Midwife in Berlin

My taste and favour for coffee is completely gone and I do pitty myself. I just bough a new, kind of expensive coffee machine and now I do not even like the stuff. A nightmare. It is not the smell, more the feeling it leaves me with. And I so not grave any like I used to. With my first pregnancy I never had any problems. I did drink coffee, I guess less then before but  it never repelled me like it does now.

Many women I see ask me about coffee too.They were told or read they shouldn’t have any,  so they start to feel guilty, because they continue drinking coffee.

Why should it be a bad idea drinking coffee while you are pregnant, isn’t there enough we have to pass on?

And who is telling us, I aks myself now and wonder?

Countries handle this coffee subject very differently. It is like with everything else, for an example foods, cheese, fish(more on this subject shortly) .

The German DGE ( Deutsche Gesellschaft für Ernährung ) and the WHO state 2  cups per day are okay, meaning  300 mg max a day.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists recommends not more than 200 mg per day.They speak about 2 cups a day too, but with less amount of caffeine.

The NHS ( National Maternity Service from the UK) recommends a limit of 200mg a day of caffeine, and advises to drink instant coffee. Brrr, my coffee heart is shaking with disgust. I find,if you want coffee you want the real stuff. But I do understand where this recommendation comes from, the instant coffee definitely has less caffeine.Every Latte or cappuccino you order is made with espresso and of course espresso contains far more caffeine than a regular brewed coffee. Which might lead to that 2 cups of espresso  a day are already too much.I found a number which states that caffeine levels are supposed to range from 50mg per espresso at one place to as much as 300mg per espresso in another coffee shop. If that is true I can not prove.What is up with this caffeine, wich is not only in coffee but also in cacao , coke, chocolate,  green and black tea and of course energy drinks.

We just know that caffein passes the uterine barrier and travels to the unborn system but saying this, it is not clear if this has a negativ effect.They just do not know.

Recent studies have linked drinking large amounts of caffein with a lower birth weight and increased miscarriages.

In the end, I guess moderation is everything and you can not do anything wrong with having some caffeine a day. If you are unsure about your caffeine intake speak to your midwife about it.

Since my holidays in Ireland I switched to black tee, I now have 1 to 2 cups a day but not because I force myself not to drink more or less, just because it happens. I will have the odd  cappuccino when I am out but regret soon after, it just doesn’t feel right. What a shame.

How about you? Can you enjoy your coffee? I’d love to hear your story.

Until then, stay safe.

Fanacht ach amháin,

Quelle: DGE, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and NHS Website