Assessment of caffeine intake in groups of pregnant and breastfeeding women: A cross-sectional analysis

Abstract

Caffeine is commonly consumed by pregnant and breastfeeding women. The maximum safe dose of caffeine in their diet is 200mg per day, according to the European Food Safety Authority. The purpose of this study was to assess the consumption of caffeinated products by pregnant and breastfeeding women, as well as to estimate their caffeine intake. The number of subjects who qualified for the study was 1112 women, of whom 401 were pregnant and 711 were breastfeeding. The research was conducted with the use of a questionnaire, which included information about food frequency and history of consumption of caffeinated products during the past 3 days. The median (interquartile range) daily caffeine intake among pregnant women was 114.5 (57.6-202.8) mg, and the level of caffeine intake increased with the duration of pregnancy (p<0.001). For breastfeeding women it was 193.7 (100.5-324.8) mg/d. The majority of participants (58.9%) were not able to correctly identify the safe amount of caffeine in their diets. It was observed that the intake of 73.8% of pregnant women and 51.9% of breastfeeding women fit within the safe range (0-200mg/d). The main sources of caffeine were ground coffee, black tea, and instant coffee. For 63,6% of women knowledge about nutrition and supplementation came most often from blogs and social media run by medical professionals. Pleasure was the main reason for drinking coffee and tea. Most pregnant women did not exceed the recommended maximum daily dose of caffeine, while breastfeeding women often did.