In general, since some types of food poisoning pose a greater risk to pregnant women and their babies, women who are expecting should take a few precautionary steps when selecting and preparing food.

In upcoming issues, Food Safety News will feature stories with information on how pregnant women can prevent becoming ill from a foodborne illness, including tips, guidelines, and new findings related to food

safety. 

The major foodborne illnesses that are particularly dangerous to pregnant women are listeriosis, toxoplasmosis and salmonellosis.

Listeriosis

Listeriosis is caused by Listeria monocytogenes, a bacterium found in soil and water. It can be found on vegetables, meats, and dairy products, as well as in processed foods such as soft cheeses and in cold cuts. Although the bacteria are of little danger to healthy people, in pregnant women the infection can result in premature delivery, serious infection of the newborn, or even stillbirth.

To prevent listeriosis adhere to the following guidelines:

•  Do not eat hot dogs, luncheon meats, or deli meats, unless they are reheated until steaming hot.

•  Do not eat soft cheeses such as feta, Brie, Camembert, blue-veined cheeses, and Mexican-style cheeses such as “queso blanco fresco.” Hard cheeses and semisoft cheeses such as mozzarella, along with pasteurized processed cheese slices and spreads, cream cheese, and cottage cheese, are safe to eat.

•  Do not eat refrigerated pâté or meat spreads. These items are safe if they are canned.

•  Do not eat refrigerated smoked seafood unless it is an ingredient in a cooked dish such as a casserole. Examples of refrigerated smoked seafood include salmon, trout, whitefish, cod, tuna, and mackerel. You may eat canned fish such as salmon and tuna or shelf-stable smoked seafood.

•  Do not drink raw (unpasteurized) milk or eat foods that contain unpasteurized milk.

•  Avoid eating salads made in a store, such as ham, chicken, egg, tuna, or seafood salads.

Toxoplasmosis

Toxoplasmosis is caused by the parasite Toxoplasma gondii. A pregnant woman can give toxoplasmosis to her fetus. Fetal toxoplasmosis can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, and birth defects.  The parasite is acquired by swallowing Toxoplasma gondii eggs from soil or other contaminated surfaces. This can happen by putting your hands to your mouth after gardening, cleaning a cat’s litter box, or touching anything that has come into contact with cat feces.

To prevent toxoplasmosis, adhere to the following guidelines:

•  Wash all foods that could have had contact with cat feces, including commercial fruits and vegetables.

•  Eat only well-cooked or previously frozen meat, and avoid dried meats. Cook meat to high a enough temperature, or subject it to a low temperature, to kill Toxoplasma gondii.

•  Carefully wash your hands and all utensils after preparing raw meat, poultry, seafood, fruits, or vegetables.

•  Avoid untreated drinking water. This is a concern when you are in the wilderness or are traveling to developing countries where drinking water is not treated.

•  Avoid cat feces, in both the home and the garden. If you have a cat and you are either pregnant or planning to become pregnant soon, have someone else clean the cat litter box. If you must clean the box yourself, do it daily. Wear gloves and a face mask, and wash your hands afterward.

•  Make a habit of washing any table or counter surfaces that a cat may have walked across.

•  Consider keeping your cat indoors. A cat who goes outdoors is likely to become infected with Toxoplasma gondii by eating infected birds or rodents. (Eating indoor mice also poses a risk.)

Salmonellosis

Salmonellosis is a common form of food infection that may result when foods containing Salmonella bacteria are eaten. The bacteria are spread through direct or indirect contact with the intestinal contents or waste of animals, including humans.  Salmonella bacteria do not grow at refrigerator or freezer temperatures and are easily destroyed by heating foods to 165 degrees F.

To prevent salmonellosis, adhere to the following guidelines:

• Follow general safe food handling practices, including washing hands often with hot, soapy
water, especially after using the bathroom and before and after handling food. 

• Hands and working surfaces should be thoroughly washed after contact with raw meat, fish, poultry, and foods that will not undergo further cooking. 

