You love soda, and you still want to drink it and in gallons, but you keep wondering about the connection between Sprite and pregnancy. If your question is ‘can you drink Sprite while pregnant?’ We are here precisely to answer that.
Why is Hydration Important While You Are Pregnant?
When you’re pregnant, your body supports two lives. Therefore, you must keep hydrated at all times and take fluids that will ensure this.
Your body needs water to form amniotic fluid – it protects your baby from bumps and allows them to easily move and form bones and muscles. Before the gut is fully formed, the baby swallows this fluid to help in the development of their gastrointestinal tract.
Your body requires water to produce the required amount of blood, about 50% more than you required before pregnancy. Water will clean your body and remove toxic waste from it.
Sprite when Pregnancy: Factors to Consider
If you are still having that discussion with yourself or partner on or asking, is it okay to drink Sprite while pregnant? Here are a few factors to consider.
Amount of Sugar
Sprite contains 33 g of sugar per 369 grams, which is more than the American Heart Association recommendation level for pregnant women. Such high levels can have effects on your baby and you such as:
- Higher risk of premature labor
- Chances of obesity
- Increased risk of diabetes
- High probability of asthma risk
- The risk of learning difficulties
- Problem-solving difficulties
- Lower intelligence
While the American Heart Association limits the sugar intake for women to 25 grams a day, we discourage Sprite in pregnancy. It can contain 76% more sugar than this daily recommended intake and should, therefore, be avoided while pregnant.
Calories Intake
We recommend that you consume more calories and nutrients before you conceive and continue through your pregnancy. You can take multivitamins to offset your need for iron, calcium, and foliate.
In your last 6 months of pregnancy, consume 300 additional calories daily. They should be healthy.
Consume them in the form of mid-afternoon healthy snacks as your blood sugar will drop when you don’t eat in a span of 4 or more hours, making you feel lightheaded.
While most drinks, save milk, have no nutritional value, they contain sugars and caffeine, which will help add to your calorie intake.
Why Should You Be Concerned About Calories?
Any weight gain during pregnancy will put stress on your liver, joints, and pancreas. When your bundle of joy comes, the extra pounds must be shed to have a healthy body.
We broke down some Mayo Clinic recommendations on weight gain during pregnancy below:
| Weight Before Pregnancy | Permissible Pounds Gain margin |
| Below recommendation (18.5 and below BMI) | Between 28 and 40 lbs. (about 13 – 18 kg) |
| Average acceptable weight (between 18.5 and 24.9 BMI) | Between 25 and 35 lbs. (about 11 – 16 kg) |
| Overweight (BMI 25-29.9) | 15 – 25 lbs. (about 7 – 11 kg) |
| Obesity (BMI 30+) | 11-20 lbs. (about 5-9kg) |
Why are Empty Calories a Problem?
The daily recommended average, when pregnant, is 2300 calories. To keep this amount, you will need to plan what you eat wisely. We recommend whole grains and loads of veggies.
If you still want further clarification on can you drink Sprite when pregnant, note that a can of Sprite has 160 calories, which is only 6% of the recommended daily intake. It, therefore, has no nutritional value.
Caffeine
Studies have connected caffeine to miscarriages, delayed conception, and some congenital disabilities. March of Dimes advises a maximum intake of 200 g per day for pregnant women.
While we discourage drinking Sprite while pregnant, it is essential to note that it does not have caffeine.
Data from food and nutrition sources show these are the caffeine amounts in different kinds of beverages:
| Beverage | Serving size | Caffeine |
| Diet Coke | 20 oz. | 76 |
| Mountain dew – diet/regular | 20 oz. | 91 |
| Pepsi – No Sugar | 20 oz. | 115 |
| FDA limit for cola/pepper beverages | 12 oz. | 71 |
| Pepsi – No Sugar | 12 oz. | 69 |
| Surge | 12 oz. | 69 |
Artificial Sweeteners
While most pregnant women think that switching to non-conventional sugar beverages is an excellent way to eliminate empty calories and huge sugar content, it is not the case. These pose their health concerns as well – most notably being early labor.
A study conducted by the Oxford University Press on 60,000 pregnant Danish women found that women who consumed only one serving of artificially sweetened drinks were 38% more likely to have preterm labor with the risk of getting to 78% that consumed four servings in a day.
There are also side effects of these artificial sweeteners on your baby:
- Poor fine motor skills
- Poor visual-spatial skills
- Poor visual-motor skills
Keep off natural sweeteners as there hasn’t been enough to ascertain their safety.
Cravings
Cravings happen due to a huge hormonal shift caused by the pregnancy in the first and second trimesters.
There is a belief that a sugar craving indicates the baby is a boy, while craving for salty food indicates you are carrying a girl.
You can indulge the occasional Sprite during pregnancy, but remember empty or high-calorie foods are listed among foods to avoid when pregnant as they will limit your nutrition or increase your weight gain superfluously.
Here’s are healthy foods to try:
| Craving | Eat instead… |
| Meat | Zero or low fat meats, bologna – turkey and soy, hot dogs – beef. |
| Chips (potato) | Chips and popcorns with low or no fat. |
| Doughnuts (or pastry) | Bagel (whole grain) with fresh fruit jam |
| Cakes | Zero-fat banana bread |
| Cereals (dipped in sugar) | Whole-grain cereal or oatmeal, with brown sugar |
| Cola | Water and fruit juice. |
Are these Beverages Healthy and Safe During Pregnancy?
There are healthy and safe substitutes to carbonated drinks while you are heavy with child. We have listed some below:
- Milk: Consult your doctor on the recommended servings of dairy milk for you or go through beverage reviews.
- Water: Water is a healthy choice, but take care to not fill your stomach with water at the expense of the right nutrients.
- Juice: We recommend that you only drink this occasionally as there is too much sugar that may mess up your weight. Eat fruits and vegetables instead.
- Coffee: Keep it at a max of 2 cups a day.
- Tea: Watch the sugar you take with your non-herbal tea and keep tea consumption minimal.
- Soda: We recommend taking a regular size Sprite while pregnant to keep your sugar consumption to a minimum.
Final Thoughts
Despite your love for soda, you have to be mindful of your health and your baby’s. If you are still asking is Sprite safe during pregnancy, the answers are in this article. Read until you get a hold of what amount of Sprite is good for you and your baby.
