When you're pregnant, you want to do everything you can to ensure your baby is healthy. A big part of that is making sure you're getting proper nutrients from your diet—or staying away from things that could potentially cause harm. Though some are more obvious (three trenta lattes and that gin and tonic), there are several other unexpected things that could actually have serious side effects.
Extra-Rare Meat
Raw or even undercooked meat or poultry contains a risk of contamination with coliform bacteria, toxoplasmosis, and salmonella, so plan on ordering your steak well done for the next nine months.
Unpasteurized Dairy
Dairy is important when you're pregnant because it's loaded with calcium, protein, and vitamin D, but not all dairy products are created equal. You want to avoid anything raw or unpasteurized—and that includes certain types of soft cheeses like Brie, blue cheese, and feta.
Salad Bars
If you think the healthiest thing you can do for your baby is swap the sandwich for the salad bar at lunch, check yourself. While making a salad yourself at home is a great choice, there are many unknown factors when DIY'ing it from a salad bar. You don't know if the food has been kept cool enough, you can't be sure how long it's been sitting out, and there could be a risk of unpasteurized cheese. Any of these factors can come with a risk of salmonella, Listeria, or even E.Coli, so stick to homemade salads for now.
Certain Types of Sushi (and Fish)
Get ready to break up with sushi for a bit, because many types of fish used in sushi (think tuna and swordfish) contain high levels of mercury, which has been linked to developmental delays and brain damage when consumed during pregnancy.
Processed Meats
If you normally hit up the deli counter to get your sandwich fixings for the week, hold up. It might be quicker, easier and more convenient than cooking a turkey or chicken breast yourself, but deli meats like ham, turkey, chicken, bologna and salami come with a risk of Listeria. If you're dead set on buying prepackaged lunchmeat, make sure it's pasteurized, but to be on the safe side—prepare your own at home.
Raw Shellfish
Raw shellfish is a concern for anyone, but if you're expecting, you especially want to stay away from it, because it's prone to causing illness.
Raw Eggs
Raw eggs, like any other raw food, should be avoided because of the inherent risk of salmonella. But, OK, it's not like you're actually going to be pounding back raw eggs Beauty and the Beast's Gaston-style, straight out of the carton, but the ingredient can actually be found in plenty of other things you eat regularly: Caesar dressing, mayo or even homemade ice cream.
Unpasteurized Juice
Props to you for wanting to sneak in more fruits and veggies, but don't do it through juice—unless you're sure it's pasteurized or you've squeezed it at home yourself and consumed it right away, due to the risk of E. Coli and Listeria.
Caffeine
Of all the things to give up, this may be the most heartbreaking. There's debate on whether caffeine in moderation is OK, but many studies show that caffeine intake can be related to miscarriages, so it may be best to avoid it during the first trimester and keep your caffeine intake under 200 mg per day during pregnancy, according to AmericanPregnancy.org.
Alcohol
Though some experts may argue you can get your drink on occasionally, the CDC still argues against drinking at all, even the occasional glass of wine. Because giving up coffee wasn't hard enough.
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