Raspberry leaf tea and blood sugar

marcap123

Hello,

I know the controversy over raspberry leaf tea, but I decided to try it in my second trimester. While I was monitoring for contractions as an indication to stop, that's not what happened. Instead, I got extremely tired after drinking one cup. I felt like I had taken a benadryl or something. The exact tea was Traditional Medicinals Pregnancy Tea, which does have additional ingredients. Ever since, I've been scouring the internet for which ingredient could have caused this side effect. There are so many reviews of this tea, and maybe one out of hundreds mention something slightly similar to my experience. So, I'm not thinking it's so much the tea as my body's reaction to it. 

My hypothesis right now is that it dropped my blood sugar. There is some research about raspberry leaf tea and hypoglycemia. I'm not diabetic or GD. However, I've been struggling with afternoon/evening fatigue my whole pregnancy (nothing like the night I drank the tea, but still noticeable). Now I'm connecting the dots and wondering if I have low blood sugar that was compounded by drinking this tea. Anyone else have side effects for the pregnancy tea or raspberry leaf? I have of course stopped drinking it, but I am disappointed because I really wanted to use it.

_beckywhite_

It's good that you were monitoring for any potential issues and stopped consuming it. Based on the details you provided, it seems plausible that the tea may have interacted with your body in a way that caused the sudden fatigue, potentially due to the impact on your blood sugar levels.

While raspberry leaf tea is often recommended for pregnant women, individual responses can vary. The additional ingredients in the specific blend you tried may have also played a role. Since you are not diabetic or diagnosed with gestational diabetes, the afternoon/evening fatigue could be related to the low blood sugar effet the tea hat on you.

My suggestion would be to consult your healhtcare provider about your concerns and see if they have any recommendations for safe alternatives or ways to manage the fatigue you've been experiencing. They may be able to provide guidance on balancing your bloog sugar or suggest other pregnancy-safe herbal teas or remedies that could be a better fit for your body.

In the meantime, I would avoid the pregnancy tea blend that caused the adverse reaction. There are many other ways to support a healthy pregnancy, so don't be discouraged. With some trial and error, I'm confident you'll find an approach that works well for you and your baby. Wishing you all the best in your pregnancy journey!