I followed all the rules. One, sometimes two, cups of coffee a day, sipped alcohol off the hubs, but pretty strict about everything else. I am aware of the questionable reasoning on some of the restrictions. But I’m 41 and IVF and kind of just convinced in some ways I’m not supposed to be pregnant so I’ve just been a rule follower. At the end of the day it’s really not that hard to avoid stuff for only 9 months so it’s not a big deal to me. I don’t have some passionate love for sushi or whatever so it hasn’t put me out and it’s easier just to avoid than to pick apart the data and pretend I’m making a super informed decision either way (I’m not a scientist but I do have education in advanced statistics). And yes I read Emily Oster’s book, but I didn’t think she really did a deep enough dive for me to take any of it to the bank without more personal research. And I’m too lazy. So there ya go.

Anonymous wrote:Don’t drink more than occasionally/sparingly, don’t up your caffeine intake over your usual, and don’t eat queso fresco and you’ve followed all of the recommendations that are grounded in actual research.

What about rare meat due to risk of toxoplasmosis?

Don’t drink more than occasionally/sparingly, don’t up your caffeine intake over your usual, and don’t eat queso fresco and you’ve followed all of the recommendations that are grounded in actual research.

I didn’t really restrict myself on anything other than alcohol. In fact, during lunch at our birthing class I got a spicy Italian Subway sandwich (at VHC food court) and couldn’t figure out why everyone was looking at me until the teacher mentioned it. Whoops...

I didn’t go crazy with caffeine, didn’t eat questionable seafood, and drank minimally- 1/2 glass or one beer a few times after 20 weeks.

I don’t eat seafood/sushi anyway, so that wasn’t an issue for me.
I limited caffeine intake to under 200mg, as per the suggestion of my RE (IVF pregnancy here, too). Once I was in 3rd trimester, I had an occasional small glass of wine or split a beer with DH. Maybe once every 2 weeks or so that last trimester.
I avoided the salad bar at work and prewashed all fruits/veggies at home. I started out avoiding cold cuts due to listeria risk, but, after some research, I decided that risk was way overblown compared to listeria from other sources.

“Expecting Better” is a great resource!

Honestly, I follow all of the rules super-carefully. It took me years and multiple IVFs to get pregnant. It's annoying, especially when eating out, but a minor and short-term inconvenience compared to what it took to get pregnant in the first place.

While the risk is so low think about how terrible physically and mentally if you got food poisoning while pregnant!

Well, if you are located in alabama then you shouldn’t eat anything on the “forbidden” list bc if you do and something terrible happens you may be charged with manslaughter bc you knew the risks.

I am not in Alabama and ate pretty much everything except sushi and only had 1-2 cups of coffee or coke per day. With my first there was a huge listeria scare with the spinach and maybe some fruit too so I also stopped eating spinach.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:100%. I was afraid of doing anything that could hurt the baby.

Fixed it for ya!

Seriously, why can’t you let women just answer the question asked?

This forum is getting as bad as politics.

Ignore, you know bullies hate that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:100%. I was afraid of doing anything that could hurt the baby.

Fixed it for ya!

What took you so long? Party pooper!

Aside from anything harmful bacteria wise and things like alcohol or caffeine, look into things that can cause contractions..
they are not safe all the way up till you really are ready for them.

I was surprised to find that Parsley among others is not safe and avoided by some cultures during pregnancy. Even small amounts can be not safe. I love tabbouleh from Whole Foods but had to cut back for the time being.

Just check out as there are many quite surprising things on such list.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:100%. I was afraid of doing anything that could hurt the baby.

Fixed it for ya!

Seriously, why can’t you let women just answer the question asked?

This forum is getting as bad as politics.

Do I dare admit that I never ate the “forbidden foods”? Seem that will get you attacked on this forum.

OP asked a question.

Anonymous wrote:100%. I was afraid of doing anything that could hurt the baby.

Fixed it for ya!