Fridge door left open

[sarah00001]

I'm 6 weeks pregnant following IVF and worrying a lot at the moment. This afternoon I was working from home in my kitchen for about 3 hours, sitting in front of the fridge freezer, when I realised I hadn't shut the fridge door properly. I'm worried that I may have been exposed to gases during those three hours that my have harmed my feotus. I can't ask the manufacturers as all I know is the make (Indesit) and that it's about 10 years old, but I don't know the model.

Does anyone know if leaving a fridge door open for a long time can be harmful in pregnancy? Thanks, S

I really think you're fine! If the fridge could give off such bad gases just with the door open, it would contaminate everything in it, and that obviously doesn't happen. I think there may be some dangerous gases in fridge freezers, but only if you take them apart.

The gas in a fridge runs through the pipes at the back, not through the fridge itself. When it cools it turns into a liquid (in the pipes) and that draws the heat out of the air in the fridge. No gas would escape just because the door of the fridge was open. You have nothing to worry about, congratulations on the pregnancy.

Id worry more about the stuff in it going off like yoghurt.

The food's fine, it's the same as going shopping and bringing it home (it's probably colder in your slightly open fridge to be honest).

Congratulations firstly!
I sympathise with your worry as when I was preg again after miscarriage I didn't stop worrying really until after the 20wk scan!!

Seriously do not worry about your fridge & the gases. Like a previous poster said just chuck anything that you think might have gone off if you're that worried.

I got told once that there was a documentary about pregnant women and their weird food habits and one pretty much ate nothing but monster munch crisps her whole pregnancy and baby was fine

The point being that there are women out there doing a lot of obviously worse things whilst pregnant & somehow baby does ok most of the time. Sounds like you are doing just fine so just hang in there and hopefully your anxieties will fade as pregnant goes on. Once you can feel the kicks it helps reassure a lot.

What squitchey said.

Congratulations!
As said above, the gases are only in the pipework at the back and would never be released into the fridge. The only thong I would check is if anything has gone soft/ soggy in the fridge.

I was paranoid about really random things when I was pregnant, you are not the only one.
for you.

Ha! "Checking thongs" - not usual to keep them in the fridge is it?
Think I meant checking things

On the food front - everything should be fine. Shops are allowed to keep chilled stuff out of the fridge for upto 4hrs (unless air temp in area is above a certain level, which only normally occurs on very hot summers days) when they get a delivery. The food in that fridge will have been partially chilled for 3hrs - completely safe.