"You can't eat that." Crazy food restrictions?!

111emd · December 2013

So clearly we all are in love with our little developing unborn babies, right? And we want to be as good to our bodies and nourish our little bumps. But how incredibly frustrating is it to be told by loved ones, friends and family what we can and cannot eat?

I mean, there are the obvious ones (alcohol, raw meat, poisonous blowfish etc). But are these people serious when they say no smoked meats (like sausages and bacon), no brie, no blue cheese, and no sprouts? I understand the reasoning behind it (lower immune system vs foods that might cause food born illnesses) but is the threat of these infections really that much more?

Have you actually cut all these things out of your diet? And who's authority do you listen to? Friends and family or just your doctor? I know what the baby books say, but then on the other hand I know so many women who still drink coffee, still eat bacon and have perfectly normal, happy babies.

Is this stuff for real? Or are they trying to scare us?

PrimRoseMama · December 2013

Nope. I ate my cheese, drank my coffee & enjoyed my smoked food. Make sure your food is sanitary & from reputable establishments.

People get entirely too insane. If pregnant bodies were so delicate we would not have almost 7 billion people on this planet.

111emd · December 2013

WhoCanItBeNow said:

The cheese is a listeria concern. It's a bit overblown. Same with sprouts since you eat them raw. But no one tells you to avoid milk, spinach, or cantaloupes, and those have had much more severe outbreaks from listeria in recent history.

Totally bringing this up the next time someone slaps my hand away from a slice of brie! Thank you! And I 100% agree about the fear mongering. As if we don't have enough things to worry about. Let me have my damn pepperoni! I already don't eat much smoked/processed meats at all, so I didn't understand the hysteria around eating a damn breakfasts sausage link!

111emd · December 2013

PrimRoseMama said:

Nope. I ate my cheese, drank my coffee & enjoyed my smoked food. Make sure your food is sanitary & from reputable establishments. People get entirely too insane. If pregnant bodies were so delicate we would not have almost 7 billion people on this planet.

I spat out my water at that last line. True story!! Thank you!

Erica314 · December 2013

I actually had never even heard of the no smoked meats thing until recently.

I'm a huge sushi fan and my fiance and I have it once every two weeks or so. I've been trying to stay away from the raw things (even though realistically I know they are fine) because my fiance gets his panties in a bunch about it. So I thought I was being "uber safe" by ordering my Philadelphia rolls (smoked salmon) then come to find out that your "not supposed" to have those either!

I say to hell with all of the "rules." Use common sense, don't eat meats that have been sitting out, cook hamburger and pork all the way through, get foods you're unsure about from reputable places, etc. I eat lunch meat regularly, plan on having a med-rare steak sometime in the near future, and will eat the shit out of some smoked salmon and soft serve... Maybe not together, but you get the idea ;-)

tealowl · December 2013

If all the 'no no' foods were so dangerous, you'd have to sign waivers every time you went into a restaurant or grocery store stating you weren't pregnant.

rowanthefrog · December 2013

I had sushi last night and I enjoy the occasional glass of wine after the 1st trimester.

Brie/Blue cheese is only a "concern" if it is unpasterized and unless you are eating at a very high end restaurant or at a farm, its probably pasteurized. Concern with deli meat is listeria, which, granted, can be bad if you get it, but the odds of you getting it are INCREDIBLY low.

I've eaten pretty much everything on the "no" list this pregnancy. I did hold back on a few things during the 1st trimester (I figure I'm growing organ systems) but once I hit 2nd tri then if I want some salami, yummy cheese or a glass of wine then I'll have them...in moderation of course.

A

Chichigo · December 2013

My doctors didn't forbid any food until my blood pressure began to spike, then all the delicious deli meats were off the menu because of sodium content. I did avoid delimeat at local dives and stuck with better quality known brands, like Jersey Mikes and Jimmy Johns.

map1409 · December 2013

My OBGYN told me the only food I cannot eat is raw meat. Everything else, go for it! Oh, and no alcohol.

111emd · December 2013

MrsSparklebottom said:

I'd tell them that I'd done my research and I was completely comfortable eating like a normal human. People really need to mind their own business.

Amen! I am a very strong willed person and hearing from multiple sources what I can and cannot have is really hard for me. I picked up a very light stack of presents to load into the car and my husbands grandmother almost lost it. Then this morning I was having breakfast and ordered a side of sausage with my french toast and my bestie nearly smacked it out of my hand!

