Anyone else not worried about listeriosis?

[Neenee Jellybeanie]

Lulu, isn't fruit and raw vege okay as long as its washed?! Surely the caterer washed the stuff first . . .

[Janie]

Salad is very easily contaminated. I personally wouldn't eat it while pg, except for when it's prepared at home.

[Neenee Jellybeanie]

Far out! I had no idea! Are there certain foods in the 'high risk' category that are more high risk than others then?

[Janie]

Yes, but I can't remember them all now. I know rice is particularly bad. As in leftover rice, or cold rice (ie. in sushi).

ETA Eggs can contain salmonella, although I think it's quite rare. The shell is not 100% protective. And of course eggs, like all foodstuffs can grow bacteria.....how do you think they go off?

[Neenee Jellybeanie]

Oh yes, I know about rice. I've had many an arguement with the ILs about it who, when I tell them that you can extremely sick if you leave rice at room temperature, say "You are 100% wrong" just because they've always done it. Doesn't mean there was never a chance of getting sick! Or more likely, people *have* gotten sick but didn't realize what caused it. I am very pedantic about rice since a customer at one of my jobs a while back got food poisoning from our rice. To be honest I blame the manager for not educating the staff on this matter.

True that eggs go off lol, but even stuff that's vaccuumed sealed does too. What's my point? I have no idea, I think I'm having a pregnant moment actually XD

[LimeSlice]

The water content is what is important Nee...the more water, the more chance of bacterial growth.
Hence rice being the most hogh risk food people dont thin about...same for fruit salad.

The pathogens in mouldy capsicum cannot be digested by the body normally, so during pregnancy can make you quite sick...

With eggs - it should just be taken for granted that they are 50% salmonella lol treat them as if they are going to make you sick to begin with,,,but ut us actually people not wasing their eggs that can cause most of the problems. The faecal residue on the shells can contaminate the egg at the time you break it, also other chemicals and bacteria from the birds themselves cause illness very easily - always wash your eggs before using them

[Neenee Jellybeanie]

Thanks, that makes sense actually. Lol I hate it when the eggs in the carton have poo on them *vomit*, I usually wash or at least wrinse my eggs anyway for that reason.

So if water content is the biggest factor, just how bad is sliced meat? And also, this means I shouldn't get salad rolls from the deli for lunch anymore hey?

[Lulu]

Lulu, isn't fruit and raw vege okay as long as its washed?! Surely the caterer washed the stuff first . . .

Once it's been cut, it's high risk. In this case they hadn't washed the outside of the fruit before cutting (it doesn't mean it didn't look clean), the fruit salad was packed in takeaway containers and was there for 3 days before serving. All wrong - and yes the caterer is under strict regulation.

[Willow]

^ Just goes to show you how careful you need to be

I am as worried about it this prg as I have been in my last 3 - just because it's a subsequent prg, doesn't lower the risk any. I don't really understand the theory of 'relaxing this time around'.

I have found it a LOT easier being at home for the majority of this prg. Working and trying to safely transport and store food at work or eating in food courts in the city was a bit of a nightmare.

[Inanna]

Mmmm you may or may not have more chance of being in a car accident but you still put on your seatbelt - yes???

Lulu is spot on. Once a fruit has been diced and refrigerated even in your FP at home it has a much higher risk of listeriosis...

Deli ham is a nightmare and I wouldn't eat it and did not.

Most hospitals have a disclaimer when you choose a meal and any meal with fruitsalad or fresh salad and meat is deemed unsuitable for pregnant women and the immuno suppressed...

It is not rare to contract listeriosis - it is not common either. It happens and when it does it's an awful tragedy with terrible outcomes.

It's wise to be cautious but not paranoid. Tempting fate I would not do - but if you do eat something and think later... Don't panic just learn from it and file it for wisdom.

Takeaway shops with salads in bain maries and the salads in these at supermarkets are asking for trouble. Sliced ham at the deli is something I wouldn't risk. Feta, Ricotta and soft moulded cheeses I would steer from too. Fresh juices from Boost etc I would also steer away from. The fruit is pre cut and cold... Warning there!!!

I have had 11 pregnancies and I was cautious with every one. It's not long to abstain from these things in my opinion. I have seen fetal deaths from listeriosis and it's awful. I don't think it's worth being casual about it.

[rufalina]

I am as cautions as I was first time round, and would be any time I am pregnant. I know it is not a common issue, but I don't want to be the one it happens to, and to know it was something I could have avoided.

I agree with Flowerchild, 9 months is such a short timeframe in the grand scheme of things, that I would prefer to know I was doing everything I could to protect the precious bundle I am nurturing what ever the cost to myself. It is hard and I miss foods and activities, but I can deal. And can catch up later. Plus, the anticipation of tucking into raw salmon sushi rolls after this baby is born can keep me going...

