Raspberry Leaf Tea ?

[enigma]

me again !

Was just wondering about some feedback on Raspberry leaf tea ? I was thinking of drinking it from 37weeks onwards , what does it actually do?? Just get the uterus more prepared , or bring on labour ?? ..AND.. when you do start drinking it how much are you meant to drink a day?
Thanks in advance , June- hurry up!

[Mumma2three]

Yes it's meant to tone the uterus. I had three cups of tea a day, or you can take the blackmores RLT tablets. I doubt it brings on labour, even though my bub was early, my other friend drank her tea religiously and was 2 weeks late..it's full of iron though, really good for you.
xoxo

[Angel]

I drank at least 3 cups a day starting from 32-33w I think. It won't brink labour on, it just tones the uterus. I think it's supposed to help make your contractions in labour more effective too??

[angelfish]

I used it with my second pregnancy. I had a way easier labour than first time around, but whether the raspberry leaf tea had anything to do with it is anyone's guess. I found it tasted horrible, but you can combine it with other herbal teas to improve the flavour (or drown it out with honey if you have a sweet tooth!)

[*Jessica*]

Hi enigma,

I swear by Raspberry Leaf Tea even though there is no evidence to say it helped with my labour! I drank 3 cups a day from about 34 weeks with 1 tsp of sugar and really enjoyed it.

Aidan was induced at 10 days overdue, 7.5hr labour and was 9pounds 9ounces and I had gas and pethidine as pain relief, when I was pretty sure that I was going to have an epidural.

Who knows if it did help, but I say there is no harm in trying!

[Deejoy17]

My SIL swears by RLT so I started taking it from 32 weeks with my first pregnancy and will be doing the same this time. My SIL recommends to sip it all day long when your approaching full term and she also says the tea is stronger then the tablets, she seems to think it helped her with all her labours (6)

[clare076]

I started drinking RLT from 30 weeks, 3 times a day. I also started taking the RLT tablets 2 tablets 3 times a day from 34 weeks. It definately does not bring on labour, I had Shelby at 39weeks 5days.
I found that my contractions were really strong from the very first one, I also only had a 6 hour labour (not bad for first bub)

Would recommend it to anyone.
Clare

[Lea13]

I took the tablets for a bit and then forgot to take them LOL... but my cervix is nice and soft now

[*Ang*]

Hi enigma

I have been taking the tablets for the past couple of weeks when I remember to instead of the tea! Helps to tone the uterus supposedly.

[jaspen]

Sorry to sidetrack your thread Enigma but I'm guessing that if you know you're having a c/sect then it's not worth taking the RLT???

[enigma]

Jaspen - Ive been reading up on the topic heaps , apparently it also helps reduce the bleeding after birth - so might also come in handy for c/section recovery ???

[Lea13]

The ones that I took I had to take 2 a day 3 times a day. They were only $6 or $7 for a bottle that would last about 2 weeks I think. It does help tone the uterus and reduce bleeding as well.

[Magic]

Hhhmmmm sounds good to me. I think I will try it starting 34 weeks.

[Deejoy17]

RLT is also great for buliding up your milk supply especially if your going to have a c/s as I`ve heard that your milk supply can be low following a c/s - I never had that problem after mine but as I said in my earlier post I was taking RLT from 32 weeks so they may have helped.

I`m taking RLT and EPO this time, I didn`t know about the EPO until too late with Matthew.

[Magic]

Deeanne - what does the EPO do?

[Deejoy17]

Sheree - THis comes from an article I found about EPO:

* Evening Primrose Oil capsules; 2-3 capsules high in the vagina, repeat 2-3x 24hr intervals

Evening Primrose Oil acts as a prostaglandin, which ripens or softens the cervix. It's also useful for softening scar tissue from abortions or IUD damage. This will soften/ripen the cervical tissues and increase the flexibility of the pelvic ligaments. This will help the baby to deeply engage in the pelvis. This early application of the baby's head will assist with dilation and should result in a relatively easy birth, even after multiple C-sections for "stalled" labor.

Evening Primrose Oil may be helpful for women with borderline pelvises as well. The utilization of Evening Primrose Oil seems to enhance the complex set of biochemical messages that initiate labor.

You can take evening primrose oil, orally, in the last four weeks of your pregnancy. You should take three evening primrose oil capsules daily for the first week (36th week of gestation) and then one to two capsules a day for the last three weeks of pregnancy.

I`m going to take them orally, I don`t like the thought of inserting them vaginally.

HTH

[Magic]

Thanks. Yeah I think I would take them orally too.

[clare076]

I also took EPO with the RLT. I don't know what helped the most, but like I said before I only had a 6 hour labour. I went from 2cm dilated to transition in 4 hours.

I took them orally, if you insert them into the vagina you are supposed to 'not' wee for around 4 hours to give them time to dissolve and work properly. We all know that there are not many heavily preggo women that can go that long without visiting the loo!!!

I really don't know if either worked but I would definately try them again next time.