Foods to Avoid During Pregnancy and Healthy Alternatives

See which foods experts recommend avoiding during pregnancy to minimize the chances of contracting food-borne illness that could affect you or your baby.

Congrats–you’re pregnant! Next come a lot of questions about your diet: What foods are best for my baby? Are there foods I should avoid? What happens if I eat “risky” foods?

This is a great conversation to have with your healthcare provider. Certain foods are unsafe to consume during pregnancy, and others MAY be unsafe or may be safe in moderation, so you’ll have to use your doctor’s advice and own comfort level as a guide.

To help you stay informed, I turned to the pregnancy health experts at the Mayo Clinic, foodsafety.gov, and other trusted sources (see them all at the bottom of the post) to compile the clearest information possible as to which foods may pose a risk during pregnancy.

And since nine months can be a long time to avoid some of your favorite foods, we included safe alternative options right in the chart! We hope this is helpful to you in the coming months. And we wish you a healthy pregnancy!