[Sagres]

I would say I am aware of it and follow a few simple rules but would say I am a long way short of being worried. I mean it is a risk thing, there are degrees of risk. It's not like exposure to a very low level risk is GOING to be detrimental. There are big risks and small risks....and with any risk there is likelyhood and likely outcome. If I have 1 piece of ham that was not cut as recently as I thought it was, the likelyhood that I have some reaction to it may be reasonably high, but the likely outcome is that I feel a bit iffy until my next trip to the toilet and nothing more.

I could never quite understand my friend who wouldn't buy a larger tub of yoghurt (only individual tubs) while pregnant, but happily walked to the shop to buy it crossing a couple major roads that didn't have pedestrian crossings or drove her car. I think the perceived risk/likelyhood/likely outcome of listeriosis is vastly overestimated - well it was for my friend.

[Inanna]

You are quite right not to be worried but be cautious.

Do you realise though that many cases of listeriosis are asymptomatic?
There are no low level or high level cases. You either have listeriosis or you do not. How it affects an individual will vary. There are documented cases of women contracting listeriosis without affect on the fetus also. (however, the risk to the fetus is very high)
Listeriosis is dangerous throughout pregnancy in the first trimester contracting it usually ends in miscarriage. In later pregnancy the result can be stillbirth or premature birth...

As for it being vastly overestimated I couldn't be cofident in agreeing with that statement. If you develop listeriosis the risk to the fetus is very high. By following some fairly simple guidelines your risk is incredibly low. I've never really understood the difficulty with just erring on the side of caution. Nor do I understand why we think it's odd when a woman is quite strict with her dietary choices in pregnancy. I was - losing babies in the second trimester (& the first & third) is incredibly traumatic. Each time the likely cause was listeriosis. However that was discredited after pathology.

We all come at life from our own experiences. My experiences showed me that caution isn't too hard for a few months of my life.

[Sagres]

As for it being vastly overestimated I couldn't be cofident in agreeing with that statement.

Yeah, I agree I didn't say that very well. I think most people have a healthy approach to minimising the risks, but there are some groups of people who overestimate how likely it is to happen, I mean the people who take the approach that if you have any exposure to any risk factor at all, you WILL be affected adversely, as opposed to thinking that you are increasing your risk, which is a more realistic.

[bon]

I am careful, but not worried. I am definite about staying away from deli meats and salads and those roast chickens they have in the deli. I remember a story they once did on today tonight, where they tested those chooks for salmonella and listeria, amongst other things, and just about every chicken they tested was positive for one or both of those bugs. So there is no way I will eat one now, pg or not. Much safer to cook your own.

I am craving smoked salmon atm though - haven't had any, but oh how I would love a plate of smoked salmon pasta, or a bread roll with smoked salmon and cream cheese. I have actually told DH that when I come home from hospital I want a cheese platter waiting for me.

[FabFiona]

I am craving smoked salmon atm though.

I had a dream about smoked salmon.... I am also missing this very much. I used to have a sushi box at least once a week and I am missing that.

Like someone else said, I'm alert but not alarmed. It's not a very long time to go without and to be honest I've gone off a lot of those foods anyway. I think it's the bodies natural way of saying stay away.

[krysalyss]

when I come home from hospital I want a cheese platter waiting for me.

Ha ha! I actually had three people bring me soft cheese in the hospital or soon after I got home. It was heaven! Blue cheese in cooked dishes just isn't the same as on a cracker.

[buliej]

I personally think that understanding the rules about what you can or cannot eat are very important - I just have trouble remembering all of them and also figuring out what to eat for lunch in the CBD. In the winter, hot soup is easy but in the summer...very hard plus it's easier for food to go off in the summer. During my very short lived pregnancies I tried to be very careful - it was so hard for me to get pregnant, I wasn't going to be cavalier about contracting something that has the potential of harming the baby.

By washing fruit, veggies, salad at home - do you mean rinse with cold water and dry? or do you mean scrub as you would a potato? curious - what do you do when you are invited to someone's house and you aren't ready to tell them that you are pregnant...do you just hope that they practice proper food handling? do you avoid anything that has a chance of being iffy (like a salad)? What about if they put feta cheese in the salad - do you pick it off (is that enough) or refuse the whole salad? See, I get very confused.

With eggs - I assume eggs cooked through are fine (like scrambled) but poached and other eggs with running yolks are not. Is this right?

With re-heating rice/quinoa/cous cous and other foods that soak up a lot of water - I think I was told as long as it re-heated to steaming hot, then it is ok. Can someone let me know if this is correct.

PS - I mean my silly questions...