10 No-No Foods for Pregnant Women

There is the so-called “black list” of products that pregnant women should forget about since they can cause food poisoning or bring harm to the unborn baby. Let us have a closer look at these products, as well as those that should be taken in limited quantities or should be subjected to special processing.

Cheese

Do not eat:

• soft cheese with mold, such as brie, camembert and other kinds of cheese with a similar composition and type of skin, such as goat cheese;
• cheese with mold-like pale blue streaks, such as Danish blue, Gorgonzola and Roquefort.
• Cheese with mold may contain Listeria, the bacteria that cause listeriosis. Even a mild form of this infection in pregnant women can cause miscarriage, birth to a stillborn child and severe diseases of the newborn.

Eggs

Do not eat raw or undercooked eggs, avoid foods that contain them, such as homemade mayonnaise.
Before use, make sure that the eggs are thoroughly cooked, that yolks and whites are hard. This prevents the risk of salmonella.

Milk

Do not drink raw (not pasteurized) milk, including not pasteurized goat or sheep milk. Do not eat any food that contains it, such as goat cheese. The milk should undergo thorough heat treatment or pasteurization.

Pasty

Avoid all types of pasty, including vegetable pasty, as they may contain listeria, which were mentioned above.

Meat

Do not eat raw or undercooked meat. Boil the meat and poultry thoroughly to have no traces of blood and no “pink colored meat”. Be especially careful with sausage and ground meat.

In some countries, pregnant women are not advised to eat smoked meat or fish, because there is also a risk that the food may contain listeria bacteria. However, pregnant women in the UK are not given such advice, because they believe that the risk is very, very low.

Liver

Do not eat liver or products containing liver, such as liver pasty or liverwurst, as they may contain large amounts of vitamin A. Too much vitamin A can harm your baby.

Foods Containing Vitamin A

Do not take:

• high-dose multivitamin supplements;
• fish oil;
• any supplements containing vitamin A.

Fish

Eating some species of fish should be limited. These include tuna and other fatty fish species. In addition, you can not eat raw shellfish, as it can cause food poisoning. It is best to also give up going to sushi bars.

Alcohol

You should not drink alcohol, if you are pregnant or trying to conceive. Alcohol can seriously and irreversibly affect the development of your child.

Caffeine

You should limit caffeine consumption during pregnancy – no more than 200 milligrams of caffeine a day. High levels of caffeine can lead to the birth of an infant with low birth weight. Too much caffeine can also cause a miscarriage. Be careful: except coffee and tea, caffeine is naturally found in some foods and is added to some non-alcoholic beverages.

But do not get disappointed, if your favorite foods are included in the “black list”. You have a unique opportunity to discover other dishes, while eating the favorites is impossible. So, you are sure to broaden the list of your most desirable foods and dishes after pregnancy.