Heavy Coffee Drinking in Pregnancy Tied to Increased Risk of Fetal Death
By Anne Harding
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Nov 15 - Fetal death is twice as likely among
women who drink eight or more cups of coffee daily during pregnancy compared
to women who avoid coffee while pregnant, Danish researchers report.
Adjusting for other risk factors weakened the association somewhat, but
heavy coffee drinkers remained at 59% greater risk of fetal death, Dr. Bodil
Hammer Bech of the University of Aarhus and colleagues report.
Women who drank four to seven cups daily had a 33% increased risk of fetal
death.
"Due to our findings and previous studies we think it is reasonable to apply
the precaution principle and advise pregnant women to abstain from drinking
more than 3 cups of coffee per day," Dr. Bech told Reuters Health. Denmark
currently has an official policy warning women to restrict their coffee
intake to three cups or less daily.
While a number of studies have linked coffee drinking to adverse pregnancy
outcomes, and there are plausible physiological mechanisms by which caffeine
might harm a fetus, the risks of coffee drinking in pregnancy have been
questioned, Dr. Bech and colleagues note in the November 15 issue of the
American Journal of Epidemiology.
To investigate, they surveyed 88,482 women enrolled in the Danish National
Birth Cohort, among whom there were 1,102 fetal deaths. The women were
interviewed about coffee intake and potentially confounding factors, such as
alcohol consumption and smoking, at approximately 16 weeks' gestation.
Among the women, 55.4% reported drinking no coffee during pregnancy, while
31.4% drank one-half to three cups daily. Thirteen percent of the women
drank more than three cups of coffee daily, while 3.4% drank eight or more
cups a day.
After adjustment, the researchers found, women who drank one-half to three
cups a day had a 3% increased risk of fetal death; those who consumed four
to seven cups had a 33% increased risk; and those who drank eight or more
cups had a 59% greater risk of fetal death. The association was strongest
for fetal deaths after 20 weeks gestation.
The researchers found no link between tea or cola consumption and fetal
death, suggesting that caffeine may not be the exposure of interest. "Coffee
contains a number of chemical compounds," Dr. Bech noted. "Further studies
should try to disentangle a caffeine effect from a non-caffeine effect."
Am J Epidemiol 2005;162:983-990.
Leanne Wynne
Midwife in charge of "Women's Business"
Mildura Aboriginal Health Service Mob 0418 371862
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