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Green Tea in Pregnancy: Benefits and Risks

by Guest Writer 21 Comments

Green Tea During Pregnancy

Green Tea During PregnancyFor over 4,000 years, Asians have sipped and enjoyed green tea as a warming beverage and a form of traditional medicine. Green tea has its origins in China, but it’s beloved in all the Asian countries – including Vietnam, China, Thailand, Japan, and Taiwan. In traditional medicine, green tea is believed to help with digestion, regulate blood sugar, and control bleeding.

Because of the medicinal benefits of green tea, it has become popular in the United States and North America. Despite its health benefits, green tea does contain caffeine – which pregnant women are urged to drink in moderation.

Many doctors and healthcare providers will give pregnant women the OK to drink green tea in pregnancy, but in moderation. Three to four cups of green tea is considered a sensible amount. If you’re pregnant, you should be aware that too much green tea does have its downsides, as well.

Health Benefits of Green Tea

Green tea is famous for its various health benefits. For one, it’s full of antioxidants and has anti-cancer fighting properties. It’s considered more potent than black tea when it comes to its antioxidant properties. For this reason, green tea consumption may help reduce the risk of cancer. Green tea also contains ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and minerals (like zinc, manganese, and chromium), as well as phytochemicals.

Research studies have suggested that green tea can help reduce a person’s risk for cardiovascular disease (like heart attacks and strokes), dental cavities, kidney stones, and cancer. In addition, human studies have suggested that green tea may improve bone density, which means that it may help prevent osteoporosis. Studies have also suggested that green tea may improve cognitive function.

Despite all of these benefits, green tea and pregnancy remain a controversial topic. Mainly, the reason for this is due to the caffeine content in green tea.

Before you will decide whether you want to drink green tea while pregnant, you should weigh the pros and cons of green tea in pregnancy.

The Benefits of Green Tea in Pregnancy

When you’re pregnant, it’s generally considered safe to drink green tea in moderation.

Green tea is rich in antioxidants – which are chemical compounds that help prevent free radicals from damaging the cells in our body. Research has suggested that green tea can help protect against diseases, like cancer, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

For pregnant women, high blood pressure (hypertension) can become a serious pregnancy complication called preeclampsia, which can put the pregnancy in danger. For this reason, the ability of green tea to regulate high blood pressure makes it beneficial for pregnant women.

As an antioxidant, green tea can help speed up your metabolism rate and could possibly help stabilize your mood swings. In addition, scientific studies have suggested that the ingredients in green tea can increase regulatory T cells in your body, which may boost your immune system. Since your immune system in pregnancy is suppressed, drinking green tea can help you fight off more illnesses.

Green tea is also known for its digestion properties, so it may help reduce indigestion and stomach upsets, which are common in pregnancy.

There are a number of studies that suggest that drinking green tea can also improve your oral health and your bone strength. Good oral health is important in pregnancy, since pregnant women can be plagued with gingivitis due to their changing hormonal levels.

The Potential Risks of Green Tea in Pregnancy

Despite all the benefits of green tea, this drink remains controversial. Some experts warn expectant mothers from drinking green tea. One of the major disadvantages of green tea is the fact that it is a caffeinated drink.

Although green tea does not have as much caffeine in a single cup than a traditional cup of Java, it’s important that pregnant women pay attention to their caffeine intake every day.

  • As a rule of thumb, a 6-ounce cup of green tea has 20 milligrams of caffeine.
  • The same sized cup of black coffee (brewed) has 120 milligrams of caffeine.

All pregnant women are advised to reduce their caffeine intake during pregnancy. Because it’s a diuretic, caffeine can cause the body to release more water than usual. This means you’ll be urinating more than you already are (and we all know that frequent urination is a common pregnancy symptom). If you aren’t drinking enough water, too much caffeine can lead to dehydration.

Caffeine is also a substance that crosses the placenta, and there are studies that suggest that it may decrease blood flow to the developing baby. High levels of caffeine consumption have been linked to miscarriage, stillbirth, and low birth weight babies.

Aside from its caffeine content, green tea may also interfere with how a pregnant woman’s body metabolizes folic acid (or folate). This is because of the presence of epigallocathechin gallate (EGCG) in green tea. In theory, drinking too much green tea may reduce the folate levels in your body. Lack of enough folic acid in pregnancy has been linked to increasing neural tube defects, like Spina Bifida.

For women who want to know the basics on how to get pregnant, you may want to reduce your green tea intake to boost your chances of conception. Folic acid can be helpful in boosting your fertility. Plus, too much caffeine may also hinder your chances of having a baby.

Green Tea in Moderation is OK

It is fine to drink green tea in moderation. Two to three cups of green tea a day is considered as the safe amount for pregnant women. Because of the potential risk of green tea affecting your folate levels, you should avoid drinking green tea in the first trimester. It should be safe in the second and third trimesters in moderation, of course.

If you love green tea, make sure you eat plenty of folate-rich foods – like leafy green vegetables. All pregnant women should take a daily supplement of folic acid, or a daily prenatal vitamin with at least 400-600 micrograms of folic acid.

Talk to your doctor if you have any concerns about green tea and your pregnancy.

Other Safe Herbal Teas in Pregnancy

Herbal teas are caffeine-free, so they may be an alternative to green tea and caffeinated drinks. The safety of herbal teas in pregnancy is heavily debated, mostly because the safety of many herbs has not been tested in pregnancy. Scientists simply don’t know their effects on a developing baby.

There are a handful of herbal teas that are sometimes labeled as “pregnancy teas,” which may have benefits for pregnant women. Midwives who work with herbs on a regular basis believe that certain herbs can help prevent complications – such as preterm labor, preeclampsia, a lengthy labor, and postpartum hemorrhage.

