A food question…

[Negangirlxx]

Hey guys,

Can you, or can you not eat Rare or Medium Steak, when pregnant?

So much conflicting information. It does say avoid undercooked meat, but I wondered if steak was different. I’ve got a meal at a steak place soon, but I’ve literally just tested positive for pregnancy, and I love steak, and I think having it well done just ruins it. (If you like it well done then I’m sorry, it’s just my personal opinion, please don’t hate me lol).

What did you guys do? Did anyone risk it and eat medium steak?

Thanks in advance! 🩷

(I’ve only been pregnant once before, and it ended in miscarriage early on, so the whole pregnancy thing is still very new to me. Please be kind).

I've eaten medium/rare steak throughout my current pregnancy - not least due to the benefits it has in terms of iron 🙂 I've also had an array of cheeses, seafood and even a baileys at Christmas.

I think it's each to their own and taking the precaution that feels right for you as an individual. Japanese women don't stop eating sushi etc etc.

I have the belief of what will be will be - it's incredibly unlikely to have complications from the majority of foods that we are so often advised against. That's just me though, everyone is entitled to take the risks/not take the risks as they feel appropriate.

I've realised that's all very unhelpful on the whole, so apologies and all the best!

No, it’s really helpful! Thank you for your input, it’s made me feel a little more relaxed about the situation.

🩷

I personally have never risked it. I love steak medium-rare but when pregnant I always go for well done. It’s only for 9 months, is it really worth taking the chance? But aside from the odd extra coffee, I do follow the NHS guidance carefully.

You can eat whatever you like - you’re an adult with agency. However, rare meat is one of the things the nhs advises against in pregnancy due to the risk of food poisoning. It’s up to you to decide.

Thank you for the responses.
It’s all really helpful ☺️

You can eat whatever you like. You’re an adult and you make your own decisions. So if you weigh up the risk and make an informed decision that’s up to you. However it’s not recommended, and for me personally it wouldn’t be worth the risk. I’d deal with (and have - sadly because I agree with you!) well done steak, or order something else. But you have to do whatever you feel is right for you. If it’s a good hygienic place it’s probably low risk, but the nhs advises against it for a reason.

I’m definitely veering towards picking something else off the menu after reading these posts. I think steak is the one thing that will be really hard for me haha ☺️

I completely understand your feelings OP - I absolutely love medium-rare steak, and think well done tastes like old shoe leather. But seeing as the list of things the NHS recommends avoiding is quite short, I have followed it. Husband did steak for me once, I told him to make it well done and he tried but it was still a medium - as soon as I cut into it I felt really sick and had to ask him to recook it. Honestly the thought of bloody meat now makes my stomach turn! So I wouldn’t even be able to eat a medium-rare steak if I wanted to.

After a similar incident with some duck, I’ve now just given up on red meat entirely!

Emily Oster's book Expecting Better really helped me understand why these dietary guidelines exist, and thus to make actually informed choices about what I should do. I really recommend it as a pregnancy read.

As far as steak goes I felt that it was a reasonable risk to take - something like raw mince is far more dangerous as if there is bacteria it will be all mixed through it, rather than with steak or other whole cuts which will only be contaminated on the outside and are going to be cooked to make them safe.
I think everyone has a different boundary but I have always been happy to eat medium rare steak in pregnancy, personally.

@Lillers @ladycarlotta

Thanks so much for your input.

All of this really does help me so much.

I stopped eating steak while pregnant as I totally agree with you, well done just isn’t worth it! I figured for me i’d rather not take unnecessary risks (no matter how small) and that it was only for 9 months. I made up for it by scoffing steak weekly as soon as DD was born 😁

Personally I did not have medium rare or rare steak during pregnancy. I was never really a steak person before but something about not being able to have it made me really want it! Well done wasn't worth it.

It's only a few months and think how good it will taste after you've had baby!!

Ive eaten rare and med rare throughout both my pregnancies

You can eat sushi in this country because the fosh has to be frozen first which kills off the bacteria making it safe to eat. Enjoyed regular sushi and sashimi both pregnancies!

Emily’s book is suggested on mumsnet a lot. I might be missing something so I’m not criticising it, and all women are free to make their own choices, but my understanding is that she’s an economist? I don’t know why her advice is more useful than drs, maternity specialists, nutritionists or other scientists. I haven’t read it though so I don’t want to judge unfairly

Thanks so much for all the responses ☺️

@lioneggs Freezing does not kill listeria. Stops it from growing but won't kill it.

I love sushi and sashimi but personally I don't risk it. :-(

yeah being an economist is only relevant in that she is used to seeing how patterns - and directives - are extrapolated from data, and so this is the approach she herself took when she was navigating her own pregnancy.

Basically the book looks at the data and reasoning these guideline are based on. Eg lots of Americans don't really understand why they are meant to avoid deli meats etc and she explains why that is, iirc has more to do with the fact that it is sitting out at a potentially ambient temperature than with the actual product itself. And caffeine: iirc a lot of the guidelines are based on research in which people retrospectively report how much coffee they drank in pregnancy, revealing that those who drank less were more likely to have a live birth. However, this doesn't necessarily indicate the harmful effect of caffeine on a foetus, rather it is because the mothers of healthy, progressing pregnancies tended to develop an aversion to coffee (alongside other foods) and avoid it for that reason. This is just an example.

It's not intended to debunk the guidelines, more to dig down into what they are actually based on and whether that's relevant to every specific situation. It's really interesting. It definitely empowered me both to adhere firmly to some safety guidelines, and take a less hard line on others, because I understood what they were actually intending to do and in what context.

It's advice based on statistical evidence of risk.

In teams of raw meat, however, I wouldn't take the risk. If you do end up with listeria, my understanding from other resources is that the risk of MC/SB is about 20%, and that's not a risk I would be willing to take for the sake of a steak dinner.

Ah i see, so she’s basically read the studies and just gives you a bit more context to the guidelines.
i typically try and find studies myself on anything I’m not sure of but this sounds useful to have it in one place. Is she American too? I suppose you’d have to be aware that our guidelines are different because our food handling is different. But maybe she touches on that already.

Yes, she's a Professor at Brown University.