Pregnancy nutrition: Foods to avoid during pregnancy
More foods can affect your health or your baby's than you might realize. Find out what foods to avoid during pregnancy.
By Mayo Clinic StaffYou want what's best for your baby. That's why you add sliced fruit to your fortified breakfast cereal, top your salads with chickpeas and snack on almonds. But do you know what foods to avoid during pregnancy? Here's help understanding pregnancy nutrition basics.
Avoid seafood high in mercury
Seafood can be a great source of protein, and the omega-3 fatty acids in many fish can promote your baby's brain and eye development. However, some fish and shellfish contain potentially dangerous levels of mercury. Too much mercury could harm your baby's developing nervous system.
The bigger and older the fish is, the more mercury it's likely to contain. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) encourages pregnant women to avoid:
- Swordfish
- Shark
- King mackerel
- Tilefish
So what's safe? Some types of seafood contain little mercury. The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend 8 to 12 ounces — two or three servings — of seafood a week for pregnant women. Consider:
- Shrimp
- Salmon
- Pollock
- Catfish
- Anchovies
- Trout
- Cod
- Tilapia
- Light canned tuna
However, limit white (albacore) tuna to 6 ounces (170 grams) a week.
Avoid raw, undercooked or contaminated seafood
To avoid harmful bacteria or viruses in seafood:
- Avoid raw fish and shellfish. Examples include sushi, sashimi, and raw oysters, scallops or clams.
- Avoid refrigerated, uncooked seafood. Examples include seafood labeled nova style, lox, kippered, smoked or jerky. It's OK to eat smoked seafood if it's an ingredient in a casserole or other cooked dish. Canned and shelf-stable versions also are safe.
- Understand local fish advisories. If you eat fish from local waters, pay attention to local fish advisories — especially if water pollution is a concern. If you are uncertain about the safety of fish you have already eaten, don't eat any other fish that week.
- Cook seafood properly. Cook fish to an internal temperature of 145 F (63 C). Fish is done when it separates into flakes and appears opaque throughout. Cook shrimp, lobster and scallops until they're milky white. Cook clams, mussels and oysters until their shells open. Discard any that don't open.
Avoid undercooked meat, poultry and eggs
During pregnancy, you're at increased risk of bacterial food poisoning. Your reaction might be more severe than if you weren't pregnant. Rarely, food poisoning affects the baby, too.
To prevent foodborne illness:
- Fully cook all meats and poultry before eating. Use a meat thermometer to make sure.
- Cook hot dogs and luncheon meats until they're steaming hot — or avoid them completely. They can be sources of a rare but potentially serious foodborne illness known as listeriosis.
- Avoid refrigerated pates and meat spreads. Canned and shelf-stable versions, however, are OK.
- Cook eggs until the egg yolks and whites are firm. Raw eggs can be contaminated with harmful bacteria. Avoid foods made with raw or partially cooked eggs, such as eggnog, raw batter, and freshly made or homemade hollandaise sauce and Caesar salad dressing.
Avoid unpasteurized foods
Many low-fat dairy products — such as skim milk, mozzarella cheese and cottage cheese — can be a healthy part of your diet. Anything containing unpasteurized milk, however, is a no-no. These products could lead to foodborne illness. Avoid soft cheeses, such as Brie, feta and blue cheese, unless they are clearly labeled as being pasteurized or made with pasteurized milk. Also, avoid drinking unpasteurized juice.
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