A study conducted by Dr. Allen J. Wilcox’s team at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences demonstrated that moderate consumption of coffee during the first trimester of pregnancy slightly increased the risk of cleft lips in newborns.
Despite these results, Dr. Wilcox stressed that there is no need to be alarmed. "Clefts are a very rare outcome. Even if it were true, it would contribute a very small risk to an individual woman," he stated.
There was a ratio of 2.2 cleft lip babies born per 1,000 births.
573 women gave birth to babies with the congenital malformation, and 763 other candidates participated in the study. Those who drank less than 3 cups of coffee per day were 1.39 times more at risk to deliver babies with cleft lips. The risk slightly increased to 1.59 when participants consumed more than 3 cups a day.