Maternal intake of caffeinated products and birth defects: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies

Abstract

Caffeinated products are frequently consumed by women of childbearing age worldwide. It still unclear that whether maternal intake of caffeine associated with an increased risk of birth defects. We searched the databases of PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and Web of Science for eligible studies through July 2020. All studies examining the association between maternal consumption of caffeine or caffeinated products and birth defects were included. Twenty-nine studies were included in this meta-analysis. Among all the birth defects, maternal caffeine consumption was associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular defects, [odds ratio (OR) 1.17; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.07–1.28], craniofacial defects (OR 1.09; 95% CI, 1.02–1.17), alimentary tract defects (OR 1.35; 95% CI, 1.16–1.56), and abdominal-wall defects and hernia (OR 1.13; 95% CI, 1.03–1.25). No association was found between maternal caffeine intake and musculoskeletal system defects, genitourinary system defects, nervous system defects, or chromosomal abnormalities. Meanwhile, all three of the caffeine consumption categories (low, moderate, and high) were associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular defects and alimentary tract defects.

KEYWORDS:

• Caffeine
• caffeinated products
• birth defects
• meta-analysis
• observational study

Disclosure statement

The authors have indicated they have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Science Foundation of China (No. 81630038, 81971433, 81971428, 81771634, 81701499), the National Key R&D Program of China (2017YFA0104200), the Grants from Ministry of Education of China (IRT0935), the Grants from Science and Technology Bureau of Sichuan Province (2016TD0002, 2016FZ0071), and the Grant of Clinical Discipline Program (Neonatology) from the Ministry of Health of China (1311200003303).