Any food to avoid?

[del79]

I read that certain herbs are no good during pregnancy. Blue cheese and seafood.

Is fresh salad ok?
Is there anything that is a No No, besides drugs and alcohol, of course!

[NannyJulie]

The list could go on and on! It depends how podantic you are...

What I was taught at uni:
-No soft cheeses due to bacteria
-No raw meats/fish (bye bye sashimi and rare steak)
-Limit certain fish intake (tuna comes to mind, can't remember the rest) due to mercury levels
-No mushrooms, sprouts, etc unless they are cooked or very, very washed (due to certain baddies found in soil)
-Limit packaged salad mixes unless they are very well rinsed before eating
-Don't eat leftover cold from the fridge. Sizzle it in the microwave
-Drink filtered water (tap water is not the greatest in some areas)
-No cleaning the cat litter. If you have to then have big rubber gloves and wash well afterwards. Due to toxoplasmosis.
-No alcohol, drugs, smoking, second hand smoke, etc
-Limit caffiene
-Limit refined sugar intake

Thats just off the top of my head. They are all precautionary measures. I know plenty of women who have only done some of these things and still had a healthy baby. It's all up to you.
You can get tested beforehand for toxoplasmosis (but you only really need to to do this if you have a cat. Most people who own a cat have had it already)

There are some things that are known to cause birth defects that women SHOULD NOT do during pregnancy. To find out more about these do a google search on 'teratogens'

[Atkogirl85]

The list of donts could include every food if you take in every minute risk.
My doctor basically said that so long as you cook your food fresh and by it from a good supplier then your pretty much ok.
The main things to avoid is soft cheeses and processed meats like eg. Salami and pate. Fresh seafood should generally be ok but maybe avoid the riskier seafood like mussels just in case of food poisoning which could leave you dehydrated. :)

[babycart]

hi

There is quite a lengthy discussion of food in the following thread:

http://www.bubhub.com.au/community/forums/showthread.php?t=200444

Good luck with your TTC efforts/pregnancy

AC