Can You Eat Lunch Meat While Pregnant (Explained)

Pregnant women always ask can you eat lunch meat while pregnant, this is not a new question, in this post, we will discuss whether eating lunch meat is bad or good.

There’s no way you can rule out the fact that pregnant women need lots of nutrients not lots of food to stay healthy.

Of course, am not pregnant, however, I wrote this post after this question popped up in a Reddit group over and over with no clear answer.

So since I have a blog, I decided to make my research, to finally nail this question once and for all.

We will talk a lot about lunch meat, but first I will answer the question according to replies I got from four different Obstetricians, in different countries.

I also contacted some nutritionists to get their opinions about this question. After contacting them and I got different replies, here is the summary of their answers.

Table of Contents show

Can you eat lunch meat while pregnant?

Yes, pregnant women can eat lunch meat as it is totally safe to eat during pregnancy, however, due to reports about contamination of processed meat like lunch meat, hot dogs, and other deli meats by Listeria monocytogenes a form of bacteria, it is recommended to reheat lunch meat at a temperature above 165 °C before consumption.

Let’s see what some websites say about pregnant women eating processed meat.

According to Today, Pregnant women are advised to avoid cold cuts to prevent listeriosis, an illness caused by the bacteria listeria.

According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, pregnant women are 10 times more likely to get listeriosis than the general population.

According to FDA, During the first trimester of pregnancy, listeriosis may cause miscarriage.

As the pregnancy progresses to the third trimester, the mother is more at risk. Listeriosis can also lead to premature labor, the delivery of a low-birth-weight infant, or infant death.

According to Healthline, The risk, of course, lies in that pesky Listeria bacteria that may be lurking in cold cuts.

According to Mayo Clinic, Listeria infection is a foodborne bacterial illness that can be very serious for pregnant women, people older than 65, and people with weakened immune systems.

It’s most commonly caused by eating improperly processed deli meats and unpasteurized milk products.

According to PregnancyBirthBaby, while listeriosis can affect anyone, it’s particularly worrying for pregnant women because it can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, or premature birth.

What is my take on this topic,

If you notice a trend in all the popular websites which leads to possible contamination by Listeria infection, none of them condemned eating lunch meat outright, but they are all worried about Listeriosis.

For me, if you can find a way of beating the contamination of Listeria infection, then lunch meat is good for you but if you can’t stay away from lunch meat.

I said stay away because it will not be easy for you as a pregnant mother to identify Listeria infection in lunch meat before deciding if you will or not eat it.

However, when you are not sure if you can reheat it at least 165° for about 1 to 5 mins or more this Listeria will be gone, but the taste of the lunch meat may be tempered.

Again too much intake of meat is not a good idea for pregnant women.

So what other foods are at high risk of carrying listeria include:

Foods at ready-to-eat salad bars, sandwich bars, and delicatessens
ready-to-eat meals

soft and semi-soft cheeses
unwashed raw vegetables
soft-serve ice cream

raw shellfish and seafood
unpasteurized dairy products
cold cured or prepared meats

As a pregnant woman, how do you know you ate contaminated lunch meat, this is only known when you see any of these symptoms.

symptoms.

Symptoms Listeria infection

Mild fever

muscle aches and joint pain
headache
Diarrhea

nausea
cough or cold
high fever
stiff neck
headache
sleepiness and confusion

seizures

Read more about meat:

How Is Meat Bad For You: 10 Risk Factors You Should Know.

How Much Smoked Meat Is Safe To Eat: The Bottom Line
What Meat Has The Most Iron? No1 Best Meat Source of Iron.

For those who don’t know what is lunch meat let’s take a look at lunch meat;

What is lunch meat

Lunch meats are generally known as cold cuts, luncheon meats, cooked meats, sliced meats, cold meats, and deli meats that are precooked or cured meats that are sliced and served cold or hot.

Lunch meats are typically served in sandwiches or on a tray, even though they can be purchased pre-sliced, usually in vacuum packs, or they can be sliced to order.

Benefits of eating lunch meat

Here are some benefits of eating lunch meat;

Lunch meats are generally high in protein and very low in fat.
It is a good source of vitamins
It is a good source of iron

Lunch meats contain lots of minerals
Lunch meats are a good source of fiber

Cons or Disadvantages of eating lunch meat

Here are some disadvantages of eating too much lunch meat:

Lunch meats are quite processed, containing a lot of sodium which is not too good for the body.
Lunch meats may cause fluid retention and increase blood pressure.
It might put you at risk for foodborne illness.