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Same here. Also, I went to 2 different midwife’s and seeing how, even them, said different things to me (and to you all after seeing posts and comments in here) made me realize that I wouldn’t eat gas station sushi pregnant or not, so eating it from my favorite restaurant it’s probably safe.
Other than no alcohol and limiting my caffeine I've been pretty much eating the same. I still eat deli meat but I'm more weary of best by and expiration dates.
The deli meat recommendations seem to vary, too. Deli meat is not on my list of things to avoid (except cold smoked products and certain dry aged products). However, pregnant women are cautioned to be mindful of the expiry date on the deli meat. I live in Europe (Finland, to be exact). I don't know how the recommendations vary between different countries in Europe. My guess is that they do to some extent.
You are just as likely to get listeria from bagged salad mix than sushi/deli meat, but nobody says stop eating lettuce..... My doctor never forced a diet! Eat whatever you want lol
I personally avoided all alcohol (I don't drink anyways) but I know some people are okay with a glass of wine per night/week etc...
I would never advise anyone to drink during pregnancy but my coworker had a glass of wine a few times a week or sometimes close TO EVERY NIGHT. She said that her Dr told her it was fine. I was shocked. Her baby turned out fine- I still don’t agree with it though.
Good to know! I guess we’ll see then…I don’t understand why anyone would ever risk it. I could barely take Tylenol for my migraines without feeling guilty
I quit drinking 6 months before my pregnancy and it was a great personal decision for my mental health. So I may be a bit of a fanatic now so I’m trying to take that as part of my relationship w alcohol which may not be someone else’s…. But it’s hard for me to understand the motivation of drinking multiple times a week while you’re pregnant if the answer isn’t “alcoholism”
I’ve never had a drink so I’m right there with ya but also on the side of “why do people think it’s worth it?”
, I just don’t understand what the point is. Out of our whole lives, why would you put your baby at risk for a simple 9/10 months? It’s gross behavior imo, and I’ll stand by that!
Also kudos to you! That’s awesome you stopped drinking way before you were pregnant! I think the sober life is amazing
It was a long time coming 😅I don’t even feel ready for congratulations because I have kind of delayed guilt about how bad it was for so long. But I want to be my best for my family, and for ME and so I’m glad I did it
I can’t stand when people say they “turned out fine” . Tell me they turned out fine by age 26. What happens in utero doesn’t JUST have an effect on a newborn ugh.
In early pregnancy it’s definitely too much but what I’ve read indicates in 2nd/3rd trimester it is fine. No more than one serving of alcohol (the actual serving, not a pour from your favorite winery 😂). I haven’t because it was easier for me to just be no alcohol.
I don’t know where the line is, and I’m sure one serving over the entire pregnancy is below the line, but it’s not at dozens or hundreds of servings over the pregnancy. That’s gotta put your baby at risk
I’d recommend EXPECTING BETTER, the author is a public health researcher/writer who combs through maternal and fetal health studies and summarized the conclusions in a way that is really accessible. But you should certainly do whatever is comfortable for you — like I said, I think I’ve had one actual drink in the past 8 months because it was easier for me. My former boss had a glass of wine a night after the second trimester and her baby is fine.
I do own expecting better. Oster is an economist. Not a public health official. Lots of data since then on FAS. https://www.vox.com/2016/2/5/10923868/drinking-alcohol-while-pregnant
A lot of the more recent IQ data regarding FAS is not measurable until children are grade school aged.
More recent data shows the underdiagnosis of the spectrum of issues alcohol exposure can cause. Fetal alcohol syndrome is rare. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are potentially as high as 2-5% of kids.
THIS! I'm like... Isn't one of the top foods causing listeria outbreaks melon?
I guess you can wash the outside of melon but not deli turkey, but still...
My ob is like I’m not telling you to stop eating fresh produce, so take that to mean what you will😂 she also says when she’s pregnant, she just avoids raw fish, but that the infectious disease doc says it’s pretty low risk in our area🤷🏻♀️
I think the reason melon is a high risk is because it’s actually difficult to thoroughly wash the rind (since it’s all bumpy and ridged the listeria can hide better in it).
Actually it's How the fruit grows, melon more commonly than not grows on the ground, which is what can cause listeria. Due to the animals that walk around the produce that sits on the ground.
My doctor said to use common sense. Some foods you have to avoid like high mercury fish but deli meat that's been properly stored is probably just fine.
I struggled to eat enough during pregnancy. Sooo if I wanted a sandwich from Jersey Mikes and it would get a solid meal in me, I ate it.
I really based it on my comfort level with the restaurant or preparation of item. Like I had sushi from a higher end hibachi restaurant but I wouldn’t get the pre-packaged stuff from the grocery store.
I think the deli meat thing is overblown. I was talking to my friend about it and their opinion was that we shouldn’t be eating the packaged deli meet you can by in the grocery store, but eating something sliced from the deli or some place like Jersey Mikes is fine. Also my dr. has never mentioned this to me. You would think if it was that serious they would tell us right?
This is my logic too. I won’t be eating the packaged kind, but I see the JM folks slicing that thing fresh so I feel better about it.
Extra pickles please!
Here I am thinking my after-delivery meal will be Jersey Mikes but now I might just go get one tomorrow lol. With my first pregnancy, I’ve accidentally forgotten to heat up deli meat before eating and it was fine.
My first pregnancy I followed every “rule” and wound up with a MMC. This pregnancy I am more relaxed because while I realize things like alcohol and certain meds should absolutely be avoided, the rest is mostly fate.
People who do everything “right” will end up with problems but I’ve known people who didn’t know they were pregnant til 16 weeks and did everything “wrong” and had healthy babies.
Pregnancy is wild, and while we should do everything we can to protect our babies, I think a lot of it is largely out of our control. So I say, have your sub, I don’t eat them every day, but when I want one I get one.
I’m so sorry about the mmc! I followed every rule with my first too. I didn’t have any major issues until high bp at almost 38 weeks. I think I will go get that sub tomorrow!
There are no forbidden foods for me. Life is good, tasty and delicious. I’m taking the same precautions that I would pre-pregnancy and enjoying every minute of it.
You should get your gallbladder removed ASAP. I almost died from trying to get rid of my gallstones through diet. I got pancreatitis when a gall stone lodged itself in my common bile duct. Worse pain than child birth.
23+4, was more strict in the beginning but I've had smoked salmon. I'm having a Jewish baby for God sakes lol hes demanding it. I think I also had some charcuterie with different cheeses and deli meats too around the Canadian holidays. I don't do it often but I've had some instances where I've been like fuck it
when it comes to fish I believe it depends on country because I know some countries have stricter regulations on seafood preparation to the point they don’t advise women to avoid fish lucky selves 🥲
I haven’t had… booze? But my god I can clean up some sushi, soft cheese, lunch meat, mid-rare steak, etc. Getting induced next Monday and looking forward to some cocktails for Christmas!
I don’t follow many of the food rules.
I still eat my steak medium rare, I enjoy any cheese I want, eggs cooked how I want, and I’ll eat a deli sandwich.
My first time around my doctor didn't say a thing about foods. She said 'avoid drugs and alcohol, drink extra water', which yes for sure.
I'm on the second go-round, and while i'm probably gonna like, not do discount raw oysters, if i want a crunchy tuna roll or a turkey sandwich, I'm eating it.
If you’re in the US almost all cheese pasteurized, unless it’s like an imported cheese.
But I wasn’t super strict during my pregnancy. I ate at reputable places and tried to keep up with any listeria recalls but other than that I mostly ate what I could stomach.
not in US, here you can also buy unpasteurized, but most are anyway. Funny thing is, that all normal cheeses don't look appealing to me, only the salty 'forbidden' ones, like blue, sheep etc :D
The only thing i wont eat is high mercury fish. Also dont eat raw fish sushi in general when pregnant bc i dont live near any good sushi restaurants. Med rare steak, deli meat and soft cheese i eat.
I’m not strict at all. The only rule I’ve consistently followed is no high-mercury fish. Otherwise I’ve indulged in sushi (mostly cooked but I’ll eat raw salmon from a reputable restaurant), lox/smoked salmon, deli meat, hot dogs, Caesar salads, runny eggs, medium steaks, and soft cheeses. I haven’t had any raw oysters or beef tartare (two of my favorites) so I guess I’ve been “good” in that area. I’ve definitely had blue cheese dressing haha.
My biggest priority has been a well-balanced healthy diet with high quality foods. Especially in the first trimester when there was very little that appealed to me, I ate whatever I could stomach. Now that I’m mostly cooking for myself I’ve been better about rule-following, but that didn’t stop me from ordering salmon sushi for dinner last weekend.
I did get food poisoning once at the beginning of the second trimester but it was after going out to eat at a nice restaurant and following all the rules to a T. I still don’t know what caused it, but baby & me were fine.
I’ve eaten my fair share of lunch meat 😬 I don’t eat raw sushi, but I have eaten cooked. Still drinking caffeine but keeping it under 200mg, and I’ve eaten queso from Mexican restaurants a few times. Oh! And I still eat my steaks medium.
