What To Eat While Pregnant: Food Guide And Cheat Sheet
From tuna and soft cheeses to caffeine and deli meats, here's exactly what's safe to eat and what you need to eat while you're pregnant.
Pregnancy comes with a lot of confusing dos and don’ts—especially when it comes to food. Suddenly, you’re anxiously reading labels and googling ingredients at the grocery store and at restaurants.
Does this fish contain too much mercury? How much coffee can I have—or should I just switch to decaf? Is all pasteurized cheese safe?
While some pregnancy food rules are cut and dry, others aren’t, and all this advice—and sometimes conflicting information—can really depend on who you ask.
01What foods are safe to eat during pregnancy?
Fish and seafood
Two servings of low-mercury fish a week (e.g. salmon, herring, trout, mackerel) and light canned tuna one to two times per week.
- Thoroughly cooked seafood and shellfish
- Vegetarian or cooked-seafood sushi (e.g. California roll, unagi, shrimp nigiri)
Tip: Check for advisories before consuming locally caught fish.
Eggs
- Cooked until the yolk is firm
- Prepared products made with pasteurized egg (e.g. cookie-dough ice cream, mayonnaise)
Tip: Use pasteurized egg products in recipes that call for raw egg.
Fruits and Vegetables
- Well-washed raw fruit and vegetables
Meats
- Fresh meats fully cooked
- Dried and salted deli meats (e.g. salami, dried pepperoni)
- Other deli meats if heated to steaming hot
Cheeses
- Pasteurized hard cheeses (e.g. cheddar, Swiss, Parmesan, colby)
- Processed soft and semi-soft cheeses (e.g. cream cheese, cottage cheese, mozzarella)
Tip: Check labels of hard and processed cheeses to ensure they’re pasteurized.
