Foods to avoid during pregnancy
Most people know about alcohol and raw meat. Far fewer know about liquorice, enoki mushrooms, pre-cut melon or cold prawns. Here is every food that needs care — what to avoid, what to limit, and what’s fine once it’s cooked.
Medically reviewed by Dr. Christopher Sterling, obstetrician ·
The six rules that cover almost everything
- Cook it until steaming hotHeat kills listeria. Deli meats, cured meats, smoked fish, cold prawns, soft and blue cheeses and enoki mushrooms are all safe once steaming hot all the way through.
- Keep chilled foods cold — and freshListeria grows in the fridge. Eat chilled ready-to-eat foods (pre-cut fruit, sandwiches, salads, pâté) before the use-by date.
- Skip liver and vitamin A supplementsLiver and retinol supplements (including cod liver oil) contain enough vitamin A to harm a baby’s development.
- Choose low-mercury fishKeep eating fish — but avoid shark, swordfish and marlin and limit tuna.
- Watch the “hidden” onesLiquorice root, raw sprouts, raw enoki, game meat and raw cookie dough catch most people out.
- Caffeine: 200 mg a day, maxAbout two cups of instant coffee. Tea, cola, energy drinks and chocolate all count.
Food by food
| Food | Verdict | In short |
|---|---|---|
| Liquorice | Avoid | Large amounts of real liquorice are best avoided in pregnancy. It contains glycyrrhizin, which can raise blood pressure and has been linked to preterm birth and to lower cognitive scores and more ADHD-type behaviour in children whose mothers ate a lot of it. |
| Raw sprouts | Avoid | Raw and lightly cooked sprouts — alfalfa, clover, radish and mung bean — should be avoided in pregnancy. Cook them thoroughly until steaming instead. |
| Liver & vitamin A | Avoid | Liver, liver products (pâté, liver sausage) and supplements containing vitamin A as retinol, including fish liver oil, should be avoided in pregnancy. Too much retinol-form vitamin A can harm a developing baby. |
| Raw cookie dough | Avoid | No. Raw cookie dough and cake batter can contain salmonella from raw eggs and E. coli from raw flour. Bake it first, or buy edible cookie dough made with heat-treated flour and no raw egg. |
| Game meat | Avoid | The NHS advises avoiding game meats such as goose, partridge, pheasant and venison in pregnancy, because they may contain lead, which can harm your baby. |
| Deli meat & cold cuts | Take care | Cold deli meats, hot dogs and cold cured meats can carry listeria, which grows even in the fridge. Eat them heated until steaming hot, or choose freshly cooked meat instead. |
| Soft cheese | Take care | Avoid soft mould-ripened cheeses (brie, camembert, rinded goat’s cheese) and soft blue cheeses unless cooked until steaming. Hard cheeses and pasteurised soft cheeses without a white rind — mozzarella, feta, halloumi, cottage and cream cheese — are fine. |
| Pâté | Take care | Avoid liver pâté completely — it can carry listeria and is very high in vitamin A. Current UK advice allows other meat and vegetable pâtés if they are kept chilled and eaten before the use-by date; US advice is stricter and says to avoid refrigerated pâtés and meat spreads altogether. |
| Smoked salmon | Take care | Cold-smoked or cured fish such as smoked salmon, lox and gravlax should only be eaten when cooked until steaming hot. Canned or shelf-stable smoked fish, and smoked salmon cooked in a hot dish, are fine. |
| Pre-cut melon | Take care | Melon is healthy in pregnancy, but cut melon should be eaten straight away or kept in the fridge. Throw it away if it has been at room temperature for more than 4 hours, and wash whole melons before cutting. |
| Sushi | Take care | Only eat sushi made with cooked fish, cooked shellfish or vegetables. Current NHS advice is to avoid sushi made with raw fish — even if it has been previously frozen — and US guidance also says to avoid raw fish and shellfish in pregnancy. |
| Enoki mushrooms | Take care | Only if they are cooked thoroughly. Raw enoki mushrooms have been linked to listeria outbreaks, and both the NHS and the CDC say pregnant women should not eat them raw. |
| Caffeine | Limit | Keep caffeine under 200 mg a day in pregnancy. That’s roughly two mugs of instant coffee — and filter or coffee-shop coffee often contains more. Tea, cola, energy drinks and chocolate all count. |
| Tuna & mercury | Limit | You can eat tuna in moderation. UK advice is no more than four medium cans or two tuna steaks a week. Avoid high-mercury fish such as shark, swordfish and marlin, but do keep eating 2–3 portions of low-mercury fish a week. |
| Herbal tea | Limit | There is little research on herbal teas in pregnancy, so the NHS advises drinking no more than four cups a day and avoiding teas that contain liquorice root. Check with a pharmacist before using herbal remedies or supplements. |
Common questions
What is the most important food to avoid during pregnancy?
There isn’t just one. The biggest risks come from listeria (in chilled ready-to-eat foods, soft cheeses, cold-smoked fish and deli meats), toxoplasmosis (in raw or undercooked meat and unwashed produce), and too much vitamin A (from liver). Alcohol should also be avoided.
Why are pregnant women told to avoid listeria?
Pregnant people are about 10 times more likely to get listeriosis than other adults. It can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth or serious illness in a newborn — even when the mother only feels mildly unwell.
Is it safe to eat eggs during pregnancy?
In the UK, hen eggs with the British Lion stamp or produced under the Laid in Britain scheme can be eaten raw or runny. Other eggs — and all eggs in many other countries — should be cooked until the white and yolk are solid.
Based on current guidance from the NHS, the FDAand the CDC. Advice differs between countries — follow your own midwife’s guidance.
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