Is drinking coffee harmful for unborn babies? Here’s the surprising answer

Like to have a cup of joe in the morning, but worried about what it will do to your unborn child? A new study has some reassuring news for you.

Pregnant women who drink a moderate amount of caffeine don’t see any adverse affects in their baby, either in terms of intelligence or behavioral problems, according to a Live Science report.

These findings are based on a new study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology. The study found that the offspring of women who drank caffeine during their pregnancy did not have lower IQs or have any problems with behavior beyond what was normal, and there didn’t seem to be any difference between them and pregnant women who chose not to drink coffee.

“Taken as a whole, we consider our results to be reassuring for pregnant women who consume moderate amounts of caffeine, or the equivalent to one or two cups of coffee per day,” said Sarah Keim, an assistant professor of pediatrics and epidemiology at the Ohio State University College of Medicine, in a statement.

Scientists examined 2,197 pregnant women at two points during their pregnancies and checked for levels of paraxanthine, which is one of several compounds produced when the body breaks down caffeine. They then examined the IQ levels and behavior of their children at ages 4 and 7 years old. The data was taken between 1959 and 1974, when women more often drank coffee during pregnancy, which therefore gave scientists more varying levels of caffeine intake to study.

Here’s the opening statement from the news release: “Women drinking and eating moderate amounts of caffeine during pregnancy should be reassured that they are not harming their child’s intelligence, according to a study from The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital that was published in the American Journal of Epidemiology. The research, one of the first studies to focus on how in utero caffeine exposure affects a child’s future intelligence (IQ) and behavior later in childhood, found caffeine did not lead to a reduced IQ or increased behavioral problems.”