Can I have deli meats while I’m pregnant? Is one type of meat (Italian meats vs. turkey) more or less risky? If I get it from a better deli, does that reduce risk?
—Mama-to-be really wants a cold hoagie
Deli meats are one of the long list of pregnancy food restrictions — raw eggs, unwashed vegetables, sushi, and on and on. What we don’t ever seem to get told is why. Is deli meat off-limits for the same reason smoked fish is? Beyond this, are the risks to the baby or to me, or both? These questions drove me crazy when I was pregnant and were a big part of the motivation for Expecting Better.
In the particular case of deli meats, the concern is listeria. Listeria is a foodborne bacteria that causes severe nausea, vomiting, and related issues. Listeria is very dangerous in general and is especially dangerous for pregnant women. Infection during pregnancy often leads to miscarriage. It’s not completely clear why this is, but one explanation is that the listeria infects the placenta and this leads to pregnancy loss.
A wide variety of foods can carry listeria, but deli turkey appears as a possible cause with some regularity. Other deli meats do not. As a result, there is little reason to avoid things like ham and prosciutto.
It seems reasonable to avoid deli turkey while pregnant, but it’s also worth keeping the numbers in perspective. Turkey is implicated in a tiny share of listeria outbreaks (which are themselves rare). In the past decade, larger outbreaks appeared in cantaloupes, frozen vegetables, and soft-serve ice cream. This means that changing your deli meat behaviors is likely to have only a very small impact on listeria risk.
Community Guidelines
Log in
Given the large number of listeria outbreaks now in produce, salsas, deli meats at large national brands I’m hoping you can answer this: if the cucumbers sold at Wal-Mart in NY and PA has listeria, does that mean every single package? Ie. if you ate a cucumber bought from Wal-Mart in NY what’s the chance you were exposed?