cleaning lettuce

[Anonymous]

An OB in my practice recommended that I stop eating pre-bagged salad (like Dole or Fresh Express) because of the risk of it carrying bacteria. But, she did not say to avoid lettuce all together, which it seems like would be a bad idea since greens are one of the most important foods to eat pregnant (for folic acid). I've been buying organic romaine or green leaf lettuce and washing it well with water -- and eating it every day.

[Anonymous]

I am inherently wary of anyone who would try and warn me away from fresh, raw, washed vegetables.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am inherently wary of anyone who would try and warn me away from fresh, raw, washed vegetables.

Then you are wary of no one because no one is saying stay away. The only advice is to wash with more than water.

[Anonymous]

What about alfalfa? That, I have been advised to avoid.

[Anonymous]

I am from a country in Europe, never heard of this before.

[Anonymous]

I thought this was a joke too! Never heard of it and I'm on my 3rd baby. Maybe the next dire warning will be against loaded baked potatoes.

I wash lettuce in a colander and salad spinner, the same as I ever do. As a matter of fact, salads have always been a pregnancy craving of mine and so far no deadly bacterial infections or ecoli have set in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wash lettuce in a colander and salad spinner, the same as I ever do. As a matter of fact, salads have always been a pregnancy craving of mine and so far no deadly bacterial infections or ecoli have set in.

How is this relevant?

[Anonymous]

Apparently the listeria is carried through standing water around in the lettuce. Therefore, the bag salads (that are pre-washed and may have some water leftover in the bag) have a higher chance of listeria than a head of lettuce, which you can wash immediately before eating. I just wash it in lots of water in the sink and don't eat leftover salad after a few days (when there may be standing water). Hope that helps!