did

We know genes play a role in how many cups of coffee a person consumes per day. Our 

study used genetics to compare the development of children whose mothers did and did not

 carry genes linked to increased coffee consumption.

The study looked at tens of thousands of families registered in the Norwegian Mother, Father 

and Child Cohort Study. All pregnant women in Norway between 1999 and 2008 were invited to participate and 58,694 women took part with their child.

Parents reported how much coffee they drank before and during pregnancy. Mothers also 

completed questionnaires about their child’s neurodevelopmental traits between six months 

and eight years of age.

The questions covered many traits, including difficulties with attention, communication,

 behavioral flexibility, regulation of activity and impulses, as well as motor and language skills.

The parents and children also provided genetic samples. This allowed us to control for genetic

 variants shared between mother and child and isolate the behavior of coffee-drinking

What we found

We were able to look at causality through this method of adjusting for potential confounding

 factors in the environment (the mother smoking or drinking alcohol, the parent’s education,

 and income).

The results showed no strong causal link between increased maternal coffee consumption and 

children’s neurodevelopmental difficulties.

The difference in findings between our and previous studies may be explained by our work 

separating the effect of coffee from the effect of other variables, as well as genetic 

predisposition to neurodevelopmental conditions.

Our study has limitations. Importantly, we were only able to rule out strong effects of coffee

 on neurodevelopmental difficulties and it is possible small effects may exist.

We only investigated offspring neurodevelopmental traits, and coffee consumption during 

pregnancy could impact the mother or child in other ways.

However, we have previously shown coffee consumption during pregnancy did not have a 

strong causal effects on birth weight, gestational duration, and risk of miscarriage or stillbirth. But other

 outcomes – such as mental health or a child’s risk for heart disease and stroke later in life –

 should be investigated.

Overall, our study supports current clinical guidelines that state low to moderate consumption of 

coffee during pregnancy is safe for the mother and developing baby.

For most people, that means sticking below 200mg of caffeine per day – usually equivalent to one

 espresso or two instant coffees – should be safe. If you have concerns, it’s best to speak to

 your clinician.

Click here to learn more.

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