Foods to avoid - how strictly do you / did you stick to the guidelines?

[floraflora]

V. early days of pregnancy no.2. Last time I stuck rigidly to the guidelines of what foods to avoid, in a bit of a swotty, good-girl kind of way. This time I feel a little more rebellious. Until I did a test I was swigging sweet sherry left over from Christmas and devouring blue cheese.
The French and Italians don't seem to worry too much, are we just a nation of girl swots who like to obey rules?

birdofthenorth what that article appears to be saying to in the body of the text is that Foetal Alcohol Syndrome is occasionally misdiagnosed as autism and other disorders, because doctors don't ask about maternal drinking? Not quite the same as alcohol being linked to actual autism?

The quote from the expert seems to be at odds with the headline and the top line of the actual story - it seems like quite a confused article to me.

I have been trying to be fairly laid back. I am enjoying a glass of wine once a week - a glass lasts me all evening now anyway. I have completely avoided all mould ripened cheeses and pates etc, but I soon gave into runny egg yolks. I wouldn't eat them out unless I knew they were good quality eggs, but as someone else said, a hard yolk on a poached or fried egg is miserable. I have had a rare steak because I read in the NHS pregnancy book I was given at my booking apt that it's fine as long as the outside is properly sealed.

I'm afraid I haven't worried too much about washing veg and salads - I always do at home but it seems a bit anal when I'm round at friends or family's houses to make a fuss. I have also been eating prawns as they are cooked, after all.

I have cut down on caffeine and I try to stick to one cup of tea and one of coffee a day, but too often I end up having another cup as well.

I'm pretty much sticking to the advice, but not in a manic way.
I did have an early MC last year and did eat Brie a few days before, as SIL who had very recently been pg herself said it was fine - I'll never know if it had anything to do with it, tbh I don't think so, but I'll never know for sure.

In Switzerland where there are a few unpasteurised hard cheeses on the staple menu (Gruyère, Emmenthal) the advice is: The risk from them is pretty low. If you do eat them, just make sure you cut off the rind generously. But if you want to be 100% certain, avoid them.
On the other hand, they have stopped offering routine toxoplasmosis tests, as it is cheaper to have all pregnant women being careful of what they eat rather than testing everyone and then some can be less careful. I'd love to be tested for toxoplasmosis as it would help me be more relaxed about our cat. Is it true that I can just go to the GP and have it done?

I don't worry about cheese in cooked dinners, e.g. fondue, either.

To those who say "people had healthy babies for ever without all these guidelines being around and it's totally OTT" - statistics show that fetal and maternal health have improved dramatically and are still improving. Something that they say/do DOES make a difference.