What foods should you avoid during pregnancy?

Good news, you are pregnant!  And perhaps the nausea and vomiting are now behind you, and you’re   ready to enjoy food once again.  Bad news, you’re told you have to avoid this food & that food and the list just seems to go on and on.  But being confused about which foods are safe to eat takes the fun out of eating.  Right?  Hopefully this list can help clarify a few things.

Here are the foods you definitely need to be cautious of during pregnancy:

Raw foods

Products such as unpasteurized milk, cured meats, raw or under-cooked foods may contain bacteria that can make you sick and affect the baby when you’re pregnant.  Even worse, some can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth.

Avoid:

• hot dogs and deli meats unless cooked to steaming point.
• Smoked fish products, pate, and meat spreads.
• Raw – meats, fish and seafood, eggs and sprouts.

 Soft cheese

These cheese may contain listeria, which is a bacteria that can put both mom and baby at risk of serious illness and may lead to miscarriage or still birth.

Avoid unless cooked steaming hot:

• feta
• camembert
• brie
• blue-veined varieties

 Liver and Fish Liver oil

Avoid eating these foods during pregnancy. They may have high amounts of vitamin A, and too  much Vitamin A can cause birth defects in a developing baby.

Fish and Seafood

Fish and seafood are important foods to eat while you are pregnant because they provide the body with protein, iron, vitamin D and  healthy fats.  But not all fish are safe to eat during pregnancy, some have high amounts of mercury which can harm your baby’s brain and affect their development.

Avoid:

• large fish such as shark, sea bass, tuna steak, escolar and  swordfish.
• When buying canned tuna, choose light canned tuna instead of white canned.

 Artificial Sweeteners

These are used to replace sugar in many foods and some of the artificial sweeteners are not safe  to consume during pregnancy.  If you choose to use them, these three have shown to be safe in pregnancy: acesulfame potassium; aspartame and sucralose.

So here you have it.

As for the rest of the foods, spice them up as much as you like and enjoy!