111emd · December 2013

rowanthefrog said: I had sushi last night and I enjoy the occasional glass of wine after the 1st trimester.
Brie/Blue cheese is only a "concern" if it is unpasterized and unless you are eating at a very high end restaurant or at a farm, its probably pasteurized. Concern with deli meat is listeria, which, granted, can be bad if you get it, but the odds of you getting it are INCREDIBLY low.
I've eaten pretty much everything on the "no" list this pregnancy. I did hold back on a few things during the 1st trimester (I figure I'm growing organ systems) but once I hit 2nd tri then if I want some salami, yummy cheese or a glass of wine then I'll have them...in moderation of course.
A

Oooh, I was just waiting for someone to tell me they indulge in a little sushi from now and then. And I was totally with you right up until the wine! I promise it's not a judgement thing...it's more of an anxiety thing. I can't tell you how many children I've met with F.A.S as a teacher. I am terrified of that happening to my child.

I can see that you already have two beautiful little boys, so clearly you're doing alright! I think after the first trimester I will probably sneak in a little sushi and smoked meats, but I can't see myself ever risking it with a glass of wine.

Rosebean · December 2013

I love my OB. Eat anything you want in moderation. Cool beans!

111emd · December 2013

NellyBluth said:

WhoCanItBeNow said:

I've never heard anything about not eating sausage.

Giggity.

bahahaha.

Meery82 · December 2013

111emd said:

WhoCanItBeNow said:

The cheese is a listeria concern. It's a bit overblown. Same with sprouts since you eat them raw. But no one tells you to avoid milk, spinach, or cantaloupes, and those have had much more severe outbreaks from listeria in recent history.

Totally bringing this up the next time someone slaps my hand away from a slice of brie! Thank you! And I 100% agree about the fear mongering. As if we don't have enough things to worry about. Let me have my damn pepperoni! I already don't eat much smoked/processed meats at all, so I didn't understand the hysteria around eating a damn breakfasts sausage link!

Oh damn. If someone slapped my hand away from a slice of Brie, they'd be swallowing their teeth. I likes my cheeses.

Unknown · December 2013

This content has been removed.

melissa.a.brown · December 2013

Try not to let people get to you. You are a mother and you know whats best for the baby. If its makes you nervous stay away from them. But if deep down you feel like its fine, then eat all the bacon you like! My only recommendation is to make sure everything is cook well, thats my rule

AndreaKae27 · December 2013

My ob said to stay away from deli meat. Never in my life had I heard that before but then again, I havent heard of most of what PP have said too.

I still eat sandwiches.

cafecreme · December 2013

I ate deli meats and sushi through my pregnancy. I did stay away from sushi the first tri, and then had it once a month after that.

biglewzer · December 2013

WhoCanItBeNow said:

You know what I hate most about these threads? They make me want sushi like now.

Thanks to this thread, I'm getting sushi for lunch.

I'm 12 weeks, think my baby's eyes will morph into a cyclops?

rowanthefrog · December 2013

111emd said:

rowanthefrog said:

I had sushi last night and I enjoy the occasional glass of wine after the 1st trimester.

Brie/Blue cheese is only a "concern" if it is unpasterized and unless you are eating at a very high end restaurant or at a farm, its probably pasteurized. Concern with deli meat is listeria, which, granted, can be bad if you get it, but the odds of you getting it are INCREDIBLY low.

I've eaten pretty much everything on the "no" list this pregnancy. I did hold back on a few things during the 1st trimester (I figure I'm growing organ systems) but once I hit 2nd tri then if I want some salami, yummy cheese or a glass of wine then I'll have them...in moderation of course.

A

Oooh, I was just waiting for someone to tell me they indulge in a little sushi from now and then. And I was totally with you right up until the wine! I promise it's not a judgement thing...it's more of an anxiety thing. I can't tell you how many children I've met with F.A.S as a teacher. I am terrified of that happening to my child.

I can see that you already have two beautiful little boys, so clearly you're doing alright! I think after the first trimester I will probably sneak in a little sushi and smoked meats, but I can't see myself ever risking it with a glass of wine.

@111emd - my sister is a pediatrician, my dad is an OBGYN and my personal OBGYN all told me the occasional glass of wine is fine. 4 oz, once or twice a week.

For a child to get FAS you would have to drink the equivalent of 2 bottles of wine, per day, for 2-3 weeks. Of course, do what you feel comfortable with, but a small glass of wine here and there will not cause FAS!

A

111emd · December 2013

Bliss+Berry said:

Meery82 said:

111emd said:

WhoCanItBeNow said:

The cheese is a listeria concern. It's a bit overblown. Same with sprouts since you eat them raw. But no one tells you to avoid milk, spinach, or cantaloupes, and those have had much more severe outbreaks from listeria in recent history.

Totally bringing this up the next time someone slaps my hand away from a slice of brie! Thank you! And I 100% agree about the fear mongering. As if we don't have enough things to worry about. Let me have my damn pepperoni! I already don't eat much smoked/processed meats at all, so I didn't understand the hysteria around eating a damn breakfasts sausage link!

Oh damn. If someone slapped my hand away from a slice of Brie, they'd be swallowing their teeth. I likes my cheeses.

