Randoms - Week of July 10 - NEW LEADER NEEDED!!!!

byrneme

Have any thoughts, questions, feelings, fears? Spill them here!

This is a good place to ask questions to a broader audience than the weekly trimester check-ins so those with experience can chime in!

NEW LEADER NEEDED - hi ladies! I'll be 38 weeks tomorrow so I'd rather have someone take this over starting next week vs. scrambling!! Can anyone slide in please?

omarismyhomeboy

I am 31 weeks + 3 & I'm happy to do it for the next 7-ish weeks!

byrneme

Thank you @omarismyhomeboy, it's an easy one since you don't have to come up with a QOTW

Jeansis

I have a question about caffeine. I am so confused about the recommendations for caffeine intake during pregnancy. Any words of wisdom/experience would be much appreciated. I did not drink tea or coffee or anything caffeinated at all during my first trimester, but I have been having one cup of black tea (about 50 mg of caffeine) or a 4 ounce serving of coffee (probably 60 to 80 mg of caffeine) each day since I started the second trimester. I know that you can have more than that (up to 200mg of caffeine per day), but I have just been ultra cautious. The sources I have checked say caffeine crosses the placenta and baby can't metabolize it like we can, which has been bothering me. It sounds like the doctors are saying "this is probably safe, but it is also bad for your baby."   Am I interpreting that right? Does that mean that caffeine (even in the small amounts I am taking it in) is actually bad for the baby? Should I not have any, or is it honestly safe to have a small amount each day? My doctors have said it is okay, but I still feel confused about these recommendations. 

byrneme

My doctors told me I could have up to four sodas a day (I'm not a coffee drinker) which is excessive when I'm NOT pregnant. I cut down from 2 (breakfast/lunch) to 1 and a VERY OCCASIONAL (I can count on my hand the number of times) second one per day. I trust my doctors - no studies are 100% fail safe. 

persnickity

I have my 8oz of coffee every day. I brew it at home and it likely contains about 120mg of caffeine, but don't have any guarantee on that. While there are studies that indicate you should limit your caffeine to 200mg, there are no conclusive studies on the exact amount that's okay or even on exactly what the results of the caffeine are. At the end of the day, my dr is okay with me having coffee and I never stopped drinking it.

MicronesianMamma

I tried to avoid caffeinated drinks but  had an occasional cup of coffee here and there when I really needed one. But the only time I went to an appointment after drinking a cup of coffee earlier that same day, the u/s tech had some concerns about my boy's heart rate. I saw my OB the next day and all was fine, she said it could have been from drinking coffee. She did say it was no big deal and wasn't concerned but I was freaked out enough to avoid caffeinated beverages since then.

JWatt5

I have a coffee or tea in the am almost everyday (weekends I just don't seem to). I

nellin-2

I had one morning cup of coffee a day during pregnancy which was pretty much my only source of caffeine, I've continued that while breastfeeding without anu issues.
Miscarriage is one of the concerns with high caffeine intake so people often limit more in the first trimester and then relax for 2nd and 3rd trimesters. 

Jeansis

Thanks for all the responses ladies! It bothers me that there is not any more conclusive research on how this might affect my baby. However, I do feel better knowing I am not the only one who still indulges. Since it seems like it is safe to have a small dose of caffeine once per day, I will probably just keep limiting my intake as I have been. Was talking with DH about it this morning (over my 4 ounces of coffee haha) and he remarked that there are so many things that they tell you to do now that they didn't tell you to do 50 years ago. Some of them are helpful, but other suggestions just give you new things to worry about. 

Thanks again for the responses!  

nellin-2

@Jeansis part of the reason it's so vague is it's so hard to do randomized trials for this kind of thing. So they tend to survey people on their existing caffeine use rather than giving placebos like a regular trial.
But lack of nausea is correlated with a higher risk of miscarriage and if you feel sick you are likely to change your coffee intake so the surveys are imperfect and possibly overstate the harm caused by caffeine. 

There is a lot more advice these days but there has also been a lot of research and it can be hard to know what's paranoia and what's important to follow. Listen to your doctor and be sensible about it. I knew I could drink at least two cups of coffee but was happy drinking one.