33 weeks pregnant, just bought some raspberry leaf tea, has anyone tried it? Or know when the best time is to start drinking it and how much

[chelseabun]

I have googled it but every page said something different and there wasnt much actual info on it. Just want to try anything that will help along a natural birth as i had a c section last time and it was hell on earth.

[kay2010]

It's hard to say for certain, because there is little research on the benefits of raspberry leaf tea. Raspberry leaf tea, also known as red raspberry leaf, is a herbal remedy. It's not the same as raspberry fruit tea.

Raspberry leaf tea is thought to tone the muscles of your uterus (womb) to help it work better during labour. The idea is not so much to speed up your labour, but to help it to progress at a nice, steady pace. Because raspberry leaf tea takes several weeks to accumulate in your body, it won't work to bring on labour if you are overdue.

Nobody knows how long your labour will last. Some mums-to-be have labours that are very long and slow. This is called failure to progress. It is one of the main reasons why you may need a caesarean section. One study did find that women who drank the tea regularly towards the end of their pregnancies had a shorter second, pushing stage of labour than those who didn't.

We do know that raspberry leaf should, like other herbal teas, be drunk in moderation. This is because the chemicals in raspberry leaf tea work their way through your body in the same way as a drug would.

Some doctors and midwives think it is not a good idea to take anything that might interfere with your labour. Our bodies are designed to give birth without any help. Trying to change the course of this natural process could be seen as just another way to induce or speed up your labour.

If you have already had a baby and your labour went smoothly first time around, there is no need for you to drink raspberry leaf tea for your next baby. The fact is that raspberry leaf tea is not right for everyone. Don't take it if:

You've already had a baby and your labour was very short, three or fewer hours from start to finish.

You're scheduled to have a planned caesarean for a medical reason.

You've had a caesarean before.

You've had a premature labour before.

You've had vaginal bleeding in the second half of pregnancy.

It would also be wise not to drink raspberry leaf if you:

Have a family or personal history of breast or ovarian cancer, endometriosis or fibroids.

Have any complications or health problems in your pregnancy.

Have high blood pressure.

Are expecting twins.

If you do decide to try raspberry leaf tea, let your doctor or midwife know that you are planning to drink it. It will work best if you start taking the tea when you're about 32 weeks pregnant. This will give it enough time for it to build up in your body. Begin with one cup a day, gradually increasing to three cups. If you don't like the taste of the tea, you can buy raspberry leaf capsules in health food stores.

If you have strong Braxton Hicks contractions after drinking the tea, cut the amount you drink.

During early labour, while you are at home, you can either sip hot tea or suck ice cubes made from the tea. You could also take a flask of the tea with you into hospital or birth centre. Don't drink the tea if your labour is being induced or if you are having treatment with a hormone drip to speed up labour.

You may like to drink raspberry leaf tea after your baby is born. It's thought to:

boost your immune system, because of the vitamins and minerals it contains

help your uterus to shrink back to its pre-pregnant shape

fight infection, because it has antibacterial qualities

sorry its so long its copied and pasted from a site i use x

[chelseabun in reply to kay2010]

Thank you, that's really helpful,ive got midwife app next week so will get her advice x

[mamacool]

Hi

I used raspberry leaf tea with my second about 4 weeks from my due date. I do think that it worked well however the delivery was quick.

My first was 13 days over (booked for induction but 5cm dilated anyway) I had episiotomy, twice, in a delivery unit busier that a cattle market and had to do the hard work on my back with legs in stirrups. Not the best experience.

2nd was surreal in a relaxed midwife led unit, from regular contractions to birth was approx 21/2 hours. Laboured in water so my body was supported - I do recommend this if you are able to because it helps to conserve your energy but listen to professional advice first.

The contractions were intense but purposeful and my body took over, in part, I believe, thanks to RL tea, it felt like a natural process. On reflection I would say that my son was born a bit too quickly; this is reflected in the shape of his head, which is slightly flat on top and broad and he was big, 9.7lbs, (although his head was particularly large -95th percentile).

I chose to use RLtea because I wanted to prepare my body well to work as nature intended. I built up to drink 3 cups per day.

10 years on, on my 3rd (19w2d), I will probably use RLtea again (unless I am told not to) but not so much, probably 1 or 2 cups in the last 2-3 weeks after reading the above post.

Good luck with whatever you decide