Is rooibos tea safe during pregnancy?

What does the evidence say about rooibos tea during pregnancy?

1. Herbal teas including rooibos are made from plants other than Camellia sinensis, which is why rooibos carries none of the caffeine that green, black, oolong, and white tea do. 1
2. A single published case describes a 52-year-old man who developed jaundice one month after starting buchu and rooibos herbal tea, with recovery after stopping both, though contaminants or other unacknowledged herbal products were noted as possible explanations. 2
3. Two case reports have linked chronic rooibos consumption alongside prescription medication with liver injury, and researchers note that information on combining natural products with pharmaceuticals is sparse. 3
4. In a multinational study classifying herbs used in pregnancy, most fell into caution or unknown categories rather than the safe category, reflecting how thin the pregnancy evidence base is for herbal products generally. 4
5. There is a lack of randomized controlled trial data on the safety of herbal products used during pregnancy, and adulteration with undeclared compounds is a recognized quality concern across the category. 5

Is rooibos tea safe in each trimester?

• First trimester. Rooibos comes from Aspalathus linearis, a South African shrub, not the tea plant, so it brings no caffeine of its own. That is a genuine advantage in a trimester when many people are cutting back. What it does not bring is pregnancy research, so the case for rooibos rests on the absence of reported harm rather than on studies showing safety.
• Second trimester. Rooibos is low in the tannins that make black tea interfere with iron absorption, which makes it an easier companion to a meal than true tea. If you are drinking it specifically to replace coffee or black tea, this is the trimester when the iron difference starts to matter most.
• Third trimester. Nothing about late pregnancy changes rooibos itself. The sensible ceiling is ordinary drinking amounts rather than the concentrated extracts and supplements sold separately, which sit outside anything that has been looked at. Mention a large daily habit at a prenatal visit the same way you would mention any other regular drink.