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Eating for Two: Raspberry Leaf Tea

Posted by Robin Bellinger, July 8, 2008 at 12:45 PM

One of the things I was most surprised to discover when I began reading about food and pregnancy was that not all herbal teas and infusions are safe for women who are expecting. Despite the evidence that many herbs have been known for millennia to affect human functioning for better or for worse, I vaguely believed that mind would triumph over matter when it came to anything I consumed in reasonable quantities—especially anything as anodyne as chamomile tea. After all, my coffee habit led me to drink five cups some days and allowed me to go without on others. No hot beverage was my master.

Then I decided to give up caffeine for at least the first trimester. Oh, how I missed it! The bottles of beer and glasses of wine I had expected to pine for were quickly forgotten, but I stared at Andrew’s Sunday morning mug with longing. On the streets of New York, everyone from construction workers to beautiful girls seemed to be clutching a giant paper cup of what I craved. Until I passed the first few months and came back to coffee with a new appreciation, decaf Earl Grey provided some comfort in the morning, but I had to admit that I was much more dependent on caffeine than I had known.

Introducing Raspberry Leaf Tea

Although I would have liked to explore the world of herbal teas during those bleak and sluggish months, there seemed to be no agreement about which were safe and which were risky. Lists abound, but they are frequently at odds with one another. So when the doula who ran our childbirth class suggested that we all immediately begin drinking raspberry leaf tea, I should not have been surprised to discover that this was a controversial recommendation.

A Personal Trainer For Your Uterus

Raspberry leaf tea, according to natural types, has long been used by women, especially pregnant women, to tone the uterus, decrease constipation, and make contractions more efficient. (It is said to “focus” the false contractions during the third trimester by means of which the uterus prepares itself for labor; that is, it supposedly acts as a kind of uterine personal trainer.) It is also a source of vitamin C and calcium. Many midwives and proponents of natural birth and natural remedies suggest that healthy women drink raspberry leaf tea throughout pregnancy as a uterine tonic, perhaps one cup a day during the first trimester, two during the second, and three during the third.

But Don't Stimulate Your Uterus Too Much

Although neither inducing labor nor encouraging contractions is part of its official profile, more cautious types worry that it could, as a uterine stimulant, do just these things. They advise pregnant women not to drink it until they are full term at 37 weeks, at which point babies should be mature enough to be safely delivered. Presumably, however, that’s a little late to start getting your uterus in shape. (Um, phrases you never thought you would type...)

Whether the raspberry leaf tea works as advertised or not, I like the idea of instituting a little tea ritual in these hectic last two of months before my due date. Soon, though, I’m flying to Houston for my sister’s wedding, and I must be super-extra-careful not to do anything that might encourage baby to make an early appearance. (It’s rather late to be flying, yes, but I have my doctor’s blessing and have promised to drink gallons of water and delight my fellow passengers by pacing the aisles as much as possible.) So I tried one little cup of raspberry leaf tea last week and will not have more until I’m back in New York and 37 weeks along.

Sounds More Powerful Than It Tastes

Having read up on the powers and dangers of this infusion, I was expecting a full-bodied brew: something astringent and pucker-inducing, like rose hip tea, or musky and overripe. But it was rather bland. Pleasant enough. That sort of thing. I did not notice an immediate burst of uterine efficiency or distress. I wonder if any of you used it during pregnancy?

One suggestion I liked was to make brewed raspberry leaf tea into popsicles, especially apropos for those of us waddling through the long, hot summer. Come August I expect to be sitting in front of the air conditioner, twirling a popsicle in my mouth, and waiting, waiting, waiting.

About the author: Robin Bellinger recently escaped a career in book publishing, which was cutting into her cooking time. Now she's a freelance editor and can bake bread on Tuesday afternoon if she feels like it. She lives in Midtown Manhattan with her husband and blogs about cooking and crafting at home*economics.

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Tags: drinks, Eating for Two, herbs, tea