Most foods and drinks are safe to have during pregnancy. But there are some things you should be careful with or avoid.
Cheese, milk and other dairy
Theres a small chance that unpasteurised or soft ripened dairy products may contain Listeria bacteria. This can cause an infection called listeriosis.
Listeriosis can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth, or make your newborn baby very unwell.
Soft cheeses with a white coating on the outside have more moisture. This can make it easier for bacteria to grow.
Cooking cheese until its steaming hot kills bacteria, reducing the risk of listeriosis.
You can eat:
- pasteurised or unpasteurised hard cheeses, such as cheddar, gruyere and parmesan
- pasteurised semi-hard cheeses, such as edam
- pasteurised soft cheeses, such as cottage cheese, mozzarella, feta, cream cheese, paneer, ricotta, halloumi, goats cheese without a white coating on the outside (rind) and processed cheese spreads
- soft or blue cheese (pasteurised or unpasteurised) that has been cooked until steaming hot
- pasteurised milk, yoghurt, cream and ice cream
You should avoid:
- any other foods made from unpasteurised milk, such as soft ripened goats cheese
- pasteurised or unpasteurised mould-ripened soft cheeses with a white coating on the outside, such as brie, camembert and chèvre (unless cooked until steaming hot)
- pasteurised or unpasteurised soft blue cheeses, such as Danish blue, gorgonzola and roquefort (unless cooked until steaming hot)
- unpasteurised cows milk, goats milk, sheeps milk or cream
Theres a small risk of getting toxoplasmosis if you eat raw and undercooked meat, which can cause miscarriage.
Cured meats are not cooked, so they may have parasites in them that cause toxoplasmosis.
Liver and liver products have lots of vitamin A in them. This can be harmful to an unborn baby.
Game meats may contain lead shot.
You can eat:
- meats such as chicken, pork and beef, as long as theyre well-cooked with no trace of pink or blood; be especially careful with poultry, pork, sausages and burgers
- cold, pre-packed meats such as ham and corned beef
You should be careful with:
- cold cured meats, such as salami, pepperoni, chorizo and prosciutto (unless cooked thoroughly)
You should avoid:
- raw or undercooked meat
- liver and liver products
- all types of pâté, including vegetarian pâté
- game meats such as goose, partridge or pheasant
British Lion hen eggs and hen eggs produced under the Laid in Britain scheme are less likely to have salmonella in them.
Salmonella is unlikely to harm your unborn baby, but you could get food poisoning.
You should cook all eggs thoroughly, unless they are British Lion hen eggs or hen eggs produced under the Laid in Britain scheme.
You can eat:
- raw, partly cooked and fully cooked British Lion hen eggs (they have a lion stamp on them) and hen eggs produced under the Laid in Britain scheme
- foods made with raw hen egg, such as mousse and mayonnaise, if made with British Lion eggs or hen eggs produced under the Laid in Britain scheme
- well cooked eggs (white and yolk) from any hen eggs that are not British Lion eggs or produced under the Laid in Britain scheme
- well cooked eggs (white and yolk) of all other eggs, including duck, goose or quail
You should avoid:
- raw or partly cooked hen eggs that are not British Lion or produced under the Laid in Britain scheme
- raw or partly cooked duck, goose or quail eggs
During pregnancy, eating fish is good for your health and the development of your baby.
But pregnant women should avoid some types of fish and limit the amount they eat of some others.
You should limit oily fish because they can have pollutants such as dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls in them.
If you eat too much of these, they can be harmful to your unborn baby.
You should avoid raw shellfish because they can have harmful bacteria, viruses or toxins in them.
These can make you unwell and give you food poisoning.
You should avoid ready-to-eat cold-smoked or cured fish because it could be contaminated with listeria bacteria.
These bacteria can cause an infection called listeriosis, which can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth, or make your newborn baby very unwell with sepsis or meningitis.
However, cooking cold-smoked or cured fish until it is steaming hot will kill bacteria that may be present.
What you can eat:
- cooked fish and seafood
- thoroughly cooked shellfish, such as mussels, lobster, crab, prawns, scallops and clams
- sushi, as long as the fish has been cooked thoroughly
You should avoid:
- swordfish
- marlin
- shark
- raw shellfish, such as mussels, lobster, crab, prawns, scallops and clams
- cold-smoked or cured fish (including smoked salmon, gravlax or in sushi) unless cooked until steaming hot
You should eat no more than:
- two portions of oily fish a week, such as salmon, trout, mackerel or herring
- two tuna steaks (about 140g cooked or 170g raw) or four medium-size cans of tuna (about 140g when drained) per week
Tuna does not count as an oily fish. You can have two tuna steaks, or four medium-size cans of fish, as well as two portions of oily fish.
Other foods and drinks
You can have caffeine, but no more than 200mg per day.
There is:
- 100mg in a mug of instant coffee
- 140mg in a mug of filter coffee
- 75mg in a mug of tea (green tea can have the same amount of caffeine as regular tea)
- 40mg in a can of cola
- 80mg in a 250ml can of energy drink
- less than 25mg in a 50g bar of plain dark chocolate
- less than 10mg in a 50g bar of plain milk chocolate
Drinking alcohol in pregnancy can lead to long-term harm to your baby.
If youre pregnant or planning to get pregnant, the safest approach is to not drink alcohol at all.
This keeps risks to your baby to a minimum.
You should drink no more than four cups of herbal tea a day.
Liquorice is safe to eat. But you should avoid liquorice root.
Can you eat blue cheese while pregnant?
Can you eat soft blue cheese if you have a miscarriage?
Soft blue cheese can contain a type of bacteria called listeria, which can increase the risk of miscarriage or health problems for your baby. The NHS says that soft blue cheeses that are thoroughly cooked through are safe to eat, though. That’s because cooking kills off the listeria bacteria.
Is it safe to consume beer and cheese during pregnancy?
The consumption of beer or any alcoholic beverage is strongly discouraged during pregnancy because of its potent teratogenic effect. Its effects are on the development of the neural tube that could generate different degrees of neurological damage. Cheese consumption is safe during pregnancy.
What happens if you eat blue cheese while pregnant?
Risk and Symptoms of Listeriosis. Unpasteurized blue cheese carries the risk of the bacteria listeria, as do other unpasteurized dairy products, uncooked meats and vegetables and processed foods such as deli meats. The bacteria are killed by pasteurizing or cooking the food, which is why unpasteurized blue cheese is not safe for a pregnant woman.
Can pregnant women eat blue cheese dressing?
To be on the safe side, pregnant women may wish to avoid blue cheese dressing. If you decide to buy it, select a product that has been pasteurized. As it’s often made with unpasteurized milk, blue cheese increases your risk of Listeria poisoning, which is extremely dangerous for unborn babies.