Research the Effects of Caffeine on the Unborn Baby

The Effects of Caffeine on the Unborn Baby
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The Effects of Caffeine on the Unborn Baby
Caffeine may be among the most loved stimulants across the world. However, pregnant mothers need to pay attention to the amount of caffeine they are ingesting on a daily basis. As much as the mother may be able to handle any amounts of the stimulant she consumes, her unborn baby is unable to. This reason behind is because the baby’s metabolism is still maturing and, therefore, unable to fully metabolize the caffeine. This essay looks at the effects of caffeine on the unborn baby.
Caffeine is a stimulant and an addictive drug that can easily pass to a developing fetus via the placenta. It can also be transferred via breast milk. In unborn babies, the stimulant’s half-life is extended, meaning that it stays in the baby longer. A developing fetus does not have the ability to detoxify the drug. According to Jahanfar & Jaafar (2013), consuming caffeine during pregnancy can lead to a wide variety of problems both for the mother and for the baby. They include an increased risk of miscarriage, birth defects, low birth weight, a higher risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), and reduced levels of calcium and iron in the mother.
Research is still being carried out to determine the exact effects of caffeine on pregnancy and the unborn baby. Mild consumption of coffee of less than 200mg is not considered to be a likely cause of premature birth or miscarriage. However, mothers who consume over 300 mg of caffeine per day are more likely to give birth to children who are much smaller for their gestational age. In addition, a single dose of caffeine, which is equivalent to two cups of coffee, consumed during pregnancy may be sufficient to affect fetal heart development while reducing heart function over the child’s entire lifespan (Jahanfar & Jaafar, 2013).
One thing is for sure: a pregnant woman would feel much better if she does not consume a lot of caffeine. Given that it is a stimulant, it can raise her heart rate as well as blood pressure. In addition, it can cause insomnia and make someone feel jittery. Caffeine can also trigger production of stomach acid, leading to heartburn. These effects become more pronounced as the pregnancy progresses. This is because the ability of a pregnant woman’s body to break down caffeine slows down, and she ends up with higher levels of the stimulant in her bloodstream. In the course of the second trimester, clearing caffeine from the body takes almost twice as long as would be the case if the woman were not pregnant.
Inability to clear caffeine from the body can mean that more amounts of it cross the placenta and into the unborn baby that cannot efficiently process it. The same case applies to newborn babies too; highlighting the importance of limiting caffeine intake when breastfeeding, particularly for the initial few months. There is another reason for cutting back on beverages that contain caffeine, such as coffee and tea. These beverages, whether caffeinated or not, contain compounds that make it more difficult for a pregnant woman’s body to absorb iron. Cutting back on caffeine is important because most expectant women usually have l...