Pregnancy & Herbs
By Sand, Coffs Harbour HHS
Pregnancy is a tricky one.
As some books and studies say, the only ‘safe’ herbs are Chamomile, Ginger (dried as only the dried one has the components that help with morning sickness), Peppermint and Raspberry leaf (only for the whole 3rd trimester, great to reduce intensity and length of labor, increase stamina during pregnancy and labor as well as helps rebuilding the uterus postnatal).
Other books say all herbs are safe except a few that explicitly note ‘avoid during pregnancy and breastfeeding.’
I usually go with a bit of a combination of the above, as it really depends on the woman. If there is a history of miscarriage I would be rather careful. If it is a healthy pregnancy with a healthy person, they can use a lot more.
Damiana and Cocoa Kola Suma are usually my recommendations for women that either want to chill out or need a pickup that replaces coffee. Cocoa Kola Suma was the one blend that helped me to get off my coffee addiction when I was pregnant with Arlo and I never went back to coffee. It’s always been a safe one to use during pregnancy and breastfeeding alike and gives the pregnant. much ‘purer’ body a nice lift to even go out on!
Please note that both Kola and Cocoa do contain caffeine so if you can do without it, even better!
In general, a nice Cocoa Kola Suma for the morning or a party and a yummy Ginger and Lemongrass or Chamomile and Peppermint combo during the evening are very safe and nice options during every pregnancy (when you don’t know any of their background beforehand) and for anyone else – well, it depends!
Damiana is generally considered safe, however because it can interfere with iron absorption, it is important not to drink it too often.
WORDS FROM RAY AND STEPH:
There is a lot of hysteria about herbs and pregnancy when really, there are only a few certain herbs that are NOT suitable for pregnancy and they are all the emmenagogue and uterine relaxing herbs. Some examples are mugwort, motherwort, wormwood, strong laxatives, such as senna (that is in the herbal fibre blend), aloe vera leaf tea (not the inner gel – that is fine), pennyroyal, tansy, rue, large doses of parsley and nutmeg. This list is not exhaustive!
Please always consult your midwife, GP or specialist if you have any hesitations or queries regarding your pregnancy as we are not prescribing herbs here, merely passing on some information which other pregnant women have shared with us.
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