Hi Guys - I posted a similar response with regards to someones questions about prawns, but I asked my OB about things like this early in my pregnancy - he put into context for me that he has been an OB for over 30 years, delivered thousands of babies and has only ever seen 2 cases of listeria. He advised that it is all about food hygiene. If you are preparing the food yourself and know where its been (eg not left on a benchtop lukewarm for hours) it should be fine. He advised that with things like cooked chicken and seafood, if they are refridgerated right away (while hot) and not left to 'fester' lukewarm and wrapped appropriately (airtight) then go for it, obviously dont eat it after its been in the fridge for days on end.

If your own kitchen is clean and your food hygiene standards and storage are good, then trust it

The only thing I was told to avoid are chinese buffets where the food is sitting lukewarm in baymaries all day and food that has been in and out of the fridge and subject to multiple temperature changes and food that I am not sure has been stored appropriately. He even advised the soft cheeses are fine straight out of the fridge (not left on a cheese platter at room temperature at a party) - providing they are pasturised (most australian cheeses are, the imported ones are more likely to be unpasturised). There are lots of mixed messages, so if you are unsure, you have to do whats right for you.

There does seem to be 'Listeria Hysteria' and this is really confusing to pregnant woman and at times it seems you cant eat anything - look at the stats of how many pregnancies are affected, its miniscule, so if you are taking care, there should be nothing to worry about

However, if you are worried - then avoid stressing yourself and dont eat it. I'm not a health professional, just passing on answers to similar questions I have had answered

Best advice, sit down with your OB or qualified care giver and ask them about all the foods you have concerns about. If you followed every list on every website you'd be struggling to put a meal together, which is why I talked to my OB, to try to seperate the fact from fiction

I have avoided alcohol during my pregnany - all these christmas functions make me want a glass of wine (why do we always want what we cant have?? hahahha)

I also agree with Dee with regard to the medications, I have also asked about those and paracetamol (panadol) is fine, and for hayfever sufferers like me Polaramine is great, it comes in a low dosage of only 2mg which is enough to sort my hayfever out, without the drowsyness affecting me. In fact the chemist recommended this was probably the only medication to help with hayfever, runny nose etc while pregnant

Most of the Womens Hospitals in each state have a helpline or health information service if you are unsure about medications etc, so this is a good way to get answers between OB appts from a health professional

Cheers
Naomi