Clearly the bacon-chocolate fiasco wasn't that gut-wrenching because I found myself back at Vosges again yesterday. (What can I say? Free samples.) Usually sample time at Vosges consists of a broken up chocolate bar (fine by me!) but yesterday they were pulling out all the stops: TRUFFLES. As if that weren't awesome enough, they were featuring one of my faves: the Chef Pascal (kirsh and dried cherries in dark chocolate. Hella good). Along with mashed potatoes and toaster waffles, dried cherries are my downfall. Mix those dried cherries with dark chocolate... people, please. As I was reaching my pregnant paw toward the plate, I detected a whiff of disapproval coming from my left. I turned in time to see a Madonna-esque "I do yoga - and Botox" type shaking her head in my direction. At first I couldn't figure out why, but then I realized:
The truffle was made with liquor.
Ooh.
I am aware, gentle readers, that drinking and procreating do not mix. (Am I past procreating? Drinking and post-creating?) No matter how much I want a margarita - and I so, so want a margarita - I would never do anything to intentionally harm Possum. That said, IT WAS A FUCKING TRUFFLE. And I'm not talking about one of those liquor filled jobbies, the kind you used to sneak as a kid at Christmas. This was a fancy, $3 jobbie, scented with liquor! In no way was this thing alcoholic! Still, I got a little panicky. I mean, who knows, right? If a person isn't supposed to eat peanut butter while pregnant, god knows what liquor flavoring could do.
Figuring I might as well go right to the source, I turned to Madonna, truffle in hand. "Um, there isn't enough alcohol in here to actually hurt a baby, right?"
To my surprise, she started chuckling. "No, you'll be fine," she said, as I lifted the ball of deliciousness to my mouth. "It's the caffeine that will do the damage."
Um, WTF?
Really, has it come to this? I mean, sure, about to stick a crack pipe in my mouth? A gentle reminder might be due. Chasing a Hershey's 1/2 pounder with a Frappuccino? Fine - berate away. But come on, have we seriously come to the point where a pregnant woman can't eat a bite - a bite! - of chocolate without the Caffeine Police getting all huffy? Don't get me wrong, I am one seriously paranoid Pregger but when it comes to the danger scale, as far as I'm concerned caffeine rings in at a -3. Yes, women who consume caffeine can go into premature labor and can have smaller babies... But I am a motherfucking menace if I don't have my cup of tea each morning. In fact, sometimes I even have a brownie. On the SAME DAY!
People, please.
2 comments:
Well friend you KNOW I was putting away more than a truffle's worth of chocolate during both of my pregnancies and the babies were full term and well sized. The key as with everything is moderation. If yoga-bo girl didn't eat chocolate I promise you she was consuming something else just as "bad." Eat chocolate in moderation guilt free. The lil' fella will be just fine.
Oh yeah, wouldn't you just be creating now since little dude is still cooking?
Ignore the ignorant bystanders.
"Literature review of caffeine exposure during pregnancy consistently show no increased risk of birth defects when caffeine is consumed in moderation (Narod et al., 1991; Nehlig & Debry, 1994a; Golding, 1995). There is, however, controversy over the definition of "moderation." Some authors define moderation as <300 mg of caffeine per day (Nehlig & Debry, 1994a), while others use <200 mg per day (Narod et al., 1991). Little is known, however, about the teratogenic risk of higher levels of caffeine. It is estimated that a woman would have to drink 10-14 cups of coffee in one sitting to begin to reach the doses which have teratogenic effects in animals (Nehlig & Debry, 1994a)."
Blah blah blah...
"Preterm birth has also been associated with excessive caffeine use. A study of 12,205 woman showed a trend toward increased risk for preterm birth (OR 1.19; 95% C.I.; 0.86-1.65) when smoking was controlled (Linn et al., 1982). However, no dose-response relationship was seen in the first or second trimester in a study of 408 women, thereby reducing the likelihood of caffeine being the causal factor in preterm birth. A non-significant trend was noted in the third trimester between increased caffeine consumption and preterm birth (Pastore & Savitz, 1995). Fenster et al. (1991) found no association between maternal caffeine intake and preterm birth."
From this site.
"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration published a warning in 1980 advising pregnant women to restrict or even eliminate consumption of coffee given the teratogenic effect (the ability to cause birth defects) observed in rodents."
From this site.
However, you are not a rodent.
There's plenty more, but I wouldn't fret over a truffle. It's a trifle, really.
Sorry, couldn't resist!
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