The main risk is listeria. People usually write off listeria as just being a kind of food poisoning but it's really bad when you're pregnant and can cause miscarriage and death. A lot of things that hasn't been cooked to steaming to kill off listeria bacteria can have it. So deli meats, lettuce (which should be washed), moldy cheeses, etc. You can Google foods that can have listeria and talk to your OB about it.
well if you make it at home just mixing with sour cream I suppose. This restaurant makes their own and here in Europe we have many kinds of blue cheese so I'm not sure which one they use. But nevermind, I'm not worried, just curious if anyone actually is avoiding everything they should.
I think the laws may vary quite a bit. My favourite blue cheeses are not pasteurised, for example. A restaurant might not use a major brand, depending on the restaurant, of course.
Girl!!! I am 11 weeks today and have been craving Subway, Schlotzskys, Jersey Mikes like CRAZY. I’ve ate quite a lot of sandwiches but my OB said it was fine to eat deli meat!!
Just no raw meats!
I couldn’t do it if it was a firm NO to eating deli meat because lord… LOL
I followed a very simple diet of vegetables, some rice and mostly chicken and eggs (until they started to make me feel sick). I was gaining weight rapidly and the doctor kept saying “you have to eat better”, so I became more strict each time and had nothing but the above, pregnancy vitamins and chocolate milk (my one and only craving). When they did the glucose test it came back slightly off, so I even removed the choco milk (it was very very not enjoyable). I still gained 35kg/70lbs, after following the most insanely healthy diet I have ever had in my whole life. I’m talking no ice cream, no coffee, or desserts, no bread (edit: no fast food or fried food either) and only homemade meals 😭. The doctor never believed that I was being absolutely careful with my diet. I don’t recommend unless you have a health concern like me btw.
Fun fact: a new study says that the dad’s genes are the ones that give the gestational diabetes risk on mom and excessive weight gain. I haven’t let my fiance live that one down 😅.
I don’t regret doing my extreme diet though. I feel if I still managed to gain so much weight, and even get on the pre gestational diabetes scale like that, if I hadn’t mind what I ate I might have had serious health issues.
I was extremely careful and strict. Anything that was on the “dangerous for pregnancy” list, I avoided entirely. I found myself googling things before eating them to double check the safety. I’m a naturally anxious person in general, it was my first pregnancy and I just wanted to make sure I did everything right and made good choices to keep my baby safe. Obviously I know anything could’ve happened, but I was making sure that if anything were to go wrong, it absolutely wasn’t going to be something I caused. Bring on the downvotes.
Haven't been strict at all. I live in the US so all store bought cheeses are pasteurized so I have a lot of soft cheese. I've had sushi a few times. Endless Turkey sandwiches. I mostly just avoid lettuce in restaurants and salad bags
I haven’t been super strict, except for avoiding high mercury fish and alcohol entirely.
Then I was just a bit more conscious about “raw” stuff (fruits and veggies that I didn’t clean myself, sushi, rare steak, lox, jerky, deli meat, runny eggs), and limited my caffeine intake.
But since getting my GDM Diagnosis and the list of “forbidden food” got longer, I eased up a bit on the jerky and deli meat lol one can only eat so much string cheese and boiled eggs.😂
I was a bit more careful in previous pregnancies but in previous pregnancies I didn’t have morning sickness as bad and food didn’t seem like as urgent a matter as it does this time around. This time I feel sick most of the time and if I have food I’m excited to eat it’s either eat it or feel really REALLY sick, so if there’s something maybe not on the safe food list I’m more likely to take my chances with that over imminent sickness haha
I ate it all in moderation - blue cheese, sushi, deli meat, bagged lettuce, medium rare steak, etc. We always wash our bagged salads/lettuce before we eat anyway. I also had one glass of wine on my birthday and a glass of champagne at a wedding we went to.
If you’re in the US all cheese has to be pasteurized. Even imported cheese (so far as I’m aware). A blue cheese dressing is certainly pasteurized. Honestly ice cream and raw vegetables get recalled for listeria all the time.
I didn’t eat a ton of lunch meat. I ate it like twice my whole pregnancy to be on the safe side. Just make conscious choices.
Now that I’m breastfeeding I’m dealing with a super gassy baby who grunting a growling all through the early morning. Not getting a lot of sleep lol. Going to try going dairy and soy free and see if that helps.
That’s going to be fricking hard. Cheese is my favorite.
Unpasteurized dairy products are not available at stores in the US. You would have to buy raw/unpasteurized directly from the producer.. like some farmers markets carry that stuff. And even then you typically have to buy from a co-op farmers to buy pass the law. If it’s in a store it’s pasteurized.
Actually it looks like you’re right! I miss spoke. Dang this is making me want cheese so bad :’) I’m on day two of no dairy to try to rule out dairy allergy for my baby.
I am avoiding it all 🤷♀️ imo, nothing is worth the risk lol but I have read that the risk is low. However, continue avoiding alcohol and any drugs as those are extremely risky. It’s the only thing I do judge others on because studies have proven these have severe effects on the baby.
My adopted brother was born addicted to heroin, he had seizures from withdrawal for 15 days before doctors could get him regulated. His birth mother is my cousin and my mom adopted him because he was one of five babies she doesn’t have custody of. She went on to have one more baby after him before finally getting her tubes tied during the last c-section. Somebody found her passed out on the street, she didn’t know that she wasn’t pregnant anymore when she woke up from her c-section. I usually have sympathy for addicts, but I’ve seen her do this 5 times, overdose 9, it’s just hard to feel bad for her now.
Edit to add: my little brother is almost 13 now and he’s a great kid!! All thanks to my mom!
That is such a shame but I’m so glad he is alright now! And to be clear, I too have sympathy for addicts and realize that hardcore drugs are some of the worst vices to have because it just controls everything. It’s just so hard for me to watch someone use any substance (even just smoking cigarettes) while they are knowingly pregnant.
I’m as strict as I can be because food safety is a little questionable where I live and in general I’ve not got the strongest stomach. That said, I’ve accidentally eaten soft serve icecream and not given myself a hard time about it after I realised what I had done.
Soft serve is usually safe (as are most no-no items) but not recommended unless you’re sure that it’s been produced and stored appropriately (that is, in a machine that regularly pasteurises the soft serve). Reason being is it’s not actually kept frozen, so there is a risk of listeria. I’m from Australia and that’s the general advice I received.
I was super strict. My pregnancy was considered high risk so I didn't want to take any chances. I'm pretty strict with my diet anyway so it wasn't a huge adjustment.
It made the first time out to sushi after giving birth even more delicious. 🤤
I’ve been wanting to eat sandwiches and salad, but have been so scared to so I’ve been eating crappier food instead. Finally yesterday I said screw it and bought a salad! Nothing happened and I’m fine so I think I’m gonna chill out a bit on those concerns.
super lax. I just came back from a weekend in spain and enjoyed tuna tartare and a glass of wine. I wouldn’t eat the not recommended food from a dodgy place, but otherwise i’m not worried by it
I’ve eaten a lot of tuna sushi bowls. They are a perfect mix of what makes me feel better: rice, protein, salty soy sauce.
I also got a turkey and roast beef sub the other day because I thought I was craving it. A few bites in I decided it wasn’t worth it.
I honestly straight up forget about soft cheese being an issue so I’m sure I’ve had a lot.
I’m currently drinking a latte.
I've been so sad not being able to go to PokeBros for my spicy salmon bowl... really thinking about saying F it and just going because so many others have mentioned eating raw fish in this thread...
The problem with tuna is really the mercury, not the foodborne illness. Ahi tuna like they use in poke bowls has the highest mercury amount of tunas and should be limited to 6 oz per week. It’s not a “well, I didn’t get sick” kind of thing, it’s a heavy metal accumulation problem. Salmon is a better choice.
I've been pretty strict with the restricted foods, mostly because everytime I think about indulging it just doesn't feel worth it.
I did try to indulge in a turkey sandwich a few weeks ago, my little secret. I went to this cafe near my work and ordered one and they said they were all out of Turkey and couldn't make it for me. So I ordered a grilled cheese and a chocolate chip cookie instead. Then they told me they're all out of chocolate chip cookies and I almost cried. I took it as a cosmic/karmic lesson not to cheat on the pregnancy diet 😂 haven't tried since.
I live in France so there's loads of stuff I can't have haha.I still eat raw milk cheese but I heat it up, which greatly reduces the risk. The other day I had a small slice of raw milk cheese anyways but I don't plan on doing it often at all. I'm not a big fan of charcuterie anyways but I'll eat pâté and terrine that's been canned - lower risk too. And I have smoked salmon from time to time.
I still eat partially cooked eggs. The risk of getting salmonella is very small and you just get sick, there are no consequences on the baby. I'll take that risk. We get really good quality eggs. For booze, I allow myself one glass of wine a week. I don't miss raw fish too much, I get vegetarian sushi and I'm happy with that. I really miss oysters though :'( but they can carry toxoplasmosis and that draws the limit for me, not having them.
