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Foetal response to maternal coffee intake: role of habitual versus non-habitual caffeine consumption

¹ Department of Perinatology and Gynecology, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Centre, Utrecht, The Netherlands
² Department of Neonatology, San Carlo Hospital, Genoa, Italy
³ Department of Neurosurgery, Giannina Gaslini Children's Hospital, Genoa, Italy

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed.

	Abstract

Abstract

Little is known about the effect on the human foetus of long-term and acute exposure to caffeine. We studied the organisation of foetal sleep-wake states in 13 healthy near-term foetuses over a wide range of maternal plasma caffeine concentrations (0–13 µg/mL) reflecting normal lifestyle conditions (day 0) and again following intake of two cups of regular coffee (~300 mg of caffeine) intermitted by 50 h of abstinence (day 2; acute effects). On either day, 2 h simultaneous recordings were made of foetal heart rate, general-, eye-, and breathing-movements. The recordings were analysed for the presence of each of four foetal behavioural states: quiet- and active-sleep, quiet- and active-wakefulness. There was a linear relationship between maternal caffeine content and the incidence of foetal general movements during active sleep on day 0 (R = 0.74; P < 0.02). After coffee loading on day 2, foetuses of non- or low-caffeine consumers showed increases in active wakefulness (P < 0.001), general movements (P < 0.05) and heart rate variation (P < 0.01) but lower basal heart rate (P < 0.01) compared with their day 0 values. The changes in foetal heart rate (variation) and behaviour occurred between 90 and 180 min post-consumption. In contrast, foetuses of habitual caffeine consumers remained unaffected suggestive of foetal tolerance to caffeine. The results indicate differential performance between foetuses regularly exposed to caffeine and those caffeine-naive, both under normal maternal lifestyle conditions and in response to maternal coffee ingestion.

Key Words: adenosine receptor, behavioural states, caffeine, coffee, foetus, pregnancy, wakefulness

First published on June 8, 2009
Journal of Psychopharmacology 2009, doi:10.1177/0269881109106310


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