Mommy loves Baby Wynne ... and Caffeine!

I have never denied it.  I am addicted to caffeine.  Specifically, I drink Diet Coke. 

At its worst, this habit can reach 6 cans of diet coke per day.  At its best, this is just one diet coke per day.  It definitely hasn't been ZERO diet cokes ... since before I started grad school (8 years ago)!

When I get cranky and snappy and impatient, my husband/friends/labmates/advisor/boss have learned to ask "Did you have your diet coke today?".  Caffeine has also been my weapon against migraines and long commutes to work.

But when we started thinking about maybe having a baby, I knew it was time to let this addiction go.  And I had a plan.  A good plan.  I would be totally off caffeine before I got pregnant.  I would not let my "drug problem" affect my baby.

And then I was pregnant.

I know there was definitely one or two 6-diet-coke-days during those early days of pregnancy (during which I was ignorant to a growing Baby Wynne!).  And I felt so guilty about it.  I tried to quit cold-turkey, but the headaches (from withdrawal) combined with the nausea of early pregnancy was too much.  I have had only two really bad "pregnancy days" and the first was after 4-days of headache from the lack of caffeine.

So I did what any good scientist would do.  I went to the primary literature!  Forget those baby books that just say "don't drink this" and "don't eat that".  WHY can't I have caffeine?  And HOW BAD is it really?? 

Here is what I found from some very recent papers:

• One study found a slightly increased risk of miscarriage before 20 weeks with high (greater than 200mg per day) caffeine consumption (Weng et al. 2008 Maternal caffeine consumption during pregnancy and the risk of miscarriage: a prospective cohort study. Am J Obstet Gynecol).
• Though a recent review found that moderate or even high amounts of beverages and foods containing caffeine do not increase the risks of congenital malformations, miscarriage or growth retardation (Brent et al. 2011 92(2):152-87 Birth Defects Research (Part B))
• A review of dozens of articles found no risk of pre-term labor associated with caffeine intake (even at high levels) (Maslova, et al. 2010 vol. 92 no. 5 1120-1132 Am J Clin Nutr)

So, overall, it seems like high caffeine intake during early pregnancy slightly (very slightly) increases the risk of miscarriage, though it seems like normal amounts later on are not associated with bad things for Baby Wynne!  Yay!

(As for diet drinks, I did find one study that found a slight increase in the risk of preterm delivery with overuse of artificial sweeteners (Halldorson et al. 2010 Sep;92(3):626-33.Am J Clin Nutr.).  Which means I might need to cut back on the DIET Coke. )

There you have it.  This pregnant scientist plans to continue drinking small amounts of caffeine until delivery!  (And then a newborn might push me toward more caffeine again!)