Is caffeine safe during pregnancy?

What does the evidence say about caffeine during pregnancy?

1. Staying under about 200 mg of caffeine a day, close to one 12-ounce brewed coffee, is the reference point most obstetric guidance uses, since that range hasn't been tied to a clearly higher chance of miscarriage or preterm birth, though caffeine's effect on a baby's growth size is still considered unsettled. 1
2. A brewed coffee runs about 137 mg, a cup of tea about 48 mg, a can of cola about 46 mg, and a chocolate bar somewhere between 10 and 30 mg, so it only takes two or three of these together in one day to approach the 200 mg mark. 2
3. Taking in 200 mg of caffeine a day or more was linked to more than double the miscarriage rate compared with taking in none, while staying under 200 mg did not show a clear increase. 3
4. The chance of pregnancy loss climbs with every extra 100 mg of daily caffeine, reaching a clearly higher risk once total intake crosses roughly 350 mg a day. 4
5. Even the usual moderate-intake advice isn't fully backed by strong evidence according to one comprehensive review of decades of research, so many experts now suggest aiming below 200 mg rather than right up to it. 5

Is caffeine safe in each trimester?

• First trimester. Nausea can push coffee habits in either direction: some women go off it completely, others lean on it for new fatigue. Either way, start tallying every source, not just coffee, since tea, soda, and chocolate all count toward the same 200 mg reference point.
• Second trimester. Energy often rebounds here and caffeine intake tends to creep back up. This is a good point to recheck your running total: a second coffee plus an afternoon soda or a chocolate dessert can pass 200 mg without any single item feeling like too much.
• Third trimester. Fatigue and disrupted sleep can tempt higher intake later in the day, but afternoon or evening caffeine tends to make sleep harder, not easier. Shifting your usual allowance earlier in the day while keeping the same daily ceiling is the steadier approach heading into delivery.