While some women feel more energetic during pregnancy, some (read: many) women may still need that little boost from their daily cup of joe — or maybe coffee is a luxury in their daily routine that they're not willing to give up just because of their pregnancy. Consuming caffeine while pregnant isn't completely off-limits, but it is recommended that you consume less than 200 milligrams [1] of caffeine per day — and yes, decaf does include a few milligrams — while a tiny human is sharing your body with you.
So what does this mean for your vanilla latte obsession? Check out our handy guide ahead to find out how to keep filling the blank space on that Starbucks cup [2] with your name throughout your pregnancy.
Freshly Brewed Hot Coffee
At your local Starbucks, you can find three levels of brewed hot coffee [3] — Blonde (light roast), Pike Place (medium roast), and Featured Dark Roast — but unfortunately the only cup holding any of these coffees that should be brought to your lips is the short cup (8 oz), which contains 180 mg of caffeine. The tall, grande, and venti cups will all bring you well over the daily limit, but if you just need a larger cup of that hot brew, opt for a decaf Pike Place — a venti is only 30 mg of caffeine! — or a Caffè Misto (75 to 195 mg per cup).
Iced Coffee
Starbucks only brews one type of iced coffee [4] in its locations, which lands between 120 and 165 mg, depending on whether you're sipping out of a tall or grande cup. Steer clear of the venti size, though, as the 235 mg of caffeine that fits into the 24 oz cup will put you over the recommended daily limit.
Cold Brewed Coffee
A new option at the 'Bucks, cold brewed coffee [5] will put you in a similar position as the iced coffee option — one tall (125 mg) or grande (165 mg) is fine, but stay away from the venti, which puts you 50 mg over the daily limit. Not cool, venti . . . not cool.
Espresso Drinks
Lattes, cappuccinos, macchiatos, and flat whites all contain espresso [6] and are ranged in caffeine amounts by number of espresso shots. A short, mini, or tall version of any of these drinks contains one shot of piping-hot espresso, a 75 mg caffeine value. Both grande and tall versions of these varieties contain two shots, bringing the cup to a 150 mg value, which is still under that 200 mg limit (woo-hoo!).
Frappuccino Blended Coffees
The amount of caffeine in a Frappuccino [7] ranges, but if you're looking for a cool, blended beverage, you can likely afford the milligrams. Depending on your favourite flavour — anything from vanilla to caramel ribbon crunch — a grande Frappuccino could have anywhere from 75 mg to 110 mg* of caffeine, leaving you room for a scoop of coffee ice cream or a few squares of your favourite chocolate at the end of the day.
*The only outlier because of the espresso shots, a grande Espresso Frappuccino will cost you 165 mg of your daily recommended allowance.
Bottled Iced Coffee Blends
Starbucks offers bottled versions of their iced coffees, which come in both vanilla and caramel flavours. You can get your fix with these 11 oz bottles containing 115 mg of caffeine each without going over your daily limit (or having to sigh over your name spelt totally wrong on your cup).
Iced Espresso Classics
In cute little 8 oz bottles, Starbucks Iced Espresso Classics come in three flavours — vanilla latte, caffe mocha, and caramel macchiato. Clocking in at 85 mg, one of these little babies could be the perfect solution to a daily caffeine necessity. Not to mention that with all those milligrams to spare, you could have another one as an afternoon my-baby-won't-stop-kicking-me pick-me-up.
Iced Teas
Shaken teas — sweet tea, black tea, green tea, and peach green tea — range from 15 to 90 mg of caffeine per cup depending on flavour and cup size (including the 31 oz trenta). A cup or two of these a day is fine and a good way to spread out intake throughout the day, rather than in one fell swoop with a higher-caffeinated choice. Go caffeine free with the shaken passion tango tea and drink to yours and your baby's heart's content.
Bottled Tazo teas range from 15 to 45 mg of caffeine, which basically translates to being able to drink four of them in a day (because they're delish) without feeling any guilt about not sharing them.
Starbucks Refreshers
Any of the three flavours — Valencia orange, cool lime, or very berry hibiscus — are under the recommended daily limit. Ranging from 35 mg to 110 mg depending on size (including the trenta cup), these are a — excuse the pun — refreshing option for a hot day or for when you have the sweats on a cool day.
Go get your caffeine on, mamas.