Get out of my brain. I was thinking if somebody slapped my hand away from food, they'd be pulling back a bloody stump! ;-)

OMG- You gals are all making my sides hurt, I am DYING of laughter over here. WAIT- am I allowed to laugh this hard?? Is this acceptable? Where's the fun police? ;-)

111emd · December 2013

rowanthefrog said:

111emd said:

rowanthefrog said:

I had sushi last night and I enjoy the occasional glass of wine after the 1st trimester.

Brie/Blue cheese is only a "concern" if it is unpasterized and unless you are eating at a very high end restaurant or at a farm, its probably pasteurized. Concern with deli meat is listeria, which, granted, can be bad if you get it, but the odds of you getting it are INCREDIBLY low.

I've eaten pretty much everything on the "no" list this pregnancy. I did hold back on a few things during the 1st trimester (I figure I'm growing organ systems) but once I hit 2nd tri then if I want some salami, yummy cheese or a glass of wine then I'll have them...in moderation of course.

A

Oooh, I was just waiting for someone to tell me they indulge in a little sushi from now and then. And I was totally with you right up until the wine! I promise it's not a judgement thing...it's more of an anxiety thing. I can't tell you how many children I've met with F.A.S as a teacher. I am terrified of that happening to my child.

I can see that you already have two beautiful little boys, so clearly you're doing alright! I think after the first trimester I will probably sneak in a little sushi and smoked meats, but I can't see myself ever risking it with a glass of wine.

@111emd - my sister is a pediatrician, my dad is an OBGYN and my personal OBGYN all told me the occasional glass of wine is fine. 4 oz, once or twice a week.

For a child to get FAS you would have to drink the equivalent of 2 bottles of wine, per day, for 2-3 weeks. Of course, do what you feel comfortable with, but a small glass of wine here and there will not cause FAS!

A

Ah! Okay, I wasn't aware there was a guideline at all. Man, that has got to be awesome having so many resources like that within your family. This is our first and I even though I took all those Child Development classes for my teaching permit, that prepared me in NO way for being pregnant! LOL. I remember my husband and I talking about how handy all those classes would be when I got KU, what a joke! TBH, I am not all that big on wine anyway, but I am STOKED to hear that women are still having a slice of brie here and there. I was not looking forward to 9 months without my cheese plate!

trisholio · December 2013

I am so glad to read there are women out there that are not crazy obsessed about their diets when pregnant. We tried to get pregnant for almost a year, so I knew things were going to change when it actually happen. Now that I am 5 weeks along things are starting to hit me hard. People keep telling me more and more stuff I can't do or eat. I thought I had a pretty good sense about all of this before, but people and books started to freak me out. I finally just decided to let others scare me and I will avoid the major things, and eat others in moderation.

Milo5181 · December 2013

My first pregnancy I ate sushi once a week, and generally did not watch what I ate at all. Unless i was going to get dirty looks from people for being the pregnant lady eating brie or drinking wine, I generally indulged, and it was totally fine. I actually was more restrictive about my intake once I started breastfeeding--I cut out dairy and caffeine because they made my son cry. Use your judgement to make sure the sushi, deli meats and cheese are from reputable sources. You'll be fine.

strmbreez · December 2013

Great thread! So far, no one's told me to NOT eat anything except for a one friend who learned that ramen noodles (go figure) are one of the only things besides crackers and white rice that I can keep down right now. Went off about how horrible it was that I'm not eating properly for the baby. I can totally understand the fact that ramen has huge amounts of sodium, so I started just using half the seasoning packet. But I figure, if it's all I can eat on certain days, then it's what I'm going to eat, regardless of what people say. I can't wait until I start wanting to eat yummy foods again, like sushi.

sarahg8r · December 2013

111emd said:

rowanthefrog said:

111emd said:

rowanthefrog said:

I had sushi last night and I enjoy the occasional glass of wine after the 1st trimester.

Brie/Blue cheese is only a "concern" if it is unpasterized and unless you are eating at a very high end restaurant or at a farm, its probably pasteurized. Concern with deli meat is listeria, which, granted, can be bad if you get it, but the odds of you getting it are INCREDIBLY low.

I've eaten pretty much everything on the "no" list this pregnancy. I did hold back on a few things during the 1st trimester (I figure I'm growing organ systems) but once I hit 2nd tri then if I want some salami, yummy cheese or a glass of wine then I'll have them...in moderation of course.

A

Oooh, I was just waiting for someone to tell me they indulge in a little sushi from now and then. And I was totally with you right up until the wine! I promise it's not a judgement thing...it's more of an anxiety thing. I can't tell you how many children I've met with F.A.S as a teacher. I am terrified of that happening to my child.

