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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Holidays in France while pg

29 replies

earthwormalot · 25/05/2011 15:49

Hi,

I will be (touch wood) 23 weeks when we hit la France for a lovely holiday soon. Have read a few things on here about toxoplasmosis being prevalant in France, and that mums to be there are tested regularly for it. I assume that if I follow the same guidelines as we have in the UK - i.e. avoid meat that still moos and wash veg and fruit really well then I'm no more at risk there than I would be here.

Would that be about right?

Oh, and any tips for travelling with a bump would be gratefully received too.

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

brizzagirl · 25/05/2011 15:55

It's fine! The main problem is trying to avoid all that lovely runny cheese

As for travelling with a bump, just take it easy and don't do too much. Have a lovely time.

Original poster

earthwormalot · 25/05/2011 15:57

I know brizza, it'll be painful watching DH eat my share of the cheese, wine and pate. Thanks for the advice.

OP posts:

kktpj · 25/05/2011 16:06

france at 16 weeks last summer nearly killed me
no wine, soft cheese , choc mousse or lightly cooked meat
and dh and 3 teenage dcs who laughed at it all!!!!!

Newmom2b · 25/05/2011 16:13

hmmm why no Choc mousse??
I'm off to france in July and i'll be 29 weeks... I love soft cheese! :-(

jamama · 25/05/2011 16:18

"hmmm why no Choc mousse??" unfortunately often has raw egg white in it, so not on the safe list.

Original poster

earthwormalot · 25/05/2011 16:23

Thanks for your responses. I hadn't even considered the choc mousse factor, I did not think this trip through! Still, there's always the pain au chocolate - they are safe, right?

OP posts:

midnightexpress · 25/05/2011 16:28

Without wishing to put a damper on your hols, also maybe check with your GP/midwife before you go that you have immunity against measles - there's an epidemic in France atm, and I don't think you can have an MMR when you're pg.

icravecheese · 25/05/2011 16:34

We regularly visit france when I'm pregnant - currently with no.3, as my inlaws live there. I think French take toxo more seriously than the UK because, in general, the french eat ALOT more rare/undercooked meat than we do in the UK, so if a french preg woman tests negative for toxo at the start of her pregnancy, she is then tested every month throughout to make sure she hasnt caught it. I think the advice in France is pretty much the same as it is here, however I have recently heard that pregnant french women should avoid eating salad/ raw veg in restaurants incase it hasnt been washed properly & therefore harbours toxo parasites from the soil still on the veg....I think this is slightly overkill personally & only heard about it during this pregnancy - have always eaten salads in france in restuarants for my previous pregs (I'm still toxo negative!). I have to admit, I do find it quite tricky eating out in France when preg as they LOVE meat so much & don't really do 'veggie' options. However, we dont really eat out much anymore due to 2 little ones in tow, so if you're self catering, you'll be just fine! Enjoy your hols, am sure you'll have a FAB time!

KatieWatie · 25/05/2011 16:49

Hi - I'm currently 21 weeks, I went to France at 14wks, 16wks and will be going at 29wk and 34wk (have a place there).

The hardest bit for me is being surrounded by wine, cheese and pate I can't have. Also as per icravecheese they are WELL into their undercooked meat. Even if you order it bien cuit it is still equivalent to our medium rare. I ate salad out a lot in France without realising it was bad, it was only on returning and my French friend told me they have the same attitude to pg women eating salad as we do to them eating pate and whathaveyou. Anyway touch wood it hasn't caused me any problems.

Ordering plat du jour has been a totally pointless exercise for me - it's usually a starter of pate, main of some weird looking uncooked meat, choc mousse for dessert with cheese board to finish off. Oh and a glass of wine. Fabulous :( So I'd advise ordering off the menu!

I've generally found eating out in France a bit of a trauma while pg and we tend to just eat at home

Original poster

earthwormalot · 25/05/2011 16:51

Thanks all. Thanks for the info midnight, I had no idea. I've searched mumsnet now and will give GP a call tomorrow to ask about me and DD who is only 2.5 and had 1 dose of MMR so far.
Icrave, yes we are self catering. I think we will eat out sometimes but only after I have studied the menu first.

OP posts:

ParisPreMom · 25/05/2011 17:30

Hi,
I've been living in France for 8 years and am now pregnant in France and NOT immune to toxo. Is there no way you could get tested before you come? Imagine you're already immune (apparently 30% of British women are) and you miss out on all the good stuff for no reason!
If it turns out you're not, then you have to take the precautions listed above. What I try to do is find places that are always busy, which means the food is ordered frequently and therefore FRESH. I avoid salads too, which are ofen not washed thoroughly.
Have fun!

Othersideofthechannel · 25/05/2011 17:42

Isn't it only soft cheese made from unpasteurised milk which is a problem? Sadly, most of the camemberts etc are made from pasteurised milk nowadays. In fact, it's quite hard to find a decent unpasteurised camembert in a lot of French supermarkets.
If I am right, you need to avoid anything with 'lait cru'.

