Barista causes a stir by trying to refuse a pregnant woman caffeine

The cheek.

The list of things that pregnant women aren't allowed to have seems to be ever-expanding, making the nine months of growing a human inside your even trickier than it should be. Worse again are people who seem to think they know what's best for pregnant women - as comedian Tiffany Stevenson found out at the weekend. She revealed that a barista in a Starbucks she was in in the UK tried to keep a customer from having a caffeinated macchiato because she was pregnant. Tiffany detailed the entire encounter in a Twitter thread, describing it as an "unbelievable bit of womb bothering". She eventually jumped in to defend the woman, who had told the barista that she had one coffee a day.

Unbelievable bit of womb bothering in Starbucks at services . A pregnant woman got her Caramel Macchiato and the guy behind the counter said

‘Oh , it’s for you . Do you want me to make a decaf?’ She said ‘No, thanks’ Him ‘No I should because caffeine is bad for the baby’ — Tiffany Stevenson (@tiffstevenson) May 18, 2019

Her ‘It’s fine I have one a day’

Him ‘But...you shouldn’t’ Me *almost spontaneously combusting* ‘Are you a man , telling a woman what she should and shouldn’t have during a pregnancy? Then he says ‘Oh just because it’s bad for the baby so that’s why I’m saying it’ — Tiffany Stevenson (@tiffstevenson) May 18, 2019

Me ‘Unbelievable. Stop it’

Then he continues to try and justify policing a complete stranger for 5 minutes. He was maybe 30 years old max. Are they also doing Ob/Gyn training at Starbucks these days? — Tiffany Stevenson (@tiffstevenson) May 18, 2019

The thread has caused consternation online and prompted a response from Starbucks. In a statement to Fox News, a spokesperson said the brand trusts its customers "to make the decisions that are right for them".

"We are investigating as a matter of priority. "As a matter of policy, we trust our customers to make the decisions that are right for them. "We’re concerned to hear about this experience, which isn’t reflective of the service we aim to provide our customers."

So how much caffeine is safe to have during pregnancy? There are different schools of thought but most agree that around 200mg, the equivalent to one small coffee, is fine. That's not really the point here, though. Have you ever experienced unsolicited advice from others while pregnant? Let us know on Facebook or Twitter.