So can I eat a McFlurry?

[cupofteaplease]

I really fancied some ice cream and suggested a McFlurry as we were going near McDonald's, but dh said no as it's the same as Mr Whippy and I can't eat soft ice cream.

So I googled, and got conflicting advice, and during my Googling I read that pregnant women can't eat hot dogs either- what? Why? I know they are not nutritionally beneficial in anyway, but I have eaten a couple this pregnancy when I couldn't face anything with any real taste or texture!

Oh, and also, I ate feta cheese yesterday. Thought that only blue/soft cheeses were bad, but feta came up during my Googling.

Any other bizarre foods I should avoid? I'm getting it all wrong!

[LivinInTheMoment]

Lizzy thanks for the link to that article! V interesting.

[CointreauVersial]

Pirate - you are right. I was reading a thread a few months back where someone had miscarried due to toxoplasmosis. So sad.

[nickelbabe]

"Toxoplasmosis from uncooked carrots or medium rare beef is apparently more common than from cat litter! "

but I can only eat carrots if they're raw! I would be sick o nthe spot if I had to cook them first!
(I might conscend to wash them first. [ooh] )

[Bunbaker]

"I agree that women should be able to make their own informed decisions about what they eat during pregnancy."

I agree. The key word here being informed. The guidelines are advice only. It is up to you to decide whether the risk, albeit very small, is worth it.

Anecdotal evidence from the previous generation, who drank, smoked, ate liver etc throughout their pregnancies, is just that. It isn't evidence based research. The ones who were OK will say that it is nonsense and the ones who miscarried will never know that it might have been due to eating some unpasteurised cheese or whatever. So make your own mind up.

The advice the doctor gave me was exactly that, and he also said that if anything went wrong I would always wonder if it was because of something I ate or drank, and I would have to live with that.

[BizzeeBee]

Lizzy I agree that women should be able to make their own informed decisions about what they eat during pregnancy. :)

[cupofteaplease]

Thanks fo rthe link Lizzy

[pirateparty]

As other people have said you are more vulnerable to getting listeriosis etc whilst pregnant due to your immune system being compromised. And no, you haven't had food poisoning until you get it - very odd argument saying I'd you've not had it so far what are the chances now?! As is our parents ate x, y, and z and we're all fine.... Yes because we aren't the babies who miscarried because of listeria etc. But there were those who did, and continue to do so. And we don't look for them after early miscarriage so we don't know either way how many there are. Also some of the infections can just be mild flu like illnesses not severe d&v etc so you wouldn't necessarily know you'd had them.

I don't see not having pate and unpasterised soft cheese for 9 months of my life a massive sacrifice compared to reducing the risk of miscarriage or still birth. But they are risks you can't exclude altogether but you can reduce them, so why wouldn't you?

[LizzyMathsWhizzy]

I stand corrected, BizzeeBee, my french friend laughed at me when I said I wasn't supposed to eat Brie, she said that there was no advice about it there! I still think a little in moderation is unlikely to do any harm, but each to there own.

[BizzeeBee]

Lizzy, to correct what you have said about eating cheese in France, I am currently pregnant in France and I assure you that there is official advice here to avoid soft cheese (like brie) and cheese made with unpasturised milk.

This is the advice on the social security website:
in French
in English via Google translate

[goodegg]

Lizzy thank you for posting that article, it's really interesting and actually very informative. I agree that pg women are massively condescended to in terms of understanding and managing risk.

Toxoplasmosis from uncooked carrots or medium rare beef is apparently more common than from cat litter!

Well I made a lovely risotto with chorizo tonight, prepared and ate it then thought 'ooh, probably not allowed that'

[LizzyMathsWhizzy]

See here I think you can pretty much eat anything you want really, there isn't much scientific evidence behind the advice. If you have never given yourself food poisoning before, you probably won't start now! Note that in France, where everyone eats loads of white rinded and unpasteurised cheese, there is no advice related to cheese. In Spain you aren't allowed to eat any salad... Read the article, she did a lot more research than any of us have time for!

[ButterflySally]

I wondered this too because I'd heard soft-serve icecream was a no-no. However I read through all the NHS and Food Standards agency advice for pregnant women and there was no mention of avoiding it. So I don't think it is particularly something to worry about.

