Toxoplasmosis vs Listeria risk?

[ButterflySoul]

I'm in my second pregnancy and am 'immune' to toxoplasmosis (I had the test as routine in Australia with the first pregnancy and was told I'd had it already at some point in the distant past).

Foods that are 'risky' for pregnant women (whether you believe it all or not) tend to lump foods that are a listeria risk and toxoplasmosis risk together, and I'm not sure which foods are a risk for listeria only. There's the soft cheese, soft ice-cream, deli meats and salads/foods that have been out on a deli counter, but what about fresh meat?

Without the toxoplasmosis risk, I have assumed that it's fine to eat rare steak and roasted meat (I didn't ask this time around because I knew from my first pregnancy), but what about rare burgers? And what about salads (not from a deli counter)? Is there a risk of listeria only from, say, having a salad at a restaurant (as long as it doesn't have deli meats in it that could have been sitting around.

I know the obvious answer is to ask my midwife, but I think they'd be very reluctant to tell me I could eat anything on the listeria or toxoplasmosis risk list, not having seen my toxoplasmosis blood results themselves.

Can I eat rare-ish burgers and salads??? (someone's hungry...)

In theory, it's not recommended you eat rare burgers at any time, pregnant or not, unless the meat is freshly ground. This is because you can't cook the surface area of each strand of mince, and therefore can't use heat to remove bacteria. That said I happily eat rare burgers when not pregnant.

I believe rare burgers would be a listeria risk therefore, but steak not due to the fact you can sear the outside and the inside hasn't been exposed.

I'm not being particularly careful with salads though, but that's personal choice. I don't think the salad thing is to do with them being in proximity to deli meats, I think it's general risk due to them being out in the open.

It should be said I'm neither a scientist nor a medical professional! But you have to make your own choices about where the risks lie. I found "expecting better" a good read for making informed choices.

Thanks... I eat rare mince when not pregnant as well (and raw in steak tartare), and am fairly blasé even now about washing every speck of dirt off vegetables etc. You've echoed what I thought about the 'rules' with minced beef, so sadly it's probably right...