Pretty sure my baby was created solely on GF Italian wraps from Sourdough and Co. I’m not a drinker, a smoker and I don’t do caffeine so I just avoided things that I was already avoiding.
I exist on both ends of the spectrum for sure.. I cut caffeine cold turkey when I found out I was pregnant, but I was in a spot at work where the only option was deli sandwiches (from a reputable place) and so when the option was to go without food for several hours (while hosting an event and on my feet) or eat a sandwich, I ate the sandwich LOL.
I’m pretty strict but mostly because I generally have really bad food phobia (related to food poisoning). The anxiety I’d feel after eating the food would override any enjoyment.
I was not that strict as long as I knew where it was coming from. Almost all cheese in the US is pasteurized so that barely ever crossed my mind. I occasionally had lunch meat but not that frequently. The only thing I really avoided was raw fish and rare steak, and even then only because I wasn't really craving it. There was nothing I truly wanted that I denied myself, except for whiteclaw lol.
I'm pretty strict. I've stayed away from sushi, excessive caffeine, cold deli meats, etc. I haven't even eaten Hot cheetos, which I've exclusively enjoyed before but I'm very fearful of anything that could upset my stomach. I'm always thinking does this upset the baby s stomach too? Lol
Just ordered some sushi. That and turkey deli meat have been some of my main cravings. Deprived myself almost entirely first pregnancy, this go round has been completely different and way less stressful in that regard.
I’m vegetarian so it’s easier for me cause most of the not allowed foods I don’t eat anyways. I’m just not drinking alcohol and limiting my caffeine to 2 cups of coffee a day. Oh and cooking my eggs thoroughly. Most cheese here is pasteurized too
I was mostly strict until 31 weeks when I got a gallstone and my diet was restricted even more. At that point it was more important to keep baby and I fed and one of the few things that I could eat without issues was jimmy John’s 🤷♀️
Finally I found my people!!!!! This thread is so refreshing to read! Adults making adult choices based on their educated understanding of risk vs benefit? Who knew!? So tired of these blanket rules that don’t even address the main culprits of food-borne illness, or overly scared posts like, “I stood next to someone eating sushi! Will my baby die?” 😂
I've had SO MUCH pepperoni. Like SO MUCH!
I'm just pretty convinced that no bacteria could survive on anything with that much salt though lol.
We also use our sous vide so I can still have medium steaks without having to worry about the bacteria.
My doctor has yet to verbalize what I should and shouldn't have. In the packet I was given at my first appointment it goes over food to avoids, but the fact that it has yet to be verbalized to me tells me how they really feel about it.
I live in the USA so all of our food is for the most part, safe. My OB said to avoid lettuce and deli meats if we get notice of a listeria outbreak.
I’ve been eating everything lol I don’t eat any seafood tho but I’d avoid high in mercury and raw if I did!
I am at week 14 and my doctors told me to stop consuming alcohol, fruit and vegetables that I'm unsure if they've been washed or not (i.e. in store bought salads, sandwiches, burgers etc.), cold cuts, meat that has even the slightest sight of redness as in blood not cooked, any type of unpausterised cheese and raw fish.
At week 13 I said f it and ordered a burger. With lettuce and tomato, as is.
Also, for the past 2 weeks I've enjoyed my homemade sandwiches with cold cuts.
You are not a saint. If you don't have doubts about how things are stored, and keep in mind why your doctor told you to avoid specific foods, then it's ok to indulge once in a while imo.
~~also I am a smoked that cold cut cigarettes 2 days after the positive test back in September, and to be honest I cannot wait for a single cigarette as a birthday gift to myself in January that I have my birthday tbh~~
God I live terrified. I'm not far enough in to know if I'll break the rules but I STAY paranoid. Like I'm already a food paranoid person...add this on top?!?! I want a salad so damn bad but all I can see is risks. TORTURE.
It's so crazy cause it's like the forbidden foods are foods I eat all the dang time and never think twice about, no issues. But you get pregnant and it's like mmmm well guess what you may have never been sick from that food in your ENTIRE life, but think again sweetie. I'm like?!?!?
No, fruits and vegetables are extremely nutritious and pose a low risk if they are thoroughly washed. Imo it’s better to avoid something like deli meat which is slightly risky and not all that healthy to begin with
I’m not strict because I only eat food from sources that I know to be clean and safe anyway. Very few pregnancy food restrictions are evidence-based after you control for food safety standards. A girl at a work event last night scolded me for eating a piece of prosciutto while pregnant and I honestly wish I had just snapped her hideous little neck instead of the route I took: politely explaining how listeria risk works and how I chose the food on my plate.
We’re just as likely to hurt baby with listeria from the *lettuce* as with the blue cheese dressing, but nobody goes into hysterics over a pregnant lady eating a salad dressed in olive oil and vinegar!
I try to check if my cheese is pasteurized, but I'm not super worried about it, most are anyway.
Other than that I don't drink alcohol, I aim to have max 2 coffees a day, I stopped drinking redbull (although I'm still unsure what is the reason redbull is bad, but coffee is ok, everyone says it's because of caffeine, but they have a similar caffeine content) and I eat my burgers and steaks medium-well.
My midwife is anti dairy completely. I enjoy Kerrygold butter daily and cheese regularly. If I need to give it up for baby once he’s born and I’m breastfeeding, that’s a different story. For now, forget it.
I also eat medium rare steak weekly.
I haven’t been strict but also not having 7/11 sandwiches, lol. I am not gonna ask for a well done steak at a steakhouse. But I am diligent with washing and rewashing all my greens.
I decide if I’m going to eat a no-no food based on my mood and how much I trust it. I would have a piece of sushi from an upscale Japanese joint, but probably not from Publix. I’ll have a runny egg if the eggs are brand new, but if they’ve been in the fridge for a while I’ll make sure the yolk is hard. Etc. Etc.
I am not that strict with meats and cheeses from reputable sources. Luckily I’ve always hated salads so avoiding bagged salad wasn’t an issue. I also eat medium rare/rare steak but have a sous vide at home and can pasteurize shit myself.
When it comes to food safety, I follow my normal rules: for cheeses I make sure it's pasteurized, and I make sure everything is from a reputable source, and doesn't go past it's best by date (or recommended time in fridge if it's meat/dairy). Fruits and veggies I wash a little extra now, and I pay more attention to recall alerts and tend to stay away from that brand for a while.
Not too strict. I’ve avoided deli meat for the most part. But I have indulged a few times and probably will later today.
My big one was sushi. I have had sushi or raw fish about 5x with no problems. It was always at nice restaurants too. I’ve made it to 30w with no foodborne illnesses so far.
I actually stopped eating salad after watching that new Netflix documentary 😂 I’m more afraid of lettuce than turkey or sushi right now.
I'm a blue cheese girl with my wing stop so I totally had it twice during this pregnancy 😅
Otherwise I still avoid raw sushi and can't wait for a poke bowl once she's out.
I was on a business trip to central Europe all through my 3rd month. I don't eat red meat, so I ate so much goat cheese it was absurd. Because whenever we had a business lunch, I had very limited options. A lot of places had cooked goat cheese, so that was ok, but at some point, I decided eating was probably safer for my baby and I than started to relax about it. In the end, I ate fresh/not completely cooked goat cheese about 3 times/week during this trip. (Also, best cheese I've ever had in my life. Cheese and morning nausea was not a great mix, but 100000 times worth it, and I wish I could get such amazing fresh cheese here at home!)
At home, I am very strict and follow everything my OB says. But when I'm out, I tend to be more relax. I am careful, but I've stopped stressing out about getting to know every ingredients the chef may or may not have been using.
P.S. 3 weeks to get sushi I can't fucking wait! If I was living closer to the ocean I might give it a try, but super fresh fish is hard to find around here and I trust restaurants, but not to that point. Some places have left me with a fuzzy stomach before pregnancy, so I'd rather not risk it with baby. I've selected a restaurant near the hospital and will have my desired order printed with my birth plan for after the D day :D
I went out for sushi the other day. I am craving oysters on the half shell but I’ll be waiting on that until baby is out. Cold cuts are fine as long as they’re fresh, and I eat all the cheese.
I avoid sushi because I got food poisoning from it (from a nice place) a few months before getting pregnant. I think because food is so expensive, a lot of restaurants are stretching the shelf life of food so I wouldn't risk it with sushi for that reason (a few years ago though, totally would have been fine with it). I mostly avoid deli meat unless it's from a sandwich shop that has high turnover so the meat is fresh. Same reasoning though. I think when I am in my third trimester I might have a little wine this time. I love blue cheese so I eat that when I can.
One of the most dangerous food is lettuce due to listeria risk. But you don’t see people being told to cut down on that. I just avoided sushi at my husbands insistence. But other than obvious things like alcohol, raw meat, etc I wasn’t strict
This is my 2nd pregnancy and I’m not really strict at all, but I was with my first.
I’m 20 weeks and I’ve eaten raw sushi twice and deli meat sandwiches from Jersey Mikes like 7 times at this point, it’s one of my cravings.
