Although this herb has very long history as a traditional medicinal plant, it wasn’t until the 1940’s that it was recognised by conventional medical practitioners. In the 21st century, many pregnant women take some form of raspberry leaf during their pregnancy or after the birth of their baby.
Although clinical evidence currently scarce, a retrospective trial has shown that raspberry leaf tea has been shown to shorten labour time; with no side effects identified for the women or their babies. Moreover, women who drank raspberry leaf tea in the second and third trimesters were also less likely to undergo a cesarean section, forceps or vacuum birth. As raspberry leaf tea is also considered a ‘nutritive’, meaning it contains a high level of vitamins and minerals, consuming the tea after the baby is born will help enhance the nutritional value of mother’s milk.
It is listed as a category A with the TGA (Therapeutic Goods Administration) for use during pregnancy, which means that it has been taken by a large number of pregnant women and women of childbearing age without any proven increase in the frequency of malformations or other direct or indirect harmful effects on the fetus having been observed. Recent studies on Raspberry leaf found that there were no reported side effects (Parsons 2000), but anecdotal reports say that Raspberry leaf may cause nausea, increased Braxton Hicks contractions and diarrhoea in some women. All said and done, midwives and herbalists have been safely prescribing Raspberry leaf tea for centuries, and it is always best to take in the third trimester.
Always let your health professional/s know that you are planning to consume Raspberry leaf, and discuss dosages with a qualified naturopath or herbalist as this will vary depending on your medical history, stage of pregnancy and form of herb. Happy sipping!
References
Burn JH & Withell ER 1941, ‘A principle in raspberry leaves which relaxes uterine muscle’. The Lancet, July 5, pp. 1-3.
Parsons M 1999, ‘Raspberry leaf. Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond Newsletter’ 1(2) pp. 1-2. http://www.pregnancy.com.au/resources/topics-of-interest/pregnancy/raspberry-leaf.shtml