listeriosis

[clairbear]

I am only about four weeks into my second pregnancy and I was re reading a few of my pregnancy books today when I came across the section about avoiding listeria inducing foods. I felt like such an idiot when I realized I had forgotten all about this from last time and had bought a pastry yesterday filled with vegies and ricotta cheese.......ate half of it yesterday and the other half today. Ricotta is on the list of unsafe foods. Immediately I am imagining all kinds of horrific things from miscarriage to birth defects...as the articles I looked at on the net talked about pregnant women being in the high risk group, and that symptoms may not show up straight away.
Sorry for sounding over dramatic, hopefully others who are/have been pregnant will understand my freaking out..............my husband thinks I am being silly!

[Elfin]

Clairbear, firstly congratulations. Secondly if you had ricotta baked into a pastry then any bug that might of been there probably was burnt alive in the baking process anyway so I wouldn't worry

[willsmum]

Don't panic! As easterlily said, it was cooked. Some women go thru their entire regnancies oblivious. One woman I know ate salami and brie nearly every day cos she never bothered to read anything she was given

[Briannabear]

I had the same concerns as you! My doctor told me not to worry about what I had eaten already, becuase you cant change that, just be aware of what you eat from now on!

Good health to you and your baby!!

[alicesmum]

hi clairbear
i forgot about certain things several times throughout my pregnancy and when i remembered too late, i totally freaked out.
one time i ate a preprepared greek salad from a sandwich shop coz i was so hungry and so in the mood for it, then 2 days later i hadn't felt any movement for, like an hour (!!!!!), so i sped to the hospital asking to be put on a foetal heart monitor....the old nurse attending me must have thought I was crazy!!! she told me: "we didn't know about this stuff in my day and we were alright".

anyway, i know how you feel, but you would have to be VERY VERY unlucky to have a problem, especially with what you ate. i also know a couple of women who disregarded this stuff throughout their pregnancies and ate brie and pate and they were fine. if it tasted nice & fresh it was probably alright. but avoiding those things in future will also mean avoiding the worry, that's what i figure!

[Milly]

Hi Claire!

Try not to worry! Because I did not find out I was pregnant until nearly 9 weeks (had a 'period like' bleed thrown in there to mask it ) I ate quiet a lot of the no go foods. One lot was even a week old opened pack of salami in my fridge! I panicked too when I got the list, but then I was told not to worry. Everything was looking fine.

Listeria is rare, but we just have to be on our guard and when we know what foods to avoid, then it makes it easier not to put ourselves at risk.

Don't panic. I am sure you will be fine.

The Listeria List made me so paranoid in my first pregnancy. I have tried to relax this time around, but it is hard. I am still a bit paranoid about what I eat.

[clairbear]

Thank you thank you so much to all the lovely girls who took the time to reassure me about my concerns! You are all wonderful! I feel a lot better and you are right, I will just be careful in future. Peace, love and mung beans to you all