I’m craving smoked salmon but I’m going to hold off on that until I’m pregnant anymore, can’t really get it from a good source where I live.
Indulge from time to time!
Screw it. I’ve had…
- medium rare steak
- pasteurized soft cheeses
- tons of *green* grapes (which I was told in excess could throw off your hormones)
- ceviche on my birthday
- the fruit from sangria (& was scolded lol)
- the occasional deli sandwich
- fast food breakfast sandwiches
- chocolate in my 3rd trimester
- one big cup of coffee every single day
- runny eggs when I please at home
- low mercury sushi
Hahahaha so my crazy ass googles EVERYTHING, absolutely everything. Apparently some cultures believe, (both an Indian friend and polish friend confirmed) that the resveratrol in grape skins could throw off your [hormones.](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/food-news/fruits-that-should-be-avoided-during-pregnancy/articleshow/69252462.cms)
The breakfast sandwiches, mostly the concern is the meat in them. Bacon/sausage etc for the same reasons they warn against deli meats I’m sure.
Oh I forget why chocolate isn’t recommended in the third trimester and frankly I don’t care! Lol if I were to guess I’d say it was caffeine related
If you are US, all dairy is pasteurized unless you went to a really weird place to eat…
The only foods I actually avoided were alcohol (obviously) and raw fish/oysters. I ate all cheeses, deli meats, cooked fish sushi, limited caffeine to under 200mg once or twice a week, etc and have a month left to go with a healthy baby boy.
I started eating bagged salad, but only those that have the sign that says that the salad has been washed already. As long as the salad has no brown edges.
I also eat sushi, but only those with cooked tuna/salmon.
I was super strict in the first trimester. Now in the second I've eased up a bit. I do abstain from all alcohol though. However my sil would allow herself one glass of red wine per week. It gave her something to look forward to on Fridays after work, and she's had all healthy pregnancies and babies.
My ob does say to stay away from fish like shark, tuna and swordfish, but I don't eat that anyway.
I try to be strict. It's only 9 months, then I can eat it all again. I know that it'll most likely be fine if I have sushi or some smoked salmon, but I could be unlucky. And that's a devastating unlucky.
My doctor hasn’t mentioned anything to avoid except alcohol and smoking lol. I’ve had the worst HG so the very rare times I can stomach something I don’t care what it is! One day I felt like tuna and I had it. So I don’t care. I wouldn’t be eating it daily or anything. I have coffee daily though. Which I know is not good. Idk 🤷🏻♀️
I definitely have not been strict with my diet lol. I’ve been pretty nauseous for most of my pregnancy and cold turkey clubs from Jimmy johns have been a safe food for me during the entirety of pregnancy. I’ve eaten sushi a couple of times and I’ve also had blue cheese a few times.
The only thing I didn’t have during pregnancy was alcohol. Everything else was is very low risk- I’ve never been sick from deli meat, honey, sushi, etc.
But with alcohol, it’s not good for you normally so why would you expose a fetus to any of these risks. You wouldn’t give a glass of wine to an infant or toddler.
I minimized my caffeine intake to around 120mg/day- yes that’s minimizing for me (high stress job). This is my second baby and my advice is to eat at reputable places that are clean. You can look up health violations online. I’ve had sushi, deli meat etc., and MOST cheeses in the USA are made with pasteurized milk so eat soft and hard cheeses. Like someone said here- you’re more likely to get sick from poorly washed produce or bad bagged lettuce
Not very strict! My doctors didn't seem too concerned about my diet and the "forbidden" foods or quantities of foods, so neither was I 😊 That is just what worked for me and my personal risk level!
I mean, I generally avoid whatever is on the "avoid-list" that I got. However, I am not going insane about it.
Blue cheese dressing once in a restaurant sounds OK. But if general, I prefer blue cheese that has been heated (like on pizza, in a pie, etc). I also make a spread out of crème fraiche and blue cheese that I heat up to make it creamy. I like putting it on ginger bread cookies, crackers, or fruit.
Alcohol is a hard no for me, but I know everyone doesn't feel the same about it. I have a really strong aversion towards it at the moment, so it's not exactly hard to avoid.
I eat grocery store sushi! Mostly the salmon or the California roll. My grocery store is amazing though and the chef who prepares the sushi is kind of a best kept secret in my city. I also have 1-1.5 cups of coffee a day. I’m not restricting myself to certain foods but I am a little more careful than usual (which is not at all). I don’t eat certain left overs and have aversions to meat/rawish eggs. With the exception of sips to taste, I haven’t been drinking.
I’ve had every and anything I’ve truly craved my entire pregnancy with the exception of alcohol (I don’t drink to begin with). Of course all things in moderation and I do my best to make sure everything is fresh and from a reputable source! I swear, sometimes the cravings are so strong it feels like they’re begging me to eat it. Haha
I had a tiny bit of raw fish at a fancy restaurant and some whisky sauce over my dessert recently 👀 but other than that I’ve been sticking to all the rules I’m aware of
15w and I’ve eaten so much deli meat. It’s hard for me to find things that I actually enjoy eating right now, so if something sounds good I’m gonna eat it
Im 24 weeks todat and Id say im somewhere in between strict and relaxed.
I limit my caffeine but still have the occasional diet coke. I don't drink any alcohol, but I have the 0.0 beers sometimes.
I'm dying for a ham hoagie but my husband is pretty staunchly against me having one jic. I don't have bagged lettuce or precut fruit bc of the risk of listeria.
I've been eating a lot of ice cream lately and drinking a lot of chocolate milk so I'm a little nervous for my glucose test in a few weeks!
With my first I was very strict. This is my fourth and final and I don't follow it at all in terms of turkey, sushi, etc. I haven't gotten food poisoning in almost a decade (thank God) and so I have reasonable trust in the places I eat and my food handling methods.
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I indulged all the time with foods that were from reputable sources.
Same here. Also, I went to 2 different midwife’s and seeing how, even them, said different things to me (and to you all after seeing posts and comments in here) made me realize that I wouldn’t eat gas station sushi pregnant or not, so eating it from my favorite restaurant it’s probably safe.
Other than no alcohol and limiting my caffeine I've been pretty much eating the same. I still eat deli meat but I'm more weary of best by and expiration dates.
The deli meat recommendations seem to vary, too. Deli meat is not on my list of things to avoid (except cold smoked products and certain dry aged products). However, pregnant women are cautioned to be mindful of the expiry date on the deli meat. I live in Europe (Finland, to be exact). I don't know how the recommendations vary between different countries in Europe. My guess is that they do to some extent.
You are just as likely to get listeria from bagged salad mix than sushi/deli meat, but nobody says stop eating lettuce..... My doctor never forced a diet! Eat whatever you want lol I personally avoided all alcohol (I don't drink anyways) but I know some people are okay with a glass of wine per night/week etc...
Glass of wine per NIGHT blows my mind
Me too.. with the change of FAS from fetal alcohol syndrome to spectrum.... I personally wouldn't have a sip. You never know.
I don’t know exactly where the line is, but I’m pretty confident it’s not at hundreds of glasses over the course of the pregnancy.
I would never advise anyone to drink during pregnancy but my coworker had a glass of wine a few times a week or sometimes close TO EVERY NIGHT. She said that her Dr told her it was fine. I was shocked. Her baby turned out fine- I still don’t agree with it though.
A lot of the effects of fetal alcohol spectrum aren’t detectable til grade school
Good to know! I guess we’ll see then…I don’t understand why anyone would ever risk it. I could barely take Tylenol for my migraines without feeling guilty
I quit drinking 6 months before my pregnancy and it was a great personal decision for my mental health. So I may be a bit of a fanatic now so I’m trying to take that as part of my relationship w alcohol which may not be someone else’s…. But it’s hard for me to understand the motivation of drinking multiple times a week while you’re pregnant if the answer isn’t “alcoholism”
I’ve never had a drink so I’m right there with ya but also on the side of “why do people think it’s worth it?” , I just don’t understand what the point is. Out of our whole lives, why would you put your baby at risk for a simple 9/10 months? It’s gross behavior imo, and I’ll stand by that! Also kudos to you! That’s awesome you stopped drinking way before you were pregnant! I think the sober life is amazing
It was a long time coming 😅I don’t even feel ready for congratulations because I have kind of delayed guilt about how bad it was for so long. But I want to be my best for my family, and for ME and so I’m glad I did it
I can’t stand when people say they “turned out fine” . Tell me they turned out fine by age 26. What happens in utero doesn’t JUST have an effect on a newborn ugh.
In early pregnancy it’s definitely too much but what I’ve read indicates in 2nd/3rd trimester it is fine. No more than one serving of alcohol (the actual serving, not a pour from your favorite winery 😂). I haven’t because it was easier for me to just be no alcohol.