• Fresh fruits and vegetables should be rinsed well before eating

• Food such as raw milk and raw milk products, raw or undercooked eggs, raw sprouts, raw or undercooked meat and poultry, and unpasteurized fruit juices should be avoided.

According to the study’s authors, extracts were taken from Litopenaeus vannamei, the most widely cultured shrimp species in the world.  Samples were prepared from both raw and boiled shrimp, in order to evaluate how boiling may alter the allergenicity of L. vannamei.  

The major allergen of shellfish is tropomyosin (TM), for which numerous Immunoglobulin E binding sites have been identified.  Immunoglobulin E (IgE) is a class of antibody that plays an important role in allergies.  IgE cells release powerful chemical mediators, such as histamine and cytokines into the environment, which then cause the characteristic symptoms of allergy.

Boiled shrimp extracts showed lower IgE binding than raw shrimp extracts, which suggests that boiling may alter shrimp extracts in a manner that permits the masking of allergenic epitopes.  An epitope is the portion of a molecule that is recognized by the immune system. This means that masking the allergenic epitopes reduces allergen recognition, and therefore can potentially alter the allergenicity of not only shrimp, but food in general.  This is because cooking processes may destroy existing epitopes on a protein or may generate new ones, as a result of change in protein conformation.

Another finding of the study shows that tropomyosin may be an effective tool in diagnosing shellfish allergies.  

A recent study found that 1 in 50 Americans had a shellfish allergy, which is the number one cause of food allergy in adults in the United States, and is responsible for the majority of emergency department visits related to food allergies.

A study conducted in Roanoke Valley, Virginia reveals that nearly half of all sodas dispensed from a sample of 30 machines contained coliform bacteria.  Coliform bacteria is a group of bacteria banned in drinking water by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), because it indicates the possibility of fecal contamination.

Late last year, a New Jersey microbiologist tested lemons at 21 restaurants and found disease-causing bacteria on two-thirds of the lemons, including fecal bacteria.  

ABC News conducted their own small study by going undercover at three major restaurant chains in New Jersey.  Lemon wedges collected from T.G.I. Friday’s, Applebee’s, and Chili’s were swabbed and sent to a microbiology lab at NYU’s medical center.  Findings revealed that four samples were contaminated with fecal matter, including one with E. coli.

At several of the restaurants, workers were seen handling lemons with their bare hands, with no gloves or tongs, which is a violation of New Jersey’s health codes.

T.G.I. Friday’s and Applebee’s both said they take health and safety very seriously.  

T.G.I. Friday’s issued a statement saying, “We immediately stopped utilizing lemons at all of our restaurants until we could investigate this matter further and review our procedures to ensure this was an isolated issue.”

Applebee’s commented on the issue saying, “We believe that these are isolated incidents… nonetheless we have reinforced our processes for produce washing, washing all of our cooking utensils and silverware and employee hygiene in all our restaurants.”

The acidity of lemons is not enough to kill the bacteria.  If you suspect poor handling, it would be wise to not leave your lemon wedge sitting in your drink, or even better, forgo it all together. 

Smoke flavorings can be added to foods to give them a “smoked” flavor, as an alternative to traditional smoking.  Eleven smoke flavorings commonly used in the European Union were examined by EFSA, and several of the flavorings were dangerously close to levels which may cause harm to humans.  

Klaus-Dieter Jany, the chair of EFSA’s expert panel on flavorings (CEF Panel) said, “The Panel based its conclusions on the limited data which are currently available, as well as conservative or cautious intake estimates.”

“The Panel expressed safety concerns for several smoke flavorings where intake levels could be relatively close to the levels which may cause negative health effects,” added Klaus-Dieter Jany.

The European Commission said that it will establish a list of smoke-flavoring products that are safe for use in food.

A spokesperson for the Food and Drink Federation, which represents smoked food manufacturers said: “We shall be working with FSA and the European Commission in the coming weeks to consider how smoke flavorings may continue to be used safely, noting EFSA’s previous statements in respect to smoke flavorings that their safety is relatively high compared to traditional smoking methods.”