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• Baby
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• Pregnancy Diet
• Pregnancy and caffeine
• How much is too much caffeine?

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How Much is Too Much Caffeine?

As we know, caffeine affects people differently according to their body’s ability to deal with it. As a general guideline though, you should consume less than 600 mg per day – around four cups of strong drip-percolated coffee, or five or six cups of tea (less is recommended for pregnant or breastfeeding women). This nutritionist believes that one to two cups a day is fine for the average person. However, if certain circumstances put you outside this category, abstaining isn’t going to hurt.

Pregnancy

Caffeine is quickly absorbed and reaches a peak concentration in blood within an hour of ingestion: it also has negative impacts on the unborn child. Studies have shown that women who drink in excess of one cup of coffee a day are only half as likely to conceive as those who drink less than a cup a day. The odds are even worse for women who drink more than two and a half cups a day (they are nearly five times less likely to conceive as women who do not drink coffee at all) (Wisborg, 2003).

Studies also suggest that caffeine reduces fertility in men by damaging the sperm. Caffeine has been reported to negatively influence the production of hormones that control fertility, for example it may reduce the rate by which an egg successfully implants in the uterus.

Unfortunately, we don’t fully understand the impact of caffeine on human development. We do know that as little as two or three cups of brewed coffee every day during pregnancy can result in lowered infant birth weight, prematurity, poor reflexes and slowed neuromuscular development. There is a far clearer picture of the effect of caffeine on infants and children.

But it’s not all bad news. As we’ve noted briefly above, caffeine has a therapeutic effect on premature and near-miss SIDS infants. Caffeine’s minor effect on respiration (increasing blood flow through the lungs and increasing the supply of air) appears to be useful in treating breathing problems of some prematurely born infants.

Breastfeeding

While the actual amount that a mother consumes – which then turns up in breastmilk – is variable, it is estimated that 0.06% to 1.5% of the amount ingested crosses into breastmilk. The half-life of caffeine is between 3–7 hours (women not on the pill will be at the longer end). However, for newborns – who metabolise caffeine very slowly – the half-life is 80 hours.

Caffeine has an affinity with the fatty, creamy layer of breastmilk and consequently tends to be most concentrated two hours after we drink it. Caffeine can also reduce milk supply and may be associated with recurrent mastitis (ABA, 2004). In some studies, it’s been found that mothers who consume lots of caffeinated drinks have lower iron levels in their breastmilk. This may explain why there are more instances of iron deficiency anaemia in countries where lots of coffee is consumed. Babies of mothers who drink large amounts of caffeine can show signs of agitation, jitteriness, constipation and general unsettledness. So cutting back on caffeine could be the answer to a good night’s sleep – for both you and your bub!

Because caffeine is a diuretic, drinking too much may lead to dehydration amongst breastfeeding mums. With bub taking between three and five cups of fluid a day from mum, staying hydrated is extremely important.

But even if you are breastfeeding, you don’t need to completely deny yourself the small pleasures in life such as the occasional tea or coffee. However, keep your intake to one or two cups once in a while, ideally after feeding. The American Academy of Paediatrics suggests that breastfeeding mums consume no more than three cups of coffee a day (that is equivalent to less than 300 mg/day); they also warn that smoking increases the effect of caffeine in the body, so mothers who smoke should reduce this amount even further.