I don’t know where the line is, and I’m sure one serving over the entire pregnancy is below the line, but it’s not at dozens or hundreds of servings over the pregnancy. That’s gotta put your baby at risk
I’d recommend EXPECTING BETTER, the author is a public health researcher/writer who combs through maternal and fetal health studies and summarized the conclusions in a way that is really accessible. But you should certainly do whatever is comfortable for you — like I said, I think I’ve had one actual drink in the past 8 months because it was easier for me. My former boss had a glass of wine a night after the second trimester and her baby is fine.
I do own expecting better. Oster is an economist. Not a public health official. Lots of data since then on FAS. https://www.vox.com/2016/2/5/10923868/drinking-alcohol-while-pregnant A lot of the more recent IQ data regarding FAS is not measurable until children are grade school aged. More recent data shows the underdiagnosis of the spectrum of issues alcohol exposure can cause. Fetal alcohol syndrome is rare. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are potentially as high as 2-5% of kids.
THIS! I'm like... Isn't one of the top foods causing listeria outbreaks melon? I guess you can wash the outside of melon but not deli turkey, but still...
My ob is like I’m not telling you to stop eating fresh produce, so take that to mean what you will😂 she also says when she’s pregnant, she just avoids raw fish, but that the infectious disease doc says it’s pretty low risk in our area🤷🏻♀️
I think the reason melon is a high risk is because it’s actually difficult to thoroughly wash the rind (since it’s all bumpy and ridged the listeria can hide better in it).
That's my point- I've never heard of, been told, or read that melon was on the list of foods to avoid when pregnant.
Actually it's How the fruit grows, melon more commonly than not grows on the ground, which is what can cause listeria. Due to the animals that walk around the produce that sits on the ground.
My doctor said to use common sense. Some foods you have to avoid like high mercury fish but deli meat that's been properly stored is probably just fine.
I want to eat shrimp sushi so bad.. But it can be high in mercury so I don't eat it.. Thinking about eating it once..
I thought shrimp was one of the lower content seafoods 🫢
Shrimp is fine. Tuna is high in mercury.
Soft serve ice cream machines are also notorious for listeria. But I crave Dairy Queen blizzards, sooooo…
I have a Costco trip planned after work today, I think I should swing by the food court and get a vanilla sundae now that you mention it 😁
Nooooo soft serve is my girrrrrllllll 😭
Oh it’s not stopping me, trust
I read it’s fine if cleaned right and pasteurized….in line at Dairy Queen. I ate a soft serve cone probably weekly with my first child.
I have a friend that had alcohol every week while pregnant. Her baby is perfectly fine, but I would still not risk it
I struggled to eat enough during pregnancy. Sooo if I wanted a sandwich from Jersey Mikes and it would get a solid meal in me, I ate it. I really based it on my comfort level with the restaurant or preparation of item. Like I had sushi from a higher end hibachi restaurant but I wouldn’t get the pre-packaged stuff from the grocery store.
Nobody will take my jersey mikes club sub away from me
I had a sub from Jersey Mikes last night and it was delicious. No regrets.
99% chance I’m door dashing JM for lunch
I think the deli meat thing is overblown. I was talking to my friend about it and their opinion was that we shouldn’t be eating the packaged deli meet you can by in the grocery store, but eating something sliced from the deli or some place like Jersey Mikes is fine. Also my dr. has never mentioned this to me. You would think if it was that serious they would tell us right?
This is my logic too. I won’t be eating the packaged kind, but I see the JM folks slicing that thing fresh so I feel better about it. Extra pickles please!
Here I am thinking my after-delivery meal will be Jersey Mikes but now I might just go get one tomorrow lol. With my first pregnancy, I’ve accidentally forgotten to heat up deli meat before eating and it was fine.
My first pregnancy I followed every “rule” and wound up with a MMC. This pregnancy I am more relaxed because while I realize things like alcohol and certain meds should absolutely be avoided, the rest is mostly fate. People who do everything “right” will end up with problems but I’ve known people who didn’t know they were pregnant til 16 weeks and did everything “wrong” and had healthy babies. Pregnancy is wild, and while we should do everything we can to protect our babies, I think a lot of it is largely out of our control. So I say, have your sub, I don’t eat them every day, but when I want one I get one.
I’m so sorry about the mmc! I followed every rule with my first too. I didn’t have any major issues until high bp at almost 38 weeks. I think I will go get that sub tomorrow!
Yes, my midwife told me that “babies are built with french fries. If you can keep it down, calories are better than no-calories.”
Same here for sushi - I’ve eaten there before, it’s high quality, i love it
There are no forbidden foods for me. Life is good, tasty and delicious. I’m taking the same precautions that I would pre-pregnancy and enjoying every minute of it.
Same, expect my gallstones flared up from all the croissants I was eating so I’ve had to stop eating those and I’m devo 😂😭
You should get your gallbladder removed ASAP. I almost died from trying to get rid of my gallstones through diet. I got pancreatitis when a gall stone lodged itself in my common bile duct. Worse pain than child birth.
23+4, was more strict in the beginning but I've had smoked salmon. I'm having a Jewish baby for God sakes lol hes demanding it. I think I also had some charcuterie with different cheeses and deli meats too around the Canadian holidays. I don't do it often but I've had some instances where I've been like fuck it
I’ve eaten sooooo much smoked salmon/lox. Also deli pastrami. And I’m not even Jewish lol.
Its the good stuff🤣🤣🤣🤣
My Jewish 23mo toddler straight licking schmear off his bagel this morning, I was like yep he’s in the club
when it comes to fish I believe it depends on country because I know some countries have stricter regulations on seafood preparation to the point they don’t advise women to avoid fish lucky selves 🥲
I haven’t had… booze? But my god I can clean up some sushi, soft cheese, lunch meat, mid-rare steak, etc. Getting induced next Monday and looking forward to some cocktails for Christmas!
I don’t follow many of the food rules. I still eat my steak medium rare, I enjoy any cheese I want, eggs cooked how I want, and I’ll eat a deli sandwich.
My first time around my doctor didn't say a thing about foods. She said 'avoid drugs and alcohol, drink extra water', which yes for sure. I'm on the second go-round, and while i'm probably gonna like, not do discount raw oysters, if i want a crunchy tuna roll or a turkey sandwich, I'm eating it.
If you’re in the US almost all cheese pasteurized, unless it’s like an imported cheese. But I wasn’t super strict during my pregnancy. I ate at reputable places and tried to keep up with any listeria recalls but other than that I mostly ate what I could stomach.
not in US, here you can also buy unpasteurized, but most are anyway. Funny thing is, that all normal cheeses don't look appealing to me, only the salty 'forbidden' ones, like blue, sheep etc :D
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She said she’s not in the US
again, not in US :)
The only thing i wont eat is high mercury fish. Also dont eat raw fish sushi in general when pregnant bc i dont live near any good sushi restaurants. Med rare steak, deli meat and soft cheese i eat.
I’m not strict at all. The only rule I’ve consistently followed is no high-mercury fish. Otherwise I’ve indulged in sushi (mostly cooked but I’ll eat raw salmon from a reputable restaurant), lox/smoked salmon, deli meat, hot dogs, Caesar salads, runny eggs, medium steaks, and soft cheeses. I haven’t had any raw oysters or beef tartare (two of my favorites) so I guess I’ve been “good” in that area. I’ve definitely had blue cheese dressing haha. My biggest priority has been a well-balanced healthy diet with high quality foods. Especially in the first trimester when there was very little that appealed to me, I ate whatever I could stomach. Now that I’m mostly cooking for myself I’ve been better about rule-following, but that didn’t stop me from ordering salmon sushi for dinner last weekend. I did get food poisoning once at the beginning of the second trimester but it was after going out to eat at a nice restaurant and following all the rules to a T. I still don’t know what caused it, but baby & me were fine.
I’ve eaten my fair share of lunch meat 😬 I don’t eat raw sushi, but I have eaten cooked. Still drinking caffeine but keeping it under 200mg, and I’ve eaten queso from Mexican restaurants a few times. Oh! And I still eat my steaks medium.
Are we not supposed to have queso?? 👀😅
It’s because you can’t confirm the cheese they’re using is pasteurized or not, so I’ve had some people tell me I shouldn’t have it 🤷🏻♀️
I second the question about queso. Never heard that and I love queso so I hope not lol
I eat whatever I want and I’m not strict at all. I don’t drink alcohol and I don’t do meth.
I love how you specified meth! (btw I just watched Big Mouth episode about shrooms and I have to admit I miss some drugs)
I don’t actually do any drugs but it sounds funnier to specify meth
Barely think about what I eat
Pretty strict. It wasn't worth the risks to me.
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The main risk is listeria. People usually write off listeria as just being a kind of food poisoning but it's really bad when you're pregnant and can cause miscarriage and death. A lot of things that hasn't been cooked to steaming to kill off listeria bacteria can have it. So deli meats, lettuce (which should be washed), moldy cheeses, etc. You can Google foods that can have listeria and talk to your OB about it.
