Think I may have had food poisoning from over the counter cooked chicken... Does this affect baby???

[Tamashii]

Sorry for the long title but that's it really.
I ended up in hospital with severe cramping and I fully expected the worst. It felt like major contractions out of the blue, I was sweating profusely and violently sick plus TMI the runs to put it mildly. No one else who had eaten the chicken was remotely ill so it didn't cross my mind that could've been the problem. Turned out I had a urinary tract infection anyway and I was tested for lots of other things too.

Once they had monitored the baby for long enough and I was well enough I was allowed home. I still had an upset stomach a little but nothing compared to the initial excruciating cramping. OH told me the next day he had an upset stomach and our DS had a touch of diahrrea (sp?) too and he was worried it was the cooked chicken we had bought as a quick dinner the night before.

Anyway, to try and cut this short, I am worried now that I may have had food poisoning on top of the UTI and could this be dangerous for the baby? Should I be doing anything about it or will this have been taken into account when I was in hospital since I did say it felt like the worst food poisoning after things had calmed down and told them about the chicken but they seemed happy that myself and baby were okay after the monitoring...

Sorry - I am worrying a bit since I googled food poisoning during PG and freaked myself out again...

PS Sorry this is long again. I can't seem to keep things concise! Thanks for any replies :)

When I was 38 weeks pregnant I got a UTI which caused me to have mild contractions, vomiting and the runs. I felt so ill, the hospital told me to go in and gave me lots of checks. DS2 was unaffected and arrived 10 days late. I just telling you this so you know that a UTI in pregnancy can make you feel that ill. How many weeks are you?

How pregnant are you?

As far as I know, there aren't that many infections that are likely to cross the placenta - so the biggest risk to the baby is likely to be through your health - and that's most likely to be through dehydration.

There is a theory that if you're close to going into labour naturally then forcing your bowels into overtime might give things a kick start (IIRC that's where the "castor oil to trigger labour" idea comes from), but like most things to kick start labour - you need to be on the verge of going anyway for them to have much effect.

If you explained the situation and the hospital were happy for you to go home then I would be reassured by that - if they felt that you or the baby were in any danger they'd have kept you in. That said, if you're mind would be easier for hearing it from them (which wouldn't be at all surprising!) then give them a call and ask them to double check that the food poisoning element was considered and/or confirm what impact that could have.

Hope you're all feeling much better and the rest of your pregnancy is healthy :)

Thanks Tangle I'm 26 weeks....
I am a billion times better today but it's just stupidly googling after I found out OH and DS had been a bit ill too but nothing serious. I think they kept me in as they were worried the cramping was prem labour and I was hooked up to BP and monitoring equipment like the one they attach you to to monitor contractions. The baby was constantly monitored too.
I think I am just being paranoid now but thought I was ask for other's experiences on here esp wrt eating dodgy cooked chicken.

I'm pretty sure that the contractions, etc, that they were monitoring you for is the risk that food poisoning carries. Once that is over there shouldn't be any lasting effects, as the baby's digestive system won't be fully functioning yet anyway. It sounds like everything is fine :)

I suggest you get back in touch with the hospital tomorrow and ask them.

Some types of food poisoning can be serious during pregnancy (that's why some of the food restrictions are in place), but they have monitored you and the baby, and said you're OK. Try not to fret.

They should be able to tell you what they tested for, and, I hope, set your mind at rest.

The only risk with food poisoning in pregnancy (as far as I am aware) is that the uterus is sympathetic to the bowel and therefore the bowel contracting can induce contractions. As you are through the worst of it, I should think you are ok, but best see a consultant to confirm you do not need any further tests or scans.

Glad you're feeling better :)

Listeria is the famous one, and the cause for many of the food restrictions. That can cross the placenta and the consequences can be pretty awful - but AFAIK, listeria is not a risk particularly associated with cooked chicken.

Most of the other bugs that result in food poisoning are more likely to make them mother poorly but shouldn't have a direct impact on the pregnancy. However, the mother being poorly can cause problems other than the bowel contracting inducing uterine contractions - if you get bad D&V it can leave you pretty dehydrated, and that's not a particularly good state when you're trying to grow a baby either!

If you're worried then give them a call and see what they say. If you don't feel your questions have been addressed to your satisfaction, ask to talk to someone more senior until you feel reassured. But I'm sure they wouldn't have discharged you unless they didn't feel confident that you'd both be fine :)

I had food poisoning on pregnancy, all was well. The big thing to watch for is dehydration, so keep sipping water.

I had it for nearly two weeks whilst in Egypt when 4 months pregnant.
I called the midwife who said not to worry just keep hydrated by drinking plenty of water ?!
I nearly pooped in the pool one day !!

Sorry tutu100 your reply didn't come up on my screen yesterday! Thanks for the reply because that is EXACTLY what happened with me. I have nothing at all now that I had the other night and I have been taking the antibiotics since I got home from hospital so hopefully it was just UTI and is under control now. I've been trying to keep hydrated just in case.

THanks to everyone else too for all the replies - it is impossible not to fear the worst especially when people start saying "ooooooh u know x,y,z can do 1,2,3 to the baby...." I don't have any flu like symtpoms or anything that I have seen linked to listeria but it's hard not to worry. They have sent away a urine sample to test for ecoli bacteria apparently but they seem quite happy I didn't have food poisoning... Listeria is pretty rare isn't it?!? Is that the one that is mostly linked to shellfish/moldy cheese???

Thanks again to everyone.

If you had a severe case of listeriosis you'd know about it! It is rare and as far as I'm aware its one of those things where the risk is tiny but its been well publicised, so everyone is hyper alert to the risk. That's not to say its not worth being aware (they've put the effort into publicising as the consequences can be bad, after all - even though the risk of it happening is so tiny), but known cases of listeriosis in pregnancy in the UK really are very rare.

IIRC its mostly linked with soft/mold ripened cheeses, pate, cooked sliced (deli) meat and unpasteurized milk.

If the hospital weren't concerned enough to test for it or keep you in then the chances of you having it are even tinier. And if you're on antibiotics then as its a bacterial infection they should take care of it. So even if you have managed to be in the tiny minority that catch it, and in the tiny minority of that tiny minority where it becomes more than a transient annoyance you and your baby should be fine as you've seen the Drs and they've given you what they think you need.

Glad you are feeling better today. It's impossible not to worry in pregnancy isn't it! But as everyone else had said if the hospital was happy to let you go then everything is fine.

Good Luck with the next 14 weeks.