Feta cheese etc OK when pregnant?

[sprout]

I'm confused! Lots of on-line information sources and books say you should avoid blue-veined cheeses, ones like Brie & Cammembert, and Feta, as well as cheese made with unpasteurised milk when pg because of the risk of listeriosis. I've just asked my gynae, who said I only need to avoid things made from unpasteurised milk, but all the rest is OK. How do I know who to believe?

GRMUM, if you're out there, what do they tell pg women in Greece? Is feta OK or not?

this has confused me too throughout my pregnancy.i went to greece on holiday back in may and ate quite a bit of cheese on pizzas and loads of gyros which has yoghurts and feta in it.was about 6 weeks pregnant then but just couldnt help myself.was perfectly fine though.wondered if they have all these 'what not to eat'lists in mediterranean countries?

they don`t in spain karenanne,i told my pregnant friend about pate and brie and she laughed at me as those were her two cravings

Did someone already ask about tunafish? Is it okay?

Current tuna fish recommendations are when pregnant or breastfeeding to eat no more than one fresh tuna steak or 2 tins (of the ordinary tuna size) in a week - because of the high levels of mercury.

Thanks Oakmaiden. I've definitely been eating more than 2 cans a week - I've been craving tuna sandwiches every day. I'll switch to chicken salad.

Thanks bells. Oh dear, I've been eating loads of salami, I don't know why but it didn't occur to me it wasn't cooked. Durr. I haven't eaten any beef or tuna because I'd usually have both of them cooked very very rare, well, blue actually (pretty much sushi in the case of the tuna) so I guess my body is pretty used to rare meat. OK, I'll stop eating it and assume I'm ok though with what I've eaten so far. Roll on November.

The only problem with the salami is the danger of food poisoning - if you haven't had food poisoning from it then it has done no harm at all!

I have had salami throughout my pg and gave birth last month to a healthy baby boy, in mediterranean countries they don't stop eating cured ham whilst pg as this part of their staple diet.
guess their body must be used to it...

I recently met a Japanese woman who laughed at me when I said women here were told not to eat sushi when pregnant. But I guess it's safer to eat sushi in Japan than in England.

A few years back I had a French colleague who became pregnant. To congratulate her, all her French friends clubbed together and sent her a whole Brie and a case of top notch red wine. She said that in France, women are encouraged to eat a small piece of this kind of cheese and drink a glass of wine 'for medicinal purposes'. Has anyone else come across this/!!

In France and Belgium you can eat everything (or just about) in pregnancy but in my experience they have less case of food poisoning !
You can eat all cheeses (sometimes crust is not recommended), you can eat rare meat (or even steak tartare).... the Brits are very different in that regard. And in those country not only can you eat more (and they also generally tend to eat more fruit and veg) they give you vitamin supplement for pregnancy too!!!

Pupuce, they won't let you eat raw/undercooked meat in Belgium if you test negative for toxoplasmosis, nor raw salad/vegetables, nor cheese made from unpasteurised milk. This is my 2nd pg of having to be careful. But you're quite right that otherwise people are much more laid back, don't worry about salmonella or lysteria, let you eat soft cheeses, advise you to drink red wine to keep up your iron levels , and don't ask you before lighting up .

But in B most people have had toxoplasmosis (hence they get tested in pregnancy to check if they are noit immune).
If you are not immune then all advice like in the UK apply... AND MORE - you do get told to ensure all vegetables have been washed before eating - never heard that here !!!

True, Pupuce. And the salad/veg bit is the worst to be strict about in the summer. Do I take it you think the advice is a bit exaggerated and I could loosen up a bit? I'd love to...

Sprout -were you tested for Toxoplasmosis ? Are you not immune to it?
If not well.... I believe the risk is that the vegetrables are not clean and that they may have been contaminated with cat foeces (sp?)... - not sure if there is other reason....in the UK most women are NOT toxoplasmosis immune and they do not get told to wash vegetables and I have no reason to believe they are more hygiene conscious an would automatically wash their veg.... or am I wrong about the Brits ????

A foetus who's mum has toxoplasmosis in pregnacy can be severely damaged.

Just picking up on this thread... I didn't even know you could be tested for Toxoplasmosis and that you could have an immunity to it. All the literature I've read has said it's important to wash all veg and fruit and not to eat ready made salads, or cheese or meat of the deli counter.

Don't quite know what I'm supposed to eat for my lunch then as I'm still working!!

Oh, I'm in the UK...

BR

Yes you can be tested for it and to my knowledge all ppregnant women in Belgium are. Once you had it (I did) you can't have it again.

Yes, bunnyrabbit and Pupuce - in Belgium they test for it routinely, as soon as you know you're pg or sometimes even before. If you're not immune (like me), they then test every month throughout the pg. Toxo is apparently quite common here so the large majority have already had it. I guess with all the stray cats hanging around our vegetable patch, I'd better keep being careful (and yes, of course I wash the veg first before eating it! ).

I don't think Belgian are having toxo becasue of stray cats but because we eat fillet americain (raw meat) or very rare meat...

I eat my meat very rare too (blue rare... you know.. still mooing!!). Wonder if I have had it.. shall ask my mw tomorrow why they don't test here and report back.

They did test me here - I asked when I had my blood test to have it done - they agreed but the GP questioned my request to the MW!
Anyway I am immune...

I have a French book on pregnancy as well as an English one (dh is French) and the French book says to avoid shellfish except for fresh oysers, which are recommended! Perhaps this is because French women are all immune to toxoplasmosis? I wonder if I lived in France for long enough to be able to eat brie now...

Ah but Brie is Listeria, not toxoplasmosis. Sorry!

Great... can one be immune to listeria?

Hi,
I've wondered over here to see if someone can help me as I've been eating feta for weeks and now apparently am told I shouldn't be.
I live in the UK.
I have brought a packet of
SAINS**RYS GREEK STYLE SALAD CHEESE
It doesn't mention pasturised. It is made from Greek cows milk and has a shelf life of two months. Am I being stupid? Do I assume this is pasturised???

Also How would i find out what kind of Feta Nandos use asd I have this awful craving for their mediterranean salad.

Cheers
Charlie 14 + 0