Food to Avoid During Pregnancy – Multiples and More

It’s essential to eat a healthy, balanced diet during pregnancy to ensure your unborn baby receives the critical nutrients for growth. However, certain foods can make you feel ill, cause food poisoning or harm your baby if eaten during pregnancy – and while it can be confusing to know what foods are safe and what is harmful, it’s worth taking the time to get to know the foods to avoid and to be careful.

These are some of the main foods to avoid during pregnancy, but if you ever have any doubt, it’s best to be cautious and not eat the item and then check with your obstetrician at a later date.

1. Cheese

Soft cheeses made with mold should be avoided as they can contain listeria bacteria that can cause listeriosis, which can have severe consequences. Avoid mold-ripened cheeses like brie and camembert as well as blue-veined soft cheeses like Roquefort, gorgonzola, and Danish blue.

Even a mild form of listeriosis can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, or a severe injury in a newborn baby, so it’s always best not to risk being infected with listeria bacteria even though it’s rare.

As hard cheeses have less water, bacteria microorganisms are less likely to grow in it, which is why the likes of cheddar and stilton are safe to eat. You can also eat cheeses like mozzarella, ricotta, cottage cheese, and halloumi since they are made with pasteurized milk.

2. Milk

Avoid unpasteurized milk, including goats’ and sheep’s milk as well as cheese made from this milk such as soft goats’ cheese.

3. Eggs: Undercooked or Raw

Eggs are a great source of protein but must be cooked thoroughly with no runny white or yolk allowed. Raw or partially boiled eggs can cause salmonella poisoning, so you should also avoid products made using these, such as homemade mayonnaise.

4. Meat: Undercooked or Raw

Meat must be cooked thoroughly with no blood or pink meat visible before it’s safe to eat. Take extra care with products like sausages and minced meat. Don’t eat rare meat as there is a risk of toxoplasmosis, an infection caused by a parasite that can be found in meat, unwashed fruits, unwashed vegetables, cat feces, and untreated water.

While it’s rare, toxoplasmosis can damage your baby. You can always prevent the spread of harmful bacteria that can cause infection by washing your hands thoroughly and any utensils that have come into contact with the raw meat.

5. Raw or Undercooked Fish

Avoid raw shellfish as well as shark, marlin, and swordfish. And limit your intake of oily fish like tuna, salmon, and mackerel to two portions a week.

6. Pâté

Avoid all types of pâté, including vegetarian, as it can contain listeria bacteria.

7. Sushi

Sushi is ok to eat, provided that the fish has been frozen first. Freezing the fish means that any worms that may have been within it are killed, making the raw fish safe to consume.