So sue me, I ate ham.

[beckoes]

I ate soft serve icecream yesterday!!! you can only hold out on some things for so long before giving in

[Daytona's Mummy]

OMG YES!! Soft serve! when I'm NOT pregn, I can't stand it but with this pregnancy & last, oh how I have craved it! With DD, I woke up at 2 am crying my eyes out cause I'd been longing for it for so long & resisted the urge! all I can say is " thank god for 24hr Makka's!" big fatty preggy woman scoffing down a couple of cones at 3am must have looked a sight! (I actually took my own iceMagic! very sad!)
Last pregnancy, I had to ask my ob about all the do's & don'ts cause so much had changed since my 1st about 14 years before. said I was missing the soft cheeses & ham's ect. he basically said to me about women in other countries live off that kind of food & they are all ok. I'm guessing spain, greece, those kind of places with all the yummy food.
I was also having the occasional dark beer (like guiness or old) and he said it was fine, there is alot of good in it for BOTH pregnancy & Breast milk. Only side effect I noticed with DD is she will latch onto anyone with a beer & insist they share it! (so lotsa tanties from her when it's refused!)
I havn't touched the runny eggs, but havn't craved it either. I guess it all just comes down to common sense, if it doesn't look, smell right, been in the fridge a few days, you know, the usual common sense you'd normally have!

[Fleur]

I actually took my own iceMagic! very sad!

Classic!

[Rouge]

Smallgoods companies unfortunately have had problems with listeria in the past, you've probably seen the recalls on TV before. Whilst I do understand it's frustrating it is for good reason. I've seen first hand the sadness that follows from listeria during pregnancy and I wouldn't wish that on anyone. BUT and this is a big BUT like all things I know everyone makes their own evaluations when it comes to risk and if you're not bothered I understand that too.

If you do get cravings for ham I was told by my GP that the best cold meat to eat is ham off the bone and get them to slice it fresh, cold meats that are stored sliced are higher risk as they are subject to open air and the fridges are opened and closed so the surface area can warm a lot quicker than a whole piece of meat. I had stacks of ham off the bone the xmas before DS but I steered clear from previously sliced deli meats.

Same goes for sushi, if you know a reputable establishment that can make fresh sushi on the spot rather than previously made that is a lot safer too. Of course making sure the fish is not high in mercury.

[angelaartsstudent]

My midwife last year told me that she used to give women a post-birth Guiness (sp), as it's very good for them and for breastfeeding. So there you go...another vote for dark beers!

[Bathsheba]

When I was pregnant (3 times) I also ate foods on the forbidden list: Camembert, sushi to name a few. But I don't eat red meat (mammals) so didn't eat ham or most deli meats... I also didn't eat pre-sliced chicken.

I think every pregnant women just needs to read up about Food poisoning and Listeria and then trust her mumma instincts. But do the reading first Google it... read... takes only a few minutes. Everyone should understand the basics of food hygiene but it is especially important for pregnant women. I also think that just giving women a "Forbidden Foods" list is over simplifying the issue and creating a false belief that if a pregnant woman simply avoids all the foods on the list she will be ok. Wrong. I think she needs to understand why and how food... almost any food... can become contaminated. THEN the woman can apply her knowledge to the many and varied scenarios she is presented with: "She is at a wedding and hasn't any idea how the food has been stored and prepared... should she risk it? What can she eat instead?" or "a friend is holding a BBQ and offers her a platter of cheese... how long has the platter been sitting on the buffet table? Is it worth the risk?"

Arm women with real knowledge and not just over simplified lists... that's my soap box argument for the day!

ETA: my last bout of really bad food poisoning came from eating a piece of Flinders bread. No it wasn't the filling: avocado. DH had peanut butter on his and was also very sick. It was the bread... bread! Who would have thunk it!!!??? Lucky I wasn't pregnant!

I should add that I've worked in catering and done food hygiene courses and believe that most people are terribly oblivious to some pretty basic practises that could lead to serious health risks. If you didn't listen during your cooking classes at school then don't put it off any longer... you do need to know this stuff and not just rely on a list.

[angelaartsstudent]

I accidently gave myself food poisioning when I was 38 weeks preg....not from meat, or cheese or etc...but from soy milk! I was so busy making my banana smoothie in my pregnant foggy brain that I didn't notice that the soy milk had pretty much solidified in the carton!

God I puked so much I thought I was going to die! :-P

[CrazyCat]

I ate soft serve icecream yesterday!!! you can only hold out on some things for so long before giving in

ahhhhhh I gave in last week and had a soft serve! Couldnt resist it. Especially when my whole family was sitting around eating one infront of me!