“Food restrictions during pregnancy” is a very controversial topic. There are very few food products that have universal consent for complete restriction during pregnancy.
- can cause food poisoning,
- can increase toxic compounds in your blood
- can trigger untimely uterus contractions
- can negatively affect a sluggish digestive system of pregnant women
Most of the food items discussed in this series of articles can fall under, either “consume controlled portion” or “wash/cook-before-consumption” category.
Foods that can cause food Poisoning
In my opinion, it is all about understanding changes in your body during pregnancy and making mindful choices. Pregnant women have a compromised immune system, sluggish digestion, and a tiny human growing inside who depends on their mother for everything. Therefore, avoid all those foods that can cause food poisoning and put the mother and baby’s health at risk.
Unpasteurized dairy products
Dairy products such as milk, yoghurt, and cheese are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals. They are a good source of calcium, magnesium, vitamin D, vitamin A, vitamin B12 etc. All these nutrients are important for pregnant women. Particularly calcium, as it is under-consumed. The UK reference nutrient intake (RNI) for calcium for anyone aged over 19 years is 700mg per day. Calcium requirements are higher during childhood, adolescence, and during lactation.
However, raw or unpasteurized milk dairy products (such as milk, ice cream, yoghurt, cheese, etc.) may contain harmful bacteria such as Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria, Campylobacter, and others that can cause serious food poisoning. Food poisoning during pregnancy can cause several complications and pose a life-threatening risk for your baby.
Mould-ripened soft cheeses
Soft cheese, particularly the mould-ripened soft cheeses, such as Brie and Camembert, chèvre, Danish blue, Gorgonzola and Roquefort. They’re less acidic and contain more water, which means they can be an ideal environment for harmful bacteria, such as listeria, which can cause listeriosis. I am not a cheese expert, so my logic is any cheese that has soft white rind around it, or has a bit of fuzzy texture on the top, or has bluish/ greenish lines in them, is mould-ripened and should be avoided.
If thoroughly cooked, they can be consumed. Otherwise, there are many other options.
Raw sprouts
To grow sprouts, beans or seeds are kept in a warm humid environment for few days. Larger the seed, longer the duration. Which means sprouts provide an ideal breeding ground for harmful microbes such as Salmonella or E.coli. They can be hard to wash off, even if you make sprouts at home. If these sprouts are not washed and cooked well before consumption, they can cause food poisoning. Why take a chance?
Ready to eat, Pre-packed food
Those ready to eat chopped fruits boxes and salad meals on supermarket shelves may seem very healthy quick fix. I suggest, avoid them as they carry the risk of causing food poisoning.
The food industry is legally bound to maintain good hygiene and take every precaution to make sure that food available on the shelves is safe to eat. Having said that, at the risk of sounding paranoid, let me ask you this – how would you ensure that box of fruit salad you just picked from a shop was handled with extreme precaution from the farm to your fork? What if they used the fruits that were about to go bad? what if the machine or person chopping the fruits did not contaminate them accidentally! how do you know the person packing the fruits don’t have any infectious diseases (they might not be diagnosed at the initial stage)? how much time those chopped fresh fruits spent on the room temperature?
Ready-to-eat food usually goes through many stages and takes a long time before reaching your dining table. Moreover, you can’t be sure that companies were successful in controlling pathogens in every box. And on top of that, pregnant women have a compromised immune system. Do you really want to take a chance? or grabbing a banana or peeling an orange would be a better quick fix?
Unwashed fruits and vegetables
It’s common sense that you should thoroughly wash your fruits and vegetable before preparing food. Particularly if you are eating them raw – as in salads. Carefully remove all the bruised and blemished parts as well. Be careful with green leafy vegetables, finish them before the expiry date. If my spinach was expired a day or two ago, I would smell it and make sure there is no bad smell in the bag, then I wash it thoroughly and use it in stews, soups or bakes.
Food products that may have raw eggs
Many salad dressings and desserts contain raw eggs. e.g. cookie dough, salad dressings, mayonnaise, béarnaise sauce, hollandaise sauce, mousse, meringue, and tiramisu. In the UK, most of the food products available in the supermarket are pasteurized; however, it’s best to read labels before purchasing these food products. If it doesn’t say pasteurized, check another brand.
Eating out – pot lucks, picnic, cafe’s, restaurants
Homemade salad dressings, mousse, and mayonnaise made with raw egg carry the extra risk of spoilage. Because you don’t know how long food was sitting at room temperature before arriving on the pot luck lunch table. Also, pot lucks and picnics are popular during summer, and sandwiches prepared with cheese, egg, and mayonnaise are very popular picnic food items. They may be sitting in the car boot or under the warmth of the sun for quite a while before reaching your plate. I prefer warm baked items over the raw sandwiches. Just be careful when selecting food when you are out and about. The same rule applies when eating out in a cafe and restaurants. Feel free to enjoy your warm cuppa, or sizzlers, or soups and casseroles. but be careful when selecting salads or any other cold food items.
Carefully select meat fish and eggs
I am a vegetarian, so meat, fish and seafood are not part of my diet. However, I know some non-veg food items that should be avoided during pregnancy
- Fish that may contain mercury – usually large fishes such as swordfish, marline, shark. Tuna also may have some amount of mercury so avoid it or watch the quantity.
- Undercooked or cold cured meat – because of the potential risk of toxoplasmosis. An infection caused by a Toxoplasma gondii parasite in contaminated meat. Cold cured and fermented cold meats, such as salami, prosciutto, chorizo, and pepperoni, also carry the risk of toxoplasma.
- Raw Shellfish – shellfish such as mussels, lobsters, crab, prawns, scallops, clams, and oyster, if consumed raw can cause food poisoning.
- Liver and liver products – as they have a high amount of vitamin A, which is a fat-soluble vitamin. Fat-soluble vitamin if consumed in excess will collect in the body. This toxicity can harm the mother and developing baby
- Raw egg – to prevent the risk of salmonella food poisoning.
This is the first article in the “Food Restrictions During Pregnancy” series. I’ll be writing more on this topic in the upcoming articles.
Eat well & stay healthy!
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