I can see that you already have two beautiful little boys, so clearly you're doing alright! I think after the first trimester I will probably sneak in a little sushi and smoked meats, but I can't see myself ever risking it with a glass of wine.
@111emd - my sister is a pediatrician, my dad is an OBGYN and my personal OBGYN all told me the occasional glass of wine is fine. 4 oz, once or twice a week.

For a child to get FAS you would have to drink the equivalent of 2 bottles of wine, per day, for 2-3 weeks. Of course, do what you feel comfortable with, but a small glass of wine here and there will not cause FAS!

A

Ah! Okay, I wasn't aware there was a guideline at all. Man, that has got to be awesome having so many resources like that within your family. This is our first and I even though I took all those Child Development classes for my teaching permit, that prepared me in NO way for being pregnant! LOL. I remember my husband and I talking about how handy all those classes would be when I got KU, what a joke! TBH, I am not all that big on wine anyway, but I am STOKED to hear that women are still having a slice of brie here and there. I was not looking forward to 9 months without my cheese plate!

The problem is, they aren't going to do an extensive study on women who drink during pregnancy, for obvious reasons. So there isn't a lot of data out there to say how much alcohol, at what stage of pregnancy, causes FAS. Which is why, the general guideline has become no amount of alcohol is safe. It's probably also due to the fact that they don't want people hearing a glass now and then is okay and they abuse it and it becomes a bottle now and then is okay. But really, FAS is a problem associated with chronic alcoholics and heavy binge drinkers. So that warning probably isn't going to work for them anyway.

You have to remember that up until recently, women weren't told to stop drinking during pregnancy (or eating deli meat, or any number of other things). In the 1960s, women were actually encouraged to drink alcohol to halt early labor! It wasn't until the 1970s that we even had a term for FAS and it wasn't until the 1980's that we had a societal shift in thinking about drinking (and smoking) during pregnancy. Obviously, every child born up to that point, wasn't diagnosed with FAS. So, logicially, you'd have to assume that some amount of alcohol during pregnancy is okay.

Mrs.DeRuysscher · December 2013

I eat sushi now as well as many types of fish/shellfish i spoke with my doctor about it and he says its just the fish that would have high mercury like king tuna to staw away from and raw fish, he also said to limit the amount to 12 oz each week. he said deli meats but i have heard many people just staying away from the deli counter because the temperatures arn't always controlled so they go with either pre packaged or the but and cook/cut themselves. My doctor basically said just be smart about it make sure your food is cooked to not get a food poison and stay away from non-pasteurized they say there is a lot of myths out there that people freak out on. when in doubt/ question talk with your doctor

biglewzer · December 2013

I had sushi, fried pickles, and diet coke for lunch today in honor of you ladies.

111emd · December 2013

strmbreez said:

Great thread! So far, no one's told me to NOT eat anything except for a one friend who learned that ramen noodles (go figure) are one of the only things besides crackers and white rice that I can keep down right now. Went off about how horrible it was that I'm not eating properly for the baby. I can totally understand the fact that ramen has huge amounts of sodium, so I started just using half the seasoning packet. But I figure, if it's all I can eat on certain days, then it's what I'm going to eat, regardless of what people say. I can't wait until I start wanting to eat yummy foods again, like sushi.

So over in the vegetarian area there is a package of fresh ramen that has NO msg and of course is not fried. It does come with a seasoning packet but that's all salt- so throw it out and use some veggie broth or some chicken broth instead. I've also been eating ramen throughout my pregnancy and I know the deep fried salty crap is awful for you. I think the fresh ones are called "Yakisoba" but I swear they are the same thing and they are delish!

111emd · December 2013

biglewzer said:

I had sushi, fried pickles, and diet coke for lunch today in honor of you ladies.

I had my husband bring home sushi last night. I got cooked rolls only because I am still a teeny bit worried (still in first trimester). It was divine. Why does sushi have to be SO good??

Also, fried pickles are amazing

Kaybaby02 · January 2014

I miss eating my steak med rare..

strmbreez · January 2014

111emd said:

strmbreez said:

Great thread! So far, no one's told me to NOT eat anything except for a one friend who learned that ramen noodles (go figure) are one of the only things besides crackers and white rice that I can keep down right now. Went off about how horrible it was that I'm not eating properly for the baby. I can totally understand the fact that ramen has huge amounts of sodium, so I started just using half the seasoning packet. But I figure, if it's all I can eat on certain days, then it's what I'm going to eat, regardless of what people say. I can't wait until I start wanting to eat yummy foods again, like sushi.

So over in the vegetarian area there is a package of fresh ramen that has NO msg and of course is not fried. It does come with a seasoning packet but that's all salt- so throw it out and use some veggie broth or some chicken broth instead. I've also been eating ramen throughout my pregnancy and I know the deep fried salty crap is awful for you. I think the fresh ones are called "Yakisoba" but I swear they are the same thing and they are delish!

Awesome!! Thanks, I'm going to the store tonight to see if I can find it.

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