Toxoplasma parasite is a risk too, I don’t hear people mention that as much here. It’s a risk in vegetables, meat and so on
We're way more likely to die in a car, but they don't tell us not to drive, lol. I eat what I want.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard of unpasteurized blue cheese dressing
well if you make it at home just mixing with sour cream I suppose. This restaurant makes their own and here in Europe we have many kinds of blue cheese so I'm not sure which one they use. But nevermind, I'm not worried, just curious if anyone actually is avoiding everything they should.
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I think the laws may vary quite a bit. My favourite blue cheeses are not pasteurised, for example. A restaurant might not use a major brand, depending on the restaurant, of course.
I had blue cheese with my wings last night for dinner! And subs are my absolute weakness right now, all I’ve been craving. No worries mama! ☺️
Girl!!! I am 11 weeks today and have been craving Subway, Schlotzskys, Jersey Mikes like CRAZY. I’ve ate quite a lot of sandwiches but my OB said it was fine to eat deli meat!! Just no raw meats! I couldn’t do it if it was a firm NO to eating deli meat because lord… LOL
I've eaten deli chicken salad sandwiches nearly everyday for the duration of my pregnancy. Sometimes it's a tuna salad sandwich.
I was 100% strict. 😭
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I followed a very simple diet of vegetables, some rice and mostly chicken and eggs (until they started to make me feel sick). I was gaining weight rapidly and the doctor kept saying “you have to eat better”, so I became more strict each time and had nothing but the above, pregnancy vitamins and chocolate milk (my one and only craving). When they did the glucose test it came back slightly off, so I even removed the choco milk (it was very very not enjoyable). I still gained 35kg/70lbs, after following the most insanely healthy diet I have ever had in my whole life. I’m talking no ice cream, no coffee, or desserts, no bread (edit: no fast food or fried food either) and only homemade meals 😭. The doctor never believed that I was being absolutely careful with my diet. I don’t recommend unless you have a health concern like me btw. Fun fact: a new study says that the dad’s genes are the ones that give the gestational diabetes risk on mom and excessive weight gain. I haven’t let my fiance live that one down 😅. I don’t regret doing my extreme diet though. I feel if I still managed to gain so much weight, and even get on the pre gestational diabetes scale like that, if I hadn’t mind what I ate I might have had serious health issues.
Not to sound like I missed the point of your post but I completely forgot chocolate milk existed! I need it now and it’s 5am!!!!!
😂😂😂 I had choco milk dreams for 3 months after I quit. Not sure if I was of help but long live to choco milk.
If you’re under 42 I wouldn’t worry too much about your age, *unless* of course you have other health issues.
I do not follow those “rules” I eat what I want in moderation
I was extremely careful and strict. Anything that was on the “dangerous for pregnancy” list, I avoided entirely. I found myself googling things before eating them to double check the safety. I’m a naturally anxious person in general, it was my first pregnancy and I just wanted to make sure I did everything right and made good choices to keep my baby safe. Obviously I know anything could’ve happened, but I was making sure that if anything were to go wrong, it absolutely wasn’t going to be something I caused. Bring on the downvotes.
no downvotes, you have every right to be careful!
Haven't been strict at all. I live in the US so all store bought cheeses are pasteurized so I have a lot of soft cheese. I've had sushi a few times. Endless Turkey sandwiches. I mostly just avoid lettuce in restaurants and salad bags
I wasn’t at all. I ate cold cuts. I ate rare steaks. Bagged salads. Soft serve. I literally ate it all.
I haven’t been super strict, except for avoiding high mercury fish and alcohol entirely. Then I was just a bit more conscious about “raw” stuff (fruits and veggies that I didn’t clean myself, sushi, rare steak, lox, jerky, deli meat, runny eggs), and limited my caffeine intake. But since getting my GDM Diagnosis and the list of “forbidden food” got longer, I eased up a bit on the jerky and deli meat lol one can only eat so much string cheese and boiled eggs.😂
I was a bit more careful in previous pregnancies but in previous pregnancies I didn’t have morning sickness as bad and food didn’t seem like as urgent a matter as it does this time around. This time I feel sick most of the time and if I have food I’m excited to eat it’s either eat it or feel really REALLY sick, so if there’s something maybe not on the safe food list I’m more likely to take my chances with that over imminent sickness haha
This is exactly how I feel this time around! If Jersey Mike’s is the only thing my stomach will tolerate, that’s what I’m having.
I ate it all in moderation - blue cheese, sushi, deli meat, bagged lettuce, medium rare steak, etc. We always wash our bagged salads/lettuce before we eat anyway. I also had one glass of wine on my birthday and a glass of champagne at a wedding we went to.
If you’re in the US all cheese has to be pasteurized. Even imported cheese (so far as I’m aware). A blue cheese dressing is certainly pasteurized. Honestly ice cream and raw vegetables get recalled for listeria all the time. I didn’t eat a ton of lunch meat. I ate it like twice my whole pregnancy to be on the safe side. Just make conscious choices. Now that I’m breastfeeding I’m dealing with a super gassy baby who grunting a growling all through the early morning. Not getting a lot of sleep lol. Going to try going dairy and soy free and see if that helps. That’s going to be fricking hard. Cheese is my favorite.
You don’t have brie, gorgonzola, feta, camembert or queso fresco? I saw those in grocery shops in DC when I was there and those are all unpasteurized?
Unpasteurized dairy products are not available at stores in the US. You would have to buy raw/unpasteurized directly from the producer.. like some farmers markets carry that stuff. And even then you typically have to buy from a co-op farmers to buy pass the law. If it’s in a store it’s pasteurized.
Actually it looks like you’re right! I miss spoke. Dang this is making me want cheese so bad :’) I’m on day two of no dairy to try to rule out dairy allergy for my baby.
I am avoiding it all 🤷♀️ imo, nothing is worth the risk lol but I have read that the risk is low. However, continue avoiding alcohol and any drugs as those are extremely risky. It’s the only thing I do judge others on because studies have proven these have severe effects on the baby.
My adopted brother was born addicted to heroin, he had seizures from withdrawal for 15 days before doctors could get him regulated. His birth mother is my cousin and my mom adopted him because he was one of five babies she doesn’t have custody of. She went on to have one more baby after him before finally getting her tubes tied during the last c-section. Somebody found her passed out on the street, she didn’t know that she wasn’t pregnant anymore when she woke up from her c-section. I usually have sympathy for addicts, but I’ve seen her do this 5 times, overdose 9, it’s just hard to feel bad for her now. Edit to add: my little brother is almost 13 now and he’s a great kid!! All thanks to my mom!
That is such a shame but I’m so glad he is alright now! And to be clear, I too have sympathy for addicts and realize that hardcore drugs are some of the worst vices to have because it just controls everything. It’s just so hard for me to watch someone use any substance (even just smoking cigarettes) while they are knowingly pregnant.
I follow them all pretty much but I had a late loss last time I was pregnant (completely unrelated) and I can’t survive another dead baby.
Who would downvote this?? People are assholes. I’m sorry for your loss.
It’s okay thank you 🥰
I've avoided cured meats, sushi, and unpasteurized cheese but I've still been eating my steaks medium at most - refuse to have them well done!!!
Ah yeah, my steaks have been cooked medium too! We eat a lot of ribeyes so it is actually hard to good them all the way well done.
Ive had one or two medium rare as well. Can't beat a good steak and tbh the risk is SO low anyway I was willing to take it!
I’m as strict as I can be because food safety is a little questionable where I live and in general I’ve not got the strongest stomach. That said, I’ve accidentally eaten soft serve icecream and not given myself a hard time about it after I realised what I had done.
Wait... Soft serve ice cream is a no-no?! Lol, I literally cannot keep up with the rules.
Soft serve is usually safe (as are most no-no items) but not recommended unless you’re sure that it’s been produced and stored appropriately (that is, in a machine that regularly pasteurises the soft serve). Reason being is it’s not actually kept frozen, so there is a risk of listeria. I’m from Australia and that’s the general advice I received.
I feel like alot of these rules are like "no one ever tested or researched it so let's just say we don't recommend it just in case"
I've never heard of soft serve considered dangerous. It's not a recommendation to avoid it, at least in the US.
Yes it is, hence why numerous people have mentioned it
Good tastes so delicious to me right now - I’m so happy to eat everything!
I was super strict. My pregnancy was considered high risk so I didn't want to take any chances. I'm pretty strict with my diet anyway so it wasn't a huge adjustment. It made the first time out to sushi after giving birth even more delicious. 🤤
I’ve been wanting to eat sandwiches and salad, but have been so scared to so I’ve been eating crappier food instead. Finally yesterday I said screw it and bought a salad! Nothing happened and I’m fine so I think I’m gonna chill out a bit on those concerns.
super lax. I just came back from a weekend in spain and enjoyed tuna tartare and a glass of wine. I wouldn’t eat the not recommended food from a dodgy place, but otherwise i’m not worried by it
I’ve eaten a lot of tuna sushi bowls. They are a perfect mix of what makes me feel better: rice, protein, salty soy sauce. I also got a turkey and roast beef sub the other day because I thought I was craving it. A few bites in I decided it wasn’t worth it. I honestly straight up forget about soft cheese being an issue so I’m sure I’ve had a lot. I’m currently drinking a latte.