MmeLindor. · 25/05/2011 17:46

where are you going in France? The measles outbreak is worst in a couple of different areas (one of which is the area next to us, which is why we are hearing a lot about it).

You can always look for Italian restaurants. You will be fine there, as long as you avoid carbonara.

Booboostoo · 25/05/2011 17:48

I spent most of my pregnancy in France and as far as I understand it the further south you go (towards the hotter climates) the more at risk you are from toxo and listeriosis. Having said that, all packaged food will say on the label if it contains pasteurised milk (safe) or not (unsafe), and I found all restaurant staff were extremely knowledgeable about pregnancy and would point out items on the menu I may wish to avoid. I did avoid eating salads in restaurants I didn't know well.

icravecheese · 25/05/2011 17:49

or chinese... we've been to several fab chinese restaurants in france, AND they serve french bread on the side!!!

Original poster

earthwormalot · 25/05/2011 17:57

MmeLindor, we are heading to the edge the Charente-Maritime departement for a week and then up to Brittany (nr St Malo) for a few days.

Italian food sounds like a plan and will aim for the busy places. TBH, I tend to err on the side of caution anyway so if I'm not sure then I will just avoid and with DD we will be eating in the gite a lot anyway. I'll just have to make up for it next year.

Thank you all for your advice. Will see what the GP says about measles, I am not sure if we had vaccines for this when I were a lass (only 30 years ago I hasten to add) and I don't think I've had the virus so will be led by GP.

OP posts:

Original poster

earthwormalot · 25/05/2011 18:02

Taking all of your advice on board, thank you. When I had my DD I was obsessed about what I could and couldn't eat. I'm trying to be a bit more relaxed about it this time, without taking any un-necessary risks that is.

OP posts:

MmeLindor. · 25/05/2011 18:05

this website is good for info (in French) about where the worst of the outbreak is.

LeMousquetaireAnonyme · 25/05/2011 18:14

Charente and Brittany, have a feast of fish, it is good for the baby's brain. (avoid shellfish though). Actually , creme brulee is much better than mousse au chocolat and you can have it! yeah!
You can get tested for toxoplasmosis.

Original poster

earthwormalot · 25/05/2011 18:14

Thanks Mme, that's great.

OP posts:

Original poster

earthwormalot · 25/05/2011 18:16

The thought of creme brulee is making my mouth water! I'm not sure where I'd start in organising testing for toxoplasmosis, as I assume it'd need to be done privately.

OP posts:

blueberrysorbet · 25/05/2011 18:30

spent lots of time in france as my in laws live there. follow the same advice as here, depends where you are staying, the markets have lots of lovely food to cook with, fruit is amzing, just wash it as you would here.

restaurants- how is your french? tell the waiter you are pregnant so he will know to steer you clear of any dishes with foie gras involved (or ingredients you should not have) he will also be able to placate the chef when you order a cheese sandwich off menu as you have to have one NOW!!

drink lots of water, avoid the charcuterie, pate and soft cheese which is a shame. it will smell too, so you might feel a bit sick...

my french friends thought i was nuts to not want to eat pate etc as they all did and were ok, plus I wasn't drinking wine either (mon dieu!)

make sure you have a e card thing in case you need a doctor, and you can look up where you would need to go with a map if you need help. have a french english dictionary with you just in case if your french isn't so good.

travelling with bump - don't wear anything with a waist band that might dig in as you will be sitting for ages. a long wrap dress was good for me. drink lots of water. take lots of nibble plus gaviscon in sachets if you need it. take it slow, ensure lots of time, let people know you are pregnant- they will help you, make your travel easier and if anything should happen will look out for you.

france is lovely! have a lovely time:)

icravecheese · 26/05/2011 08:15

Many thanks for the measles link MmeLindor, we're off to france at the end of june so thought I should check it out, luckily Normandy where we're heading seems pretty low at the moment. Funny you mentioned this yesterday - its all in the UK news this morning about there being a UK outbreak too now....gosh, there is always something new to worry about in pregnancy - last yr swine flu risk, this yr measles!

ParisPreMom · 26/05/2011 09:10

I wouldn't recommend Italian restaurants in particular, which also serve unpasteurised cheese and LOTS of desserts with raw eggs or cheese - tiramisu, for one!

Tangle · 26/05/2011 10:39

Othersideofthechannel - sadly, the advice is to avoid any mould ripened cheese (brie, camembert, roquefort, chevre, etc - anything that's blue or has a rind) whether its made from pasteurized milk or not. The logic is that a mold ripened cheese is, of necessity, an environment that encourages the growth of bacteria. You only need to get a stray spec of listeria in the immature cheese (post pasteurization) and the mature product will be laden with it. Its much less of an issue for hard cheese as the salt content is substantially higher and so the whole thing is a much less amenable place for bacteria to make a home.

Hope you have a good time earthworm (don't forget any cheese is OK if its well cooked - you don't have to avoid them completely...) :)

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