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During pregnancy, you can eat the same things that you normally
eat when you were not pregnant. But especially in the first few
months of your pregnancy, your baby can be hurt by poisons (toxins)
or germs (bacteria). For this reason, you need to be aware of
these food dangers and learn how to choose and prepare your food
safely.
What Foods Might Be Harmful to My Baby During Pregnancy?
The foods of most concern are fish, meat, milk, and cheese. Because
these are important parts of most diets, you will want to learn
to choose the right fish, meat, milk, or cheese.
What's the Problem With Fish?
Many fish - especially fish that are large, eat other fish, and
live a long time - have mercury in them. Mercury can cause problems
with the development of your baby's brain and nerves. Fish may
also have dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). These
toxins may cause problems with the development of your baby's
brain and may cause cancer.
So Should I Just Stop Eating Fish?
No. Fish is a wonderful food. It has lots of good protein and
other nutrients. You can continue to eat fish, but you may wish
to cut down on the amount of fish you eat and change the kind
of fish you eat. Information about which fish are good to eat
during pregnancy is listed on the back of this page.
What Meat is Dangerous?
In the United States most of our meat is safe to eat. However,
meat that has not been kept cold or that has not been prepared
properly may have germs or parasites that could harm you or your
baby. Raw meat may contain toxoplasmosis. Toxoplasmosis is a germ
that can damage your growing baby's eyes, brain, and hearing.
The backside has more information.
What Do I Need to Know About Milk And Cheese?
Some cheese may contain germs (bacteria) called listeria. These
germs can cause a disease called listeriosis, which may cause
miscarriage, stillbirth, or serious health problems for your baby.
To avoid listeriosis, you may want to avoid soft cheeses like
Mexican-style queso blanco fresco, feta, or Brie. The flip side
will tell you which cheeses you can continue to enjoy and which
types to avoid.
How Do I Prepare Food Safely?
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Wash your hands and cooking surfaces often.
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Keep raw meat away from raw fruit and vegetables and
cooked meat.
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Cook your food until it is steaming hot. Keep uneaten
food cold or frozen.
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Eating Safely During Pregnancy: Fish, Meat, Milk, and Cheese
| Food |
Recommendations |
| Fresh Fish |
| |
Shark, swordfish, king mackerel, tilefish |
|
Do not eat |
|
|
Eat no more than 1 meal a month |
| |
Albacore tuna ("white" tuna) |
|
Eat no more than 1 meal a week |
| |
Shrimp, canned light tuna, canned
or wild salmon, pollock, and catfish |
|
Eat no more than 2 meals a week |
| Deli Meats and Smoked Fish |
|
|
Do not eat |
| |
Hot dogs, lunch meat, deli meat, deli
smoked fish |
|
Do not eat unless you reheat to steaming
hot |
| |
Canned smoked fish or meat spread |
|
Eat no more than 2 meals a week |
| Meat - Beef, Chicken, Pork |
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Any meat that is rotten or raw |
|
Do not eat |
| Milk and Cheese |
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Unpasteurized milk, feta cheese, brie
cheese, camembert cheese, blue-veined cheeses, Mexican-style
queso blanco fresco |
|
Do not eat or drink |
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Hard cheeses, semi-soft cheeses like
mozzarella, processed cheese slices, cream cheese, cottage
cheese, yogurt made with pasteurized milk |
|
Eat all you want |
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Skim or 1% pasteurized milk |
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Drink all you want |
Note: Check local advisories about the safety of fish caught
by family and friends in your local waters. If you can't get advice
on this, eat no more than 1 meal a week from fish caught in local
waters and don't eat any other fish that week.
Cook fish by broiling, baking, steaming, or grilling. Remove
skin and fat before cooking. Do not eat the fat that drains from
the fish while cooking.
Cook all meats all the way through. When you eat meat, you should
not see any pink inside the flesh. After cutting up raw meat,
clean the cutting surface with bleach, soap, and hot water before
cutting any raw fruit or vegetables.
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