Can You Eat Deli Meat During Pregnancy?

Deli meat is very tasty but; is it harmful? Mothers most think whether the delicious foods are healthy. We can reach the answers of the questions by going deep into the article I wrote about deli meat and pregnancy.

During pregnancy, the immune defense can be weakened by the changes taking place in the body. Infectious diseases can therefore be more complicated, particularly at this time, and endanger the health of both the mother and the developing child. To avoid a food-borne infection and prevent possible damage to the unborn child, pregnant women should take so-called high-risk foods (deli meat, sausages and raw sausages, raw milk or raw milk products, smeared cheese, cold-smoked fish, raw mussels and dishes that contain raw eggs ) generally do without and pay particular attention to careful kitchen hygiene when preparing and storing food

No raw deli meat during pregnancy

lunch meat pregnancy

Can you eat deli meat while pregnant? If you eat lunch meat during pregnancy, it should always be well cooked or fried. Careful preparation is particularly important for poultry meat. This ensures that any salmonella or parasites are killed.

You should generally avoid raw mett, tartare, smoked Parma ham, salami and bloody steak. Careful hygiene is important when handling deli meat products: make sure that the raw products and their juice do not come into contact with other foods, use separate dishes for the preparation and then clean them as well as the kitchen appliances and your hands carefully.

Toxoplasmosis infection

Like other foods, meat can contain parasites that trigger the infectious disease toxoplasmosis. Adults usually do not notice an infection at all or only suffer from mild flu symptoms. The consequences are more drastic in pregnancy because the unborn child can be seriously damaged. If you have been infected with toxoplasmosis before pregnancy, there is no risk, because afterwards the body is immune. A blood test can provide information in case of doubt.

Otherwise, you should be particularly careful with deli meat products. In the event of infection, the unborn child comes into contact with the parasite via the placenta, which can lead to severe physical and mental disabilities. The greatest risk is an infection in the first trimester of pregnancy, at worst there is a risk of miscarriage.

Listeriosis

The infectious disease listeriosis, caused by the bacterium Listeria (L.) monocytogenes, can break out within a few days up to months after the infectious food intake. The pathogens are common in our environment.

Salads and vegetables should therefore always be cleaned thoroughly before consumption.

In the agricultural field, L. monocytogenes is sometimes found in animal feed, especially in tainted silage. According to this, untreated foods of animal origin such as raw milk and products made from it, deli meat and raw fish can be contaminated with this pathogen. Even already heated or pasteurized raw products can be accidentally recontaminated with L. monocytogenes during further processing, e.g. B. lubricated cheese, sliced, packaged sausages or cold smoked or fermented fish. L. monocytogenes has the special ability to reproduce in the refrigerator at temperatures just above freezing. If the disease occurs, symptoms similar to a flu infection appear in pregnant women. There is a risk that L. monocytogenes affects the unborn child and causes a serious illness of the newborn and even triggers premature or stillbirth.

Kitchen hygiene

With careful kitchen hygiene and general hygiene rules, pregnant women can protect themselves from food-borne infections. The following tips must be observed:

• Make sure you wash your hands regularly and thoroughly before and after preparing food, after contact with animals and after using the toilet.
• Use clean towels, possibly disposable towels to dry your hands.
• Prepare meat, raw eggs and raw vegetables on different, smooth surfaces.  Always use fresh tea towels!
• Avoid cross-contamination in the refrigerator: keep raw food separate from ready-to-eat food.
• Clean the refrigerator once a week.
• Try not to interrupt the cold chain and check the refrigerator or freezer temperatures regularly.
• Do not consume food after the expiry date or the best-before date.
• Throw away moldy food.
• Always keep your pets away from the kitchen area.

If you like deli meat, you must also love hot dogs. Can you eating hot dogs while pregnant? Pls read this article about hot dogs. https://kidschildrenshealth.com/eating-hot-dog-while-pregnant/

can you eat deli meat while pregnant

Deli meat and pregnancy

Caution with certain food

1. Do not eat raw or LUNCH meat (e.g. carpaccio, beef tartare, steak medium).
2. Do not consume raw milk or raw milk products; otherwise please boil before consumption.
3. Do not eat foods that contain raw eggs, such as homemade tiramisu.
4. Avoid soft and smeared cheese; otherwise remove the bark before consuming!
5. Avoid mettwurst and raw sausage (salami).
6. Do not eat sliced sausages wrapped in foil.
7. Avoid cold smoked / fermented fish (graved salmon).
8. Avoid raw seafood (oysters, sushi).
9. Wash fruits, vegetables and salads thoroughly before eating!

Our previous article 15 Signs Of Pregnancy To Know If You Are Pregnant in the title Am I pregnant ve pregnancy exercises information is provided..

Dorothy

Hello, I’m Dorothy. I love writing and researching articles. Reading books about baby health, care and pregnancy is my favorite. I will be sharing delicious and healthy information on food and baby food during pregnancy.