Two cups of tea a day could help women trying to conceive, researchers claim
Tea fans could be upping their fertility just by drinking their favourite drink, according to new research. Researchers from Boston University, who monitored 3,600 Danish women actively trying for a baby, found that those who regularly drank tea were 27% more likely to conceive, the Daily Mail reports. In contrast, those who drank two fizzy drinks a day, both diet and not, were found to lower their chances of getting pregnant by 20%. Professor Elizabeth Hatch, author of the study, monitored the volunteers for year, making it the largest study of the effect of caffeine in conception and pregnancy. “I would love to say tea is a miracle cure to get pregnant but that is not realistic,” Professor Elizabeth said. “There may be other factors. The tea drinkers tended to be older women and there may be something else in their diet or lifestyle that helped.” Findings from the study revealed drinking coffee doesn’t affect your chance of getting pregnant. In addition, contrary to other studies, drinking green tea also wasn’t found to make a difference. Maha Ragunath, consultant in reproductive medicine at the Care Fertility Centre in Nottingham said, “Tea contains a lot of antioxidants which are very good for male and female fertility.” But caffeine has been linked to pregnancy problems and mums-to-be are advised to keep an eye on their intake. Researches here called for further studies to monitor the influence of caffeine on the health and size of babies as well as the length and general health of the pregnancy. Laurence Shaw, associate director at the Bridge Fertility Centre in London added, “I would say to any woman over 35 trying to become pregnant to get proper advice and don’t start drinking ten cups of tea a day.” If you’re confused or concerned about caffeine during pregnancy, read our simple guide here.
