Kicking the Caffene Habit
It is highly recommended to adopt healthy habits before conception occurs. In a perfect world all parents would cut out drugs, smoking, and alcohol and would cut back on the caffeine intake well before conceiving. However, the facts are that a lot of babies are conceived in the midst of these bad habits and somehow make it, but there are many babies who suffer as a direct result the bad habits. Caffeine and Conception
Smoking and drugs aside, we're going to touch on the issue of caffeine and it's affects on those trying to conceive. The truth is that researchers and scientists have been unable to draw any concrete conclusions on the effects of caffeine during pregnancy. There seems to be a higher occurrence of problems with a high intake of caffeine. These include more miscarriages and lower birth weight.
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If you are trying to conceive, the thought of doing anything that *might* cause a miscarriage should prompt you to change your habits. While this hasn't been medically proven, it has been seen as a "statistic" when miscarriages and low birth weights occur. Most physicians, with this knowledge, will strongly suggest that you cut way back on the caffeine intake if trying to conceive.
If you must have your caffeine, it has been suggested by physicians to cut back to two cups of coffee or caffeinated soda a day. The correlation between the miscarriages and low birth weight has been seen in women who ingest more than the two cups of caffeinated beverage a day. March of Dimes Advice
The March of Dimes has strong advice against caffeine intake before and during pregnancy. They even state that there is strong evidence of not only miscarriage and low birth weight but preterm labor. Kicking Caffeine
Kicking the habit well before conception ever occurs would certainly be the smart thing to do. And keep in mind that caffeine is found in more than just coffee, tea and sodas, chocolate contains caffeine as does certain pain relievers.
Of course if you are trying to get pregnant, hopefully you won't be taking any type of drug without first consulting your doctor. If you must, wean yourself back from all the caffeinated drinks to the point that you can drink a decaffeinated beverage and not have the "caffeine" withdrawals. Decaffeinated beverages taste just as good as their caffeinated cousins. Tea, coffee and sodas come in decafe.
Statements in this article are for informational purposes only. Check out the March of Dimes website (http://www.modimes.org) for many articles that pertain to caffeine. Play it safe and have a preconception exam with your physician. Talk with them about your caffeine habits. Always seek the advice of your physician.
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