Maximizing
your chances
of having a healthy baby It starts with healthy eating.
It's important to get rest and minimize stress during pregnancy.
It's equally and probably even more important to eat nutritious
foods. Some foods carry harmful bacteria and parasites. Take steps
to protect yourself from food poisoning while giving yourself optimum
nourishment.
Listeria monocytogenes (Listeria) Listeria is a bacterium most often found in soft cheeses,
unpasteurized milk products, and packaged ready-to-eat or undercooked
meat, poultry, or seafood. Soft cheeses such as Mexican-style, blue-veined,
feta, Brie, and Camembert are particular targets for Listeria.
Listeria can grow even in refrigerated foods.
Listeriosis causes mild to severe flu-like symptoms in pregnant
women, who can pass the illness to their unborn child. Infection
of the fetus can result in miscarriage, premature birth, blood poisoning
and birth defects. Listeriosis can be treated with antibiotics.
Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) T. gondii, a parasite carried by cats, can also contaminate
food. Most often, toxoplasmosis results from eating undercooked
meat and poultry or unwashed fruits and vegetables, from cleaning
a litter box, or from handling contaminated soil.
Toxoplasmosis usually causes no symptoms or only mild flu-like
conditions in pregnant women, but can be passed to a developing
baby, resulting in miscarriage, disability, and retardation. The
severity of effects in the fetus can sometimes be reduced with antibiotic
treatment.
The Solution: Safe Vegan Eating and Good Hygiene
The following steps can help protect you and your developing baby
from listeriosis, toxoplasmosis, and other foodborne hazards. Pregnant
women are susceptible to all food poisoning, but Listeria
and T. gondii pose a particular threat to fetuses.
Avoid eating animal products.
Why play Russian roulette? Eat a dairy-free plant-based diet,
with a variety of unprocessed fruits and vegetables each day.
Choose organic foods wherever possible and to minimize exposure
to pesticides.
Take a regular B-12 supplement.
Although B-12 deficiency is quite rare in vegans, there have
been a few reported cases found in pregnant women, so drinking
soy or rice milk or other foods which are labeled as being fortified
with B-12, or taking B-12 vitamins, is prudent.
Wash your hands before preparing food, before meals, and
after using the bathroom.
Use hot, soapy water, and scrub well.
Avoid cross-contamination.
If you share a kitchen with meat-eaters, be sure to keep raw
meat separated from other food.
Immediately wash with soap and hot water all knives, cutting
boards, and dishes that contact raw meat, poultry, and seafood.
Always put cooked foods onto clean plates and use clean utensils.
If you share a kitchen with meat-eaters, be sure that
raw meat and poultry in your refrigerator are double-wrapped
to prevent juices from dripping onto other foods.
Wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly under running water.
Store and maintain food properly.
Refrigerate leftovers within two hours. If food is left sitting
out, throw it away.
Cover stored food to keep out all insects, rats, and pets.
Discard foods past their expiration dates; discard leftovers
after a few days.
Further Safety Measures
Avoid cleaning cat litter boxes.
If you do clean the litter box, wear gloves and wash your hands
afterwards.
Wear gloves when gardening and for activities that involve
dirt, and wash your hands afterwards.
Talk to your doctor about Listeria, T. gondii,
and other food safety matters.
If your doctor suspects an infection, he or she can perform a
blood antibody test for Listeria or T. gondii.
If you may have eaten hazardous foods, own cats, or have been
gardening, you are at greater risk for infection.
Hazardous Foods for Pregnant Moms and Young Children
To assure a safe pregnancy, avoid these
foods as much as possible, or insure they have been thoroughly heated.
Meat and dairy
Unwashed Fruits and Vegetables
Raw Eggs and Raw Egg Products
(homemade ice-cream, mayonnaise, eggnog, Caesar salad dressing,
raw cookie dough, and raw cake mix)
Unpasteurized Fruit Juices and Ciders
For More Information on T. gondii or Listeria’s
Risks to Pregnancy Contact:
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
1-800-762-2264 http://www.acog.org
