Mum to be here again.
Further to the BBC article from yersterday...
I've taken the varying guidance with a pince of salt personally (or more correctly a small pinch of low sodium salt substitute:)
Various things seem to be discouraged from the pregnant woman's diet accoring to varying bits of advice. I got given a leaflet from the Food Standards Agency by my midwife when I first got pregnant, so I suppose this is the official government view of things. Amongst the recommendations are:
Some cheeses - brie, camembert, goats cheese, stuff with mould rind. While I can understand that artisan, unpasteurised cheeses might be a problem I would be surprised if anyone in the history of personkind ever got ill from eating pasteurised supermarket cheese unless they were lactose interolerant or something. I doubt that Marks and Spencer brie will do me any harm.
Pate, including vegetarian pate - I don't eat meat anyway so pate is no loss but I'm at a loss to know why vegetarian pate is also off limits. Although mushrooms are the food of satan, people don't seem to get ill off eating vegetarian pate made out of them (although if they did it would serve them right :)
Raw or partially cooked egg - this seems fair enough given the previous salmonella scares in the UK. I would have thought that organic free-range egg fro salmonella free flocks would be fine though. I have abided by this rule but I REALLY miss fried egg sandwiches - it just isn't the same when you have to cook the living daylights out of the egg until it is a shrivelled, dried out and hard lump.
Raw or undercooked meat - obviously as a non-meat eater I think any meat is yuk so this hasn't been hardship.
Liver products - I've never got over the trauma of having to cook liver and onions in cookery class at school when I was 11. I am all in favour of teaching kids how to cook but who in their right minds eats liver and onions. Yukkedy yuk!
Some types of fish - Apparently you should avoid shark, swordfish and marlin. Now I don't know about you but we don't eat huge amounts of shark round my way....not on the menu at the local chip shop last time I looked. You should also limit fresh and canned tuna. This is all because they contain high levels of mercury which can damage the nervous system of the developing baby. Now call me old fashioned but surely high levels of mercury aren't good for anyone????? But apparently it is only us preggo folk who should worry...
Undercooked ready meals - Now I don't know about you but there is nothing I like more of an evening than a partially cooked ready meal...oh no hang on.....
Raw shellfish - Shellfish seems fair enough as this is something that is a known food poison risk and I actually know people who have got ill from eating dodgy prawns or mussels. Never have been huge of shellfish anyway so all we have had is frozen prawns which have been thoroughly defrosted and then thoroughly cooked. This section of the leaflet contains the excellent advice that 'food poisoning can be particularly unpleasant when you?re pregnant.' I've never had food poisoning but I have always imagined that spending a few days effectively leaking at both ends probably isn't a barrel of laughs for anyone but do feel free to correct me if I've got the wrong end of the stick here.
Peanuts - As I have a family history of allergic conditions such as asthma I have steered clear of peanuts, but that was no great hardship as I don't really eat them anyway.
Apparently processed food is fine though so you must excuse me while I just get back to my Sunny D and Dairylea Lunchable...just don't tell Jamie Oliver *
* please note that I am possibly the last person in the world who will ever eat a Dairylea Lunchable. Interestingly the top result that came up when I Googled 'Dairylea Lunchable' to check the spelling was a product recall notice from the Food Standards Agency...
Further to the BBC article from yersterday...
I've taken the varying guidance with a pince of salt personally (or more correctly a small pinch of low sodium salt substitute:)
Various things seem to be discouraged from the pregnant woman's diet accoring to varying bits of advice. I got given a leaflet from the Food Standards Agency by my midwife when I first got pregnant, so I suppose this is the official government view of things. Amongst the recommendations are:
Some cheeses - brie, camembert, goats cheese, stuff with mould rind. While I can understand that artisan, unpasteurised cheeses might be a problem I would be surprised if anyone in the history of personkind ever got ill from eating pasteurised supermarket cheese unless they were lactose interolerant or something. I doubt that Marks and Spencer brie will do me any harm.
Pate, including vegetarian pate - I don't eat meat anyway so pate is no loss but I'm at a loss to know why vegetarian pate is also off limits. Although mushrooms are the food of satan, people don't seem to get ill off eating vegetarian pate made out of them (although if they did it would serve them right :)
Raw or partially cooked egg - this seems fair enough given the previous salmonella scares in the UK. I would have thought that organic free-range egg fro salmonella free flocks would be fine though. I have abided by this rule but I REALLY miss fried egg sandwiches - it just isn't the same when you have to cook the living daylights out of the egg until it is a shrivelled, dried out and hard lump.
Raw or undercooked meat - obviously as a non-meat eater I think any meat is yuk so this hasn't been hardship.
Liver products - I've never got over the trauma of having to cook liver and onions in cookery class at school when I was 11. I am all in favour of teaching kids how to cook but who in their right minds eats liver and onions. Yukkedy yuk!
Some types of fish - Apparently you should avoid shark, swordfish and marlin. Now I don't know about you but we don't eat huge amounts of shark round my way....not on the menu at the local chip shop last time I looked. You should also limit fresh and canned tuna. This is all because they contain high levels of mercury which can damage the nervous system of the developing baby. Now call me old fashioned but surely high levels of mercury aren't good for anyone????? But apparently it is only us preggo folk who should worry...
Undercooked ready meals - Now I don't know about you but there is nothing I like more of an evening than a partially cooked ready meal...oh no hang on.....
Raw shellfish - Shellfish seems fair enough as this is something that is a known food poison risk and I actually know people who have got ill from eating dodgy prawns or mussels. Never have been huge of shellfish anyway so all we have had is frozen prawns which have been thoroughly defrosted and then thoroughly cooked. This section of the leaflet contains the excellent advice that 'food poisoning can be particularly unpleasant when you?re pregnant.' I've never had food poisoning but I have always imagined that spending a few days effectively leaking at both ends probably isn't a barrel of laughs for anyone but do feel free to correct me if I've got the wrong end of the stick here.
Peanuts - As I have a family history of allergic conditions such as asthma I have steered clear of peanuts, but that was no great hardship as I don't really eat them anyway.
Apparently processed food is fine though so you must excuse me while I just get back to my Sunny D and Dairylea Lunchable...just don't tell Jamie Oliver *
* please note that I am possibly the last person in the world who will ever eat a Dairylea Lunchable. Interestingly the top result that came up when I Googled 'Dairylea Lunchable' to check the spelling was a product recall notice from the Food Standards Agency...
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