Eating undercooked meat on holiday

[Storm11]

I'm on holiday atm and had a burger for lunch which had some pink in it - didn't realise until after I had a few bites. It wasn't completely pink but I didn't eat the centre of it just in case. I'm 14+7 weeks pregnant, is this a cause for concern? Has anyone else done this and everything has been ok with the baby?

Feel really stupid now for not making sure before hand. I will check with my mw when I see her next. Will be a lot more careful from now on!

It will be absolutely fine.

I ate rare steak, sushi, some soft cheeses, rare roast beef, lamb, deli meats... most advice around food in pregnancy is about incredibly small percentage risks. Particularly in the UK where food hygiene standards across industrial processes are high.

Unless you’re about to drip feed that you’re on holiday in a remote tropical location with no refrigeration- you’ll be fine.

Read the book “expecting better” and try to relax

Thank you so much for replying. You have put my mind at ease. Haha no i'm in Scotland and do have to say it was one on the best burgers I have had in a long time. I have been staying away from steak as I love it rare - can't have any other way

@Storm11

It’s really really hard being pregnant- it can feel like everything is DANGER!!!
. And lots of the advice is mentally overcautious- really do try and read that book- it’ll open your eyes to some of the crazy we’ve built into pregnancy

And really really try and enjoy it- you’ll never get to eat a burger in peace again in 6 months time.

While I agree a lot of the food advice while pregnant is ott, undercooked burger is a food poisoning risk for everyone. With steak, the bacteria are on the surface and are killed when it is cooked. However, when the steak is minced to make a burger, the bacteria are mixed up in the mince so aren't killed unless the burger is well cooked.

That said, I wouldn't be in the least concerned wrt the pregnancy unless you got sick from it, and even then, it's unlikely to cause any harm.

In Scotland hahahaha!!!

Guessing you're from the UK the title is a bit misleading! I was thinking Spain or something!

As long as you don't feel ill OP you will be fine. It's not just the raw meat that magically hurts the baby if it harbours bacteria which is much more common in those things you're told not to eat. If you feel fine now you're probably fine.

Haha yeah I tried to go back to put that I'm in Scotland lol - I'm new to Mumsnet and couldn't find how to do it.

I think I have been panicking a bit as it's mince and not a steak so it won't have been cooked all the way through properly - learnt my lesson now to always check first and mention it at the start.

I will definitely read the book that has been mentioned - it sounds good.

Thanks everyone