During pregnancy, you should pay special attention to your diet. Many foods are good for you and your baby – others should be avoided. Do you wonder if you can eat sushi during pregnancy? Here you will find the answer.

Is Sushi Safe During Pregnancy?

You know the problem for sure: As an expectant mother, you only want the best for your baby. That’s why many women ask themselves what they shouldn’t eat during pregnancy. There are some foods you should avoid in order to prevent complications during pregnancy or to put your baby at risk.

Basically, it depends on the amount you eat. However, sushi is often raw fish, which poses a risk to you and your baby. However, there is also vegetarian sushi – you can have it without any worries.

The Consequences Of Sushi During Pregnancy

In the worst case, the consumption of sushi during pregnancy can have dangerous consequences for you and your baby. However, the quality of the sushi is crucial. Under certain circumstances, diseases such as toxoplasmosis or listeriosis can be transmitted through the raw fish in the sushi. Occasionally, the fish can cause a worm infestation.

Toxoplasmosis and listeriosis are infectious diseases. More specifically, they are foodborne infections that can be transmitted through the consumption of raw fish. Outside of pregnancy, the infection is not too bad. During pregnancy, however, the infection can have devastating consequences. Let’s take a closer look at foodborne infections.

Toxoplasmosis

Toxoplasmosis is an infectious disease transmitted by parasites. Raw fish or meat are considered the most common carriers. In most cases, toxoplasmosis does not cause serious complications.

People with a weakened immune system or pregnant women are usually not spared. If you become infected with toxoplasmosis during your pregnancy, there is a risk that the toxoplasma will be transmitted to your baby.

The more advanced the pregnancy, the higher the chance that your baby will contract it. This risk of infection is called the risk of transmission.

In the 1st trimester, the chance that your baby will be infected is 15%. In the 3rd trimester, it increases to 60%. The good thing is that the risk of your baby getting a serious complication due to infection decreases at the same time.

Infection with toxoplasmosis can lead to these consequences:

• Enlargement of the liver and spleen.
• Jaundice.
• Water retention in the skull(hydrocephalus).
• Calcifications inside the skull.
• Inflammation of the retina.
• Inflammation of the heart muscle.

In a few cases, toxoplasmosis can lead to miscarriage during pregnancy. Therefore, if you suspect an infection, you should contact your doctor immediately.

Listeriosis

Listeriosis is also an infectious disease caused by bacteria. The consumption of animal products is a common cause of the disease. Similar to toxoplasmosis, the disease can have dire consequences in people with a weakened immune system or pregnant women.

Listeriosis in pregnancy can lead to these consequences for your baby:

• Blood poisoning.
• Respiratory distress syndrome.
• Abscesses.
• Nodule formation.

Listeriosis in pregnancy often resembles a flu-like effect. If listeriosis is transmitted to your baby via the placenta, there is a risk of miscarriage or premature birth.

Should I Completely Avoid Raw Fish During Pregnancy?

In order to provide your baby with optimal nutrients, it is important that you get enough of them in your diet during pregnancy. It is advisable to eat plenty of fish during pregnancy. This way you and your baby will get enough iodine, ice white, and important omega-3 fatty acids.

However, if you want to eat