Herbal teas that are considered relatively safe in pregnancy include red raspberry leaf, peppermint leaf, and lemon balm.

  • Red Raspberry Leaf is used in many of the commercial “pregnancy teas.” Red raspberry leaf is rich in iron, so it’s known to help strengthen the uterus, decrease morning sickness, and help reduce labor pains. For breastfeeding mothers, it may help increase your breast milk production. However, red raspberry leaf should only be used after the first trimester.
  • Peppermint Leaf can help reduce nausea and morning sickness, as well as gas and flatulence.
  • Lemon Balm is known for its calming effects, so it may help you sleep better at night. It may also relieve any anxiety or irritability you might feel. It’s a good nighttime tea that will relax and de-stress you.

Before drinking any green teas or herbal teas, it’s probably a good idea to consult your midwife or doctor to get their advice and input.

*****

Special thanks to guest writer, Amit Bravo for this article.

Filed Under: Pregnancy, Pregnancy Lifestyle Tagged With: Green tea pregnancy, green dea during pregnancy, green tea and pregnancy, green tea in pregnancy, green tea safe during pregnancy

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Onyinye frank -Bernard says

    March 2, 2017 at 1:50 am

    Can green tea treat friod and help in conception

    Reply
  2. Erica Rodney says

    March 2, 2016 at 4:23 pm

    I am mother. Again and im scared

    Reply
  3. vicToria says

    August 29, 2015 at 12:39 am

    Hi I am struggling with pre eclampSia I lost3 babies and I’m pregnent and I need to give birTh to this baby alive pls help

    Reply
  4. May Green says

    October 26, 2013 at 8:07 am

    Such a really valuable details, I’m so pleased of having discovered your short article and the info you compose, I love green tea and news related to it or to his proprieties. It has a lot of health benefits and I know that lots of people suggest it as an aid for weight management, such a healthy beverage you know!

    Reply
  5. Leonilyn Vitto says

    April 28, 2012 at 2:58 pm

    I am from Asia and I do not think those alternative herbal tea leaves are available in my place. I wish there will be another alternative for these like herbal tea leaves that are available in Asia particularly in Southeast Asia. I really want to have a healthy pregnancy for me and my baby’s sake.

    Reply
    • Mira says

      December 14, 2016 at 4:41 pm

      So much info in so few words. Tosltoy could learn a lot.

      Reply
    • http://www./ says

      January 19, 2017 at 11:04 am

      Such an impressive answer! You’ve beaten us all with that!

      Reply
    • http://www./ says

      February 28, 2017 at 5:52 pm

      I am not a National Party supporter but neither am I in the business of curtailing the democratic process in case it “spooks” a certain investor. Foreign ownership IS an issue when it is pursued by a nation that has scant concern for human rights and democratic process.Nevertheless, Neocon’s like Johnston always find the opinions of elected officials an irritant the world of plutocratic entitlement.

      Reply
  6. Aminata says

    April 2, 2012 at 3:31 pm

    Oh.. I love yogurt so much. It taste like heaven for me plus the health benefits it brings is just so amazing. Good thing this is safe and indeed recommended for pregnant women.

    Reply
  7. Mitchell says

    March 22, 2012 at 2:36 am

    great post 🙂 Pregnancy tea with Red Raspberry Leaf ? I will buy it . there should be a link somewhere to buy this products on this web page though 🙂

    Reply
  8. Angie says

    March 20, 2012 at 4:19 pm

    “too much of something is bad enough” as the saying goes, everything should be in moderation. During my pregnancy, I keep everything in moderation from coffee to soda intake to fats to exercise to carbo and all. With that practice, all of my three boys are successfully under normal delivery.

    Reply
  9. Ann says

    March 7, 2012 at 2:49 am

    Yes, Peppermint Leaf + green tea plus adding some honey , this combination really works . I have been using(replacing it with coffee) it for last 1 month and its doing same good work (energy) as a black cup of coffee. this way I decaffeinate myself .

    Reply
    • DP Nguyen says

      March 11, 2012 at 3:22 pm

      That is an excellent idea, Ann!

      Reply
      • Madge says

        December 14, 2016 at 5:56 am

        Heck yeah this is excltay what I needed.

        Reply
      • http://www./ says

        January 5, 2017 at 9:00 pm

        I’m shocked that I found this info so easily.

        Reply
      • r und v versicherung kündigen says

        February 5, 2017 at 1:15 pm

        I love that Nick Cave book, and how amazing it was signed! I read alot of trash but I love Angela Carter and The Colour Purple and kind of strangely, I loved 1984 and its bleakness!

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      • bgh verbraucherkredit musterbrief says

        February 8, 2017 at 9:26 am

        I concur 100%. ALL “orginized” religion was made to make people conform. I stopped believing in Santa and the Easter Bunny when I was 6. It only took another year to realize they were attatched to another invisible man. +11Was this answer helpful?

        Reply
  10. micky says

    February 28, 2012 at 1:23 am

    I am an expecting mother and one cup coffee in a day keeps me going. I recently consulted my doc and she suggested me to have herbal tea and its healthy

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Green Tea during pregnancy | Effects of Green Tea During Pregnancy | Page Pregnancy says:
    December 6, 2016 at 9:59 am

    […] Green Tea in Pregnancy: Benefits and Risks […]

    Reply
  2. green tea and pregnancy says:
    May 12, 2012 at 12:09 pm

    […] Before you will decide whether you want to drink green tea while pregnant, you should weigh the pros and cons of green tea in pregnancy.- Read Original Here […]

    Reply
  3. Getting To Know About How To Get Pregnant Fast: | Health News North West says:
    March 31, 2012 at 4:03 am

    […] important to keep your inner body clean for which one should go for detoxification medicines or green tea. This will not only help in building up your health but also increases your chances of getting […]

    Reply

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