Lemongrass :/

chizekgeena

So DH and I went out for lunch today and we had thai food. Usually I harass the staff about whats in the food that I order but today I didn't and I ate my pad thai carelessly. Afterwards I remembered that I read that lemongrass was on the DO NOT CONSUME list and now I am freaking out. There were a few leafs in my meal but I am convinced that I just screwed myself over. Does anyone know how much lemongrass needs to be consumed in order for it to be detrimental? I am a PGAL so I have been on edge this entire pregnancy. I just don't know what I would do if I lost this one because of thai food. Ugh.

blindvictory

I'm sure having a few small leaves in your meal weren't enough to cause any harm. Try not to panic. I'm PgAL too, so I know how hard it is not to freak, but just try to remind yourself that it's probably fine.

SoEnamored

This is from babycenter.com, see the third paragraph

Many of the herbs used for teas, when taken in large or medicinal amounts, can potentially stimulate the uterus and induce miscarriage. These include anise, catnip, chamomile, comfrey, ephedra (called ma huang in traditional Chinese medicine), European mistletoe, hibiscus, horehound, Labrador, lemongrass, licorice root, mugwort, pennyroyal, raspberry leaf, rosemary, sage, sassafras, stinging nettle leaf, vetiver, and yarrow.

Although some midwives use raspberry leaf (also known as red raspberry leaf) to aid delivery, its effectiveness hasn't been proven. In any case, it should be used only near term and under the supervision of a healthcare professional. Avoid the rest of the herbs in this list during pregnancy and lactation.

Note: You can still eat food that contains herbs like rosemary and sage, because the amounts used in food are generally much smaller than those used in tea ? and not as potent (the brewing process for making tea concentrates the chemicals of the herbs).

BakerMommy

I'd never heard that, so I looked it up.  It sounds like it's probably safe in food amounts, but not in medicinal amounts/teas.  Here's what it says on Babycenter (emphasis added):

Which teas are not safe?

Many of the herbs used for teas, when taken in large or medicinal amounts, can potentially stimulate the uterus and induce miscarriage. These include anise, catnip, chamomile, comfrey, ephedra (called ma huang in traditional Chinese medicine), European mistletoe, hibiscus, horehound, Labrador, lemongrass, licorice root, mugwort, pennyroyal, raspberry leaf, rosemary, sage, sassafras, stinging nettle leaf, vetiver, and yarrow.

Although some midwives use raspberry leaf (also known as red raspberry leaf) to aid delivery, its effectiveness hasn't been proven. In any case, it should be used only near term and under the supervision of a healthcare professional. Avoid the rest of the herbs in this list during pregnancy and lactation.

Note: You can still eat food that contains herbs like rosemary and sage, because the amounts used in food are generally much smaller than those used in tea ? and not as potent (the brewing process for making tea concentrates the chemicals of the herbs)

 (FWIW, I ate tons of Thai food while pregnant with DD.)

ETA:  sorry to duplicate--someone beat me to babycenter.  

SoEnamored

And this is from Livestrong.com,

Studies on the reproductive effects of lemongrass have been conducted on animals only, testing citral and myrcene. A Brazilian study published in the July 1998 issue of the "Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research" found that only at very high doses, 500 mg per kilogram, myrcene increased the pregnancy loss rate and increased the rate of fetal skeletal abnormalities in Wistar rats.

Read more: https://www.livestrong.com/article/481858-lemon-grass-and-pregnancy/#ixzz1jNhAKjlY

willamina28

Wow I had no idea. Random. I cook using lemongrass all the time.