Is cheese safe for pregnant women?

Dedicated to all the beautiful, cheese-loving mothers-to-be out there. Cheese is generally a very safe food product. The number of incidents of food borne illness from cheese is lower than the number contracted from almost every other food group – including seemingly innocuous fruit and vegetables! So why is it that doctors warn pregnant women about cheese?

Cheese gets to be what it is thanks to a chemical breakdown in the milk and the presence of hard working bacteria. Those cheeses high in water content, however, are also thought to be particularly good hosts to some undesirable bacterial strains, such as Listeria, E.Coli and Salmonella. These potentially dangerous bacteria can cause serious harm to compromised immune systems (i.e., people who are terminally ill, the elderly or pregnant women). In pregnant women in particular, Listeria has been found to cause a variety of complications, from infection to premature birth or even miscarriage.

Some doctors blame “raw milk” for the presence of these bacteria, when in fact this is a flawed and misguided deduction (check out the “raw vs. pasteurized” posting). The only cheeses that pregnant women should avoid are those with high WATER content. Or said another way, avoid cheeses aged for less than 8 weeks (i.e., “soft” cheeses). If you’re not sure which cheeses fall into this category, ask your cheesemonger. Your safe bets are cheeses like Cheddar, Parmesan, or aged Alpine cheeses (Gruyere, Emmenthal, etc.).

For those of you who are not pregnant but are freaked out by the thought of Listeria in your Brie – have no fear. Unless you have a seriously deficient immune system, your body can handle the bacteria. So bon appétit to all, and may all your bambinos grow into strong, cheese-loving children!

Comments

[Desert Shores real estate]

Thanks for the info. Actually some of my friends have asked me that, and I pretty much said the same thing. Not all of them are made the same way and not all of them have the same components/ingredients, so therefore not all of them have the same effect.

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[Ajlouny]

I would stay away from feta too. It has a short shelf life and can be a perfect environment for Listeria. Listeria is capable of causing miscarriages, stillbirth premature birth. It can also cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and persons with a weakened immune system.

[Lea]

It always frustrates me that the FDA is more than happy to warn us against such beneficial foodstuffs as cheese and fish when we're pregnant, but give no caution towards the foods that are just flat out bad, like fast foods.

Its such a backwards way we run things.... gorge yourself in a greasy McWhopper... but youre such a HORRIBLE mom to be if you eat that salmon!!

[Laura]

Hi, my name is Laura and I'm a cheeseaholic :-) I used to run a cheese counter in Miami before relocating to Buenos Aires. I thought imported cheeses in the States were expensive but here it's even higher due to the import tax. Not much cheddar available, have to have friends bring it in.
Anyway, I'm three months pregnant and haven't been able to stay away from my goat cheese and mesclun salads. I do eat some deli meats and cheeses but I haven't been asa worried about the Listeria (although I do worry), as I do about the recent Trichinosis alerts for jamon crudo. Anyway, I'll drop your link in my favorite blogs, and if anyone is interested in life in Buenos Aires (and yes I talk about cheese occasionally), come take a peek at my blog at http://movingtoargentina.typepad.com
Keep up the great posts!

[lynda]

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[Adam]

My wife was always very careful to not eat soft cheeses while pregnant with our sons. Also, she stayed away from the deli meats and cheeses since the Listeria can collect on the slicers.