What Herbal Tea is Safe to Drink While Pregnant?
Women-to-be are often advised against drinking herbal tea during pregnancy, though certain varieties made with appropriate herbs can actually provide comforting relief during gestation. But just how much caffeine and herbs can you safely enjoy during this timeframe? Read on!
Caffeine is generally safe in small doses; however, pregnant women should limit themselves to no more than 200 mg daily of caffeine intake, or the equivalent of four cups of regular or iced tea, due to caffeine crossing the placenta and reaching developing babies, potentially leading to sleep disorders or low birth weight outcomes.
However, herbal tea can still be enjoyed without too much caffeine consumption. One great choice for this is Rooibos tea as it naturally lacks caffeine – full of antioxidants and soothing for body and soul alike! Other tea options such as ginger can help ease nausea or lemon balm can assist with anxiety/insomnia issues; peppermint is sometimes advised during pregnancy to ease indigestion and bloat, while red raspberry leaf tea has even been known to stimulate effective labor contractions!
As some herbal teas can stimulate uterine stimulation, other beverages should be avoided to protect the unborn. Consuming large quantities of peppermint or chamomile tea may lead to menstruation and contractions in pregnant women; similarly, drinking too much dong quai tea could increase premature delivery risks significantly.
Herbal teas are unregulated in comparison with traditional types, making it impossible to know exactly which ingredients they contain. This poses a risk because herbs tend to concentrate more in tea than food, and taking excessive quantities could have harmful side effects – this is especially relevant with herbal tinctures which use alcohol as their extracting agent.
There are various herbal teas marketed specifically as pregnancy tea, yet very little research exists regarding their safety. Furthermore, it should be noted that many pregnancy teas contain ingredients not listed on their labels that could potentially be harmful during gestation. Also keep in mind that bulk purchases could potentially contain ingredients contraindicated during gestation – best to buy teas only from reputable brands to be safe.