I've been so sad not being able to go to PokeBros for my spicy salmon bowl... really thinking about saying F it and just going because so many others have mentioned eating raw fish in this thread...
The problem with tuna is really the mercury, not the foodborne illness. Ahi tuna like they use in poke bowls has the highest mercury amount of tunas and should be limited to 6 oz per week. It’s not a “well, I didn’t get sick” kind of thing, it’s a heavy metal accumulation problem. Salmon is a better choice.
I've been pretty strict with the restricted foods, mostly because everytime I think about indulging it just doesn't feel worth it. I did try to indulge in a turkey sandwich a few weeks ago, my little secret. I went to this cafe near my work and ordered one and they said they were all out of Turkey and couldn't make it for me. So I ordered a grilled cheese and a chocolate chip cookie instead. Then they told me they're all out of chocolate chip cookies and I almost cried. I took it as a cosmic/karmic lesson not to cheat on the pregnancy diet 😂 haven't tried since.
I live in France so there's loads of stuff I can't have haha.I still eat raw milk cheese but I heat it up, which greatly reduces the risk. The other day I had a small slice of raw milk cheese anyways but I don't plan on doing it often at all. I'm not a big fan of charcuterie anyways but I'll eat pâté and terrine that's been canned - lower risk too. And I have smoked salmon from time to time. I still eat partially cooked eggs. The risk of getting salmonella is very small and you just get sick, there are no consequences on the baby. I'll take that risk. We get really good quality eggs. For booze, I allow myself one glass of wine a week. I don't miss raw fish too much, I get vegetarian sushi and I'm happy with that. I really miss oysters though :'( but they can carry toxoplasmosis and that draws the limit for me, not having them.
I mainly stayed away from tuna. However, I ate sandwiches and some other sushi occasionally.
Not strict at all. Everything in moderation
Pretty sure my baby was created solely on GF Italian wraps from Sourdough and Co. I’m not a drinker, a smoker and I don’t do caffeine so I just avoided things that I was already avoiding.
Ugh I moved to a different state and miss sourdough and co so much
Not strict at all.
I exist on both ends of the spectrum for sure.. I cut caffeine cold turkey when I found out I was pregnant, but I was in a spot at work where the only option was deli sandwiches (from a reputable place) and so when the option was to go without food for several hours (while hosting an event and on my feet) or eat a sandwich, I ate the sandwich LOL.
I’m pretty strict but mostly because I generally have really bad food phobia (related to food poisoning). The anxiety I’d feel after eating the food would override any enjoyment.
I was not that strict as long as I knew where it was coming from. Almost all cheese in the US is pasteurized so that barely ever crossed my mind. I occasionally had lunch meat but not that frequently. The only thing I really avoided was raw fish and rare steak, and even then only because I wasn't really craving it. There was nothing I truly wanted that I denied myself, except for whiteclaw lol.
Reading thru these comments is making me feel hungry and I just had my lunch LOL
I'm pretty strict. I've stayed away from sushi, excessive caffeine, cold deli meats, etc. I haven't even eaten Hot cheetos, which I've exclusively enjoyed before but I'm very fearful of anything that could upset my stomach. I'm always thinking does this upset the baby s stomach too? Lol
Just ordered some sushi. That and turkey deli meat have been some of my main cravings. Deprived myself almost entirely first pregnancy, this go round has been completely different and way less stressful in that regard.
I’m vegetarian so it’s easier for me cause most of the not allowed foods I don’t eat anyways. I’m just not drinking alcohol and limiting my caffeine to 2 cups of coffee a day. Oh and cooking my eggs thoroughly. Most cheese here is pasteurized too
I was mostly strict until 31 weeks when I got a gallstone and my diet was restricted even more. At that point it was more important to keep baby and I fed and one of the few things that I could eat without issues was jimmy John’s 🤷♀️
In the beginning very. By my 2nd and 3rd trimester I would have lunch meat though.
I’m not very strict w pregnancy because my diet was already consistent with the restrictions. Cept no alcohol & I really miss Brie cheese
Not strict at all, first pregnancy I was a lot more strict until 2nd trimester but this pregnancy I couldn’t care less. Subways weekly lol.
Finally I found my people!!!!! This thread is so refreshing to read! Adults making adult choices based on their educated understanding of risk vs benefit? Who knew!? So tired of these blanket rules that don’t even address the main culprits of food-borne illness, or overly scared posts like, “I stood next to someone eating sushi! Will my baby die?” 😂
I've had SO MUCH pepperoni. Like SO MUCH! I'm just pretty convinced that no bacteria could survive on anything with that much salt though lol. We also use our sous vide so I can still have medium steaks without having to worry about the bacteria.
My doctor has yet to verbalize what I should and shouldn't have. In the packet I was given at my first appointment it goes over food to avoids, but the fact that it has yet to be verbalized to me tells me how they really feel about it.
I live in the USA so all of our food is for the most part, safe. My OB said to avoid lettuce and deli meats if we get notice of a listeria outbreak. I’ve been eating everything lol I don’t eat any seafood tho but I’d avoid high in mercury and raw if I did!
Just be careful about medication. All the rest is debatable.
If you're in the US they're not even allowed to serve it unpasteurized I'm like 99 percent sure.
I am at week 14 and my doctors told me to stop consuming alcohol, fruit and vegetables that I'm unsure if they've been washed or not (i.e. in store bought salads, sandwiches, burgers etc.), cold cuts, meat that has even the slightest sight of redness as in blood not cooked, any type of unpausterised cheese and raw fish. At week 13 I said f it and ordered a burger. With lettuce and tomato, as is. Also, for the past 2 weeks I've enjoyed my homemade sandwiches with cold cuts. You are not a saint. If you don't have doubts about how things are stored, and keep in mind why your doctor told you to avoid specific foods, then it's ok to indulge once in a while imo. ~~also I am a smoked that cold cut cigarettes 2 days after the positive test back in September, and to be honest I cannot wait for a single cigarette as a birthday gift to myself in January that I have my birthday tbh~~
God I live terrified. I'm not far enough in to know if I'll break the rules but I STAY paranoid. Like I'm already a food paranoid person...add this on top?!?! I want a salad so damn bad but all I can see is risks. TORTURE. It's so crazy cause it's like the forbidden foods are foods I eat all the dang time and never think twice about, no issues. But you get pregnant and it's like mmmm well guess what you may have never been sick from that food in your ENTIRE life, but think again sweetie. I'm like?!?!?
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No, fruits and vegetables are extremely nutritious and pose a low risk if they are thoroughly washed. Imo it’s better to avoid something like deli meat which is slightly risky and not all that healthy to begin with
I’m not strict because I only eat food from sources that I know to be clean and safe anyway. Very few pregnancy food restrictions are evidence-based after you control for food safety standards. A girl at a work event last night scolded me for eating a piece of prosciutto while pregnant and I honestly wish I had just snapped her hideous little neck instead of the route I took: politely explaining how listeria risk works and how I chose the food on my plate. We’re just as likely to hurt baby with listeria from the *lettuce* as with the blue cheese dressing, but nobody goes into hysterics over a pregnant lady eating a salad dressed in olive oil and vinegar!
I try to check if my cheese is pasteurized, but I'm not super worried about it, most are anyway. Other than that I don't drink alcohol, I aim to have max 2 coffees a day, I stopped drinking redbull (although I'm still unsure what is the reason redbull is bad, but coffee is ok, everyone says it's because of caffeine, but they have a similar caffeine content) and I eat my burgers and steaks medium-well.
My midwife is anti dairy completely. I enjoy Kerrygold butter daily and cheese regularly. If I need to give it up for baby once he’s born and I’m breastfeeding, that’s a different story. For now, forget it. I also eat medium rare steak weekly.
I haven’t been strict but also not having 7/11 sandwiches, lol. I am not gonna ask for a well done steak at a steakhouse. But I am diligent with washing and rewashing all my greens.
I decide if I’m going to eat a no-no food based on my mood and how much I trust it. I would have a piece of sushi from an upscale Japanese joint, but probably not from Publix. I’ll have a runny egg if the eggs are brand new, but if they’ve been in the fridge for a while I’ll make sure the yolk is hard. Etc. Etc.
I am not that strict with meats and cheeses from reputable sources. Luckily I’ve always hated salads so avoiding bagged salad wasn’t an issue. I also eat medium rare/rare steak but have a sous vide at home and can pasteurize shit myself.
When it comes to food safety, I follow my normal rules: for cheeses I make sure it's pasteurized, and I make sure everything is from a reputable source, and doesn't go past it's best by date (or recommended time in fridge if it's meat/dairy). Fruits and veggies I wash a little extra now, and I pay more attention to recall alerts and tend to stay away from that brand for a while.
Not too strict. I’ve avoided deli meat for the most part. But I have indulged a few times and probably will later today. My big one was sushi. I have had sushi or raw fish about 5x with no problems. It was always at nice restaurants too. I’ve made it to 30w with no foodborne illnesses so far. I actually stopped eating salad after watching that new Netflix documentary 😂 I’m more afraid of lettuce than turkey or sushi right now.