[Poppet45]

I've definitely broken more rules with this PG than my first - having had a huge craving for chorizo and nice cheese for one, then yogs with eggs in it. However I think it's worth taking issue with something someone said above about 'whose ever heard of anyone getting food poisoning from those foods' that's kind of the point: people in peak I hesitate to use the word 'normal' physical health don't, pregnant women with their compromised immune systems and super slow digestion to absorb every vitamin (and food borne pathogen) might and in fact definitely can. The only time I got sick last pregnancy was from some supposedly safe feta. I wouldn't go near a McFlurry with a grubby pokey stick!

[nailak]

when i was worknin mcds as a teenaer they would clean the shake machine and flush the pipes, sterilise nozzles etc every niht and mornin.

the shake and ice cream mix was kept in freezer then defrosted as needed

[danio7]

ahhhhhhhhh

all of the conflicting information is so confusing, why would anyone like to make it any more difficult than it already is for a pg woman!

drink, smoking and drugs are the only obvious nono.

I have not eaten soft cheeses or pate because it was advised my a midwife.
All of my salads have been from a BAG, I eat feta and Mcflurrys and love it!!

Would any of us even be here is any of the ridculous rules exsisted back in the sixties, what did our mum and nans do?!

I think stay away from the obvious.
I'm off to have a soft boiled egg and soldiers :o

[edwinbear]

I've been to Nandos this afternoon and eaten both coleslaw and their frozen yoghurt from their Mr Whippy esque machine. Thoroughly enjoyed it I did too!

[TransatlanticCityGirl]

Jesus... if I avoided every possible food that someone online thought might possibly be a no-no, I'd live off a diet of water and bread.

After 7 months of conflicting advice, I'm of the opnion now that all the stress/worry women cause themselves over every tiny thing is probably more detrimental in the long run. Calm and happy mum = calm and happy baby. Be sensible and use common sense as others here have stated.... but at the end of the day, even if you do make a mistake and eat something you shouldn't, chances are it'll be no big deal anyway.

[nickelbabe]

BTW, the ice cream in a MacFlurry is the same stuff they put in the milkshake - just frozen a bit more.
(i used to work at Burger King, and it's the same there)

I was also told about the runny yolk, and I told the midwife I couldn't give up runny yolks - explained I had my own chucks and they were vaccinated against salmonella, which she agreed was fine, as it was started because of the salmonella scare, and that's the only reason.

[nickelbabe]

yes, it's fine - in fact, my Midwife expressly told me this - she said it was to do with dubious hygiene (in the mr whippy van), and that MacDonald's isn't that bad really.

in fact, she thoroughly recommended it if i felt the need for ice cream

[vj32]

If you have ever seen how McFlurry/Mr Whippy type icecream is made you wouldn't eat it. Honestly. It is yucky crap. And the machines are difficult to keep clean. MacDonald's are often run and staffed by teenagers. If you trust their hygiene practises, then eat there. I would just buy your own ice cream and make your own McFlurry.

[ChunkyPickle]

I always thought that when they said 'soft icecream' that they meant posh italian gelato made with egg... not that that would be an issue since we have innoculated chickens in the UK.

Can you imagine the outcry if Macdonalds started giving people food poisoning? IMO a McFlurry would be fine, but I'd look carefully at the icecream van before having a Mr Whippy (then again I'd do that if I wasn't pregant too)

[CointreauVersial]

Cbear6 is right - it's the fact that soft-whip ice cream is made from powder/water and soft-frozen, so there is the potential for bacterial contamination if the equipment hasn't been maintained properly.

You'd almost certainly be fine in Maccy-Ds, where they follow stringent procedures, but the scummy ice-cream van on the corner may not be such a safe bet.

Again, it all depends what level of risk you are comfortable with. I don't know what the stats are for Mr Whippy Food Poisoning, but I doubt they're massive.

[Misty9]

just eaten a lovely creme egg mcflurry that DH brought home for me :)

[PlumBumMum]

Exactly what cbear said

[Bunbaker]

Why on earth would you want to eat that cack? Get a proper ice-cream and enjoy it with relish. Mcflurries and Mr Whippy "ice-cream" have never been near a cow.