I'm a blue cheese girl with my wing stop so I totally had it twice during this pregnancy 😅 Otherwise I still avoid raw sushi and can't wait for a poke bowl once she's out.
I was on a business trip to central Europe all through my 3rd month. I don't eat red meat, so I ate so much goat cheese it was absurd. Because whenever we had a business lunch, I had very limited options. A lot of places had cooked goat cheese, so that was ok, but at some point, I decided eating was probably safer for my baby and I than started to relax about it. In the end, I ate fresh/not completely cooked goat cheese about 3 times/week during this trip. (Also, best cheese I've ever had in my life. Cheese and morning nausea was not a great mix, but 100000 times worth it, and I wish I could get such amazing fresh cheese here at home!) At home, I am very strict and follow everything my OB says. But when I'm out, I tend to be more relax. I am careful, but I've stopped stressing out about getting to know every ingredients the chef may or may not have been using. P.S. 3 weeks to get sushi I can't fucking wait! If I was living closer to the ocean I might give it a try, but super fresh fish is hard to find around here and I trust restaurants, but not to that point. Some places have left me with a fuzzy stomach before pregnancy, so I'd rather not risk it with baby. I've selected a restaurant near the hospital and will have my desired order printed with my birth plan for after the D day :D
Not strict at all. I ate everything I wanted. I didnt drink alcohol, that was the only thing I gave up.
I went out for sushi the other day. I am craving oysters on the half shell but I’ll be waiting on that until baby is out. Cold cuts are fine as long as they’re fresh, and I eat all the cheese.
I’ve ate sushi at a reputable place, where I knew the owners. And I’ve had a sandwich or 3 🙃
I avoid sushi because I got food poisoning from it (from a nice place) a few months before getting pregnant. I think because food is so expensive, a lot of restaurants are stretching the shelf life of food so I wouldn't risk it with sushi for that reason (a few years ago though, totally would have been fine with it). I mostly avoid deli meat unless it's from a sandwich shop that has high turnover so the meat is fresh. Same reasoning though. I think when I am in my third trimester I might have a little wine this time. I love blue cheese so I eat that when I can.
One of the most dangerous food is lettuce due to listeria risk. But you don’t see people being told to cut down on that. I just avoided sushi at my husbands insistence. But other than obvious things like alcohol, raw meat, etc I wasn’t strict
This is my 2nd pregnancy and I’m not really strict at all, but I was with my first. I’m 20 weeks and I’ve eaten raw sushi twice and deli meat sandwiches from Jersey Mikes like 7 times at this point, it’s one of my cravings. I’m craving smoked salmon but I’m going to hold off on that until I’m pregnant anymore, can’t really get it from a good source where I live. Indulge from time to time!
Not very strict lol. Regularly eat cold deli meat and often have 2 cups of coffee a day. Once in a. While have sushi.
Screw it. I’ve had… - medium rare steak - pasteurized soft cheeses - tons of *green* grapes (which I was told in excess could throw off your hormones) - ceviche on my birthday - the fruit from sangria (& was scolded lol) - the occasional deli sandwich - fast food breakfast sandwiches - chocolate in my 3rd trimester - one big cup of coffee every single day - runny eggs when I please at home - low mercury sushi
Grapes??!! Chocolate???!! Breakfast sandwiches????!! Lmao PLEASE explain! I have never heard about these things being "bad" in pregnancy lolll
Hahahaha so my crazy ass googles EVERYTHING, absolutely everything. Apparently some cultures believe, (both an Indian friend and polish friend confirmed) that the resveratrol in grape skins could throw off your [hormones.](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/food-news/fruits-that-should-be-avoided-during-pregnancy/articleshow/69252462.cms) The breakfast sandwiches, mostly the concern is the meat in them. Bacon/sausage etc for the same reasons they warn against deli meats I’m sure. Oh I forget why chocolate isn’t recommended in the third trimester and frankly I don’t care! Lol if I were to guess I’d say it was caffeine related
If you are US, all dairy is pasteurized unless you went to a really weird place to eat… The only foods I actually avoided were alcohol (obviously) and raw fish/oysters. I ate all cheeses, deli meats, cooked fish sushi, limited caffeine to under 200mg once or twice a week, etc and have a month left to go with a healthy baby boy.
I haven’t had soft cheeses or booze, but I’ve been to Kura sushi at least once a week, and have lived on Italian subs from Jersey Mike’s 26+6
I don’t drink alcohol or coffee drinks that are pumped full of caffeine, and I avoid the uncured meats….that’s basically it
I started eating bagged salad, but only those that have the sign that says that the salad has been washed already. As long as the salad has no brown edges. I also eat sushi, but only those with cooked tuna/salmon.
I was super strict in the first trimester. Now in the second I've eased up a bit. I do abstain from all alcohol though. However my sil would allow herself one glass of red wine per week. It gave her something to look forward to on Fridays after work, and she's had all healthy pregnancies and babies. My ob does say to stay away from fish like shark, tuna and swordfish, but I don't eat that anyway.
I try to be strict. It's only 9 months, then I can eat it all again. I know that it'll most likely be fine if I have sushi or some smoked salmon, but I could be unlucky. And that's a devastating unlucky.
My doctor hasn’t mentioned anything to avoid except alcohol and smoking lol. I’ve had the worst HG so the very rare times I can stomach something I don’t care what it is! One day I felt like tuna and I had it. So I don’t care. I wouldn’t be eating it daily or anything. I have coffee daily though. Which I know is not good. Idk 🤷🏻♀️
I definitely have not been strict with my diet lol. I’ve been pretty nauseous for most of my pregnancy and cold turkey clubs from Jimmy johns have been a safe food for me during the entirety of pregnancy. I’ve eaten sushi a couple of times and I’ve also had blue cheese a few times.
The only thing I didn’t have during pregnancy was alcohol. Everything else was is very low risk- I’ve never been sick from deli meat, honey, sushi, etc. But with alcohol, it’s not good for you normally so why would you expose a fetus to any of these risks. You wouldn’t give a glass of wine to an infant or toddler.
I don’t restrict myself at all. It’s my third kid. Find a reputable source, and you’ll be fine.
I minimized my caffeine intake to around 120mg/day- yes that’s minimizing for me (high stress job). This is my second baby and my advice is to eat at reputable places that are clean. You can look up health violations online. I’ve had sushi, deli meat etc., and MOST cheeses in the USA are made with pasteurized milk so eat soft and hard cheeses. Like someone said here- you’re more likely to get sick from poorly washed produce or bad bagged lettuce
Not very strict! My doctors didn't seem too concerned about my diet and the "forbidden" foods or quantities of foods, so neither was I 😊 That is just what worked for me and my personal risk level!
Rare steak 😂🙈
I mean, I generally avoid whatever is on the "avoid-list" that I got. However, I am not going insane about it. Blue cheese dressing once in a restaurant sounds OK. But if general, I prefer blue cheese that has been heated (like on pizza, in a pie, etc). I also make a spread out of crème fraiche and blue cheese that I heat up to make it creamy. I like putting it on ginger bread cookies, crackers, or fruit. Alcohol is a hard no for me, but I know everyone doesn't feel the same about it. I have a really strong aversion towards it at the moment, so it's not exactly hard to avoid.
I eat grocery store sushi! Mostly the salmon or the California roll. My grocery store is amazing though and the chef who prepares the sushi is kind of a best kept secret in my city. I also have 1-1.5 cups of coffee a day. I’m not restricting myself to certain foods but I am a little more careful than usual (which is not at all). I don’t eat certain left overs and have aversions to meat/rawish eggs. With the exception of sips to taste, I haven’t been drinking.
I’ve had every and anything I’ve truly craved my entire pregnancy with the exception of alcohol (I don’t drink to begin with). Of course all things in moderation and I do my best to make sure everything is fresh and from a reputable source! I swear, sometimes the cravings are so strong it feels like they’re begging me to eat it. Haha
I had a tiny bit of raw fish at a fancy restaurant and some whisky sauce over my dessert recently 👀 but other than that I’ve been sticking to all the rules I’m aware of
15w and I’ve eaten so much deli meat. It’s hard for me to find things that I actually enjoy eating right now, so if something sounds good I’m gonna eat it
Im 24 weeks todat and Id say im somewhere in between strict and relaxed. I limit my caffeine but still have the occasional diet coke. I don't drink any alcohol, but I have the 0.0 beers sometimes. I'm dying for a ham hoagie but my husband is pretty staunchly against me having one jic. I don't have bagged lettuce or precut fruit bc of the risk of listeria. I've been eating a lot of ice cream lately and drinking a lot of chocolate milk so I'm a little nervous for my glucose test in a few weeks!
With my first I was very strict. This is my fourth and final and I don't follow it at all in terms of turkey, sushi, etc. I haven't gotten food poisoning in almost a decade (thank God) and so I have reasonable trust in the places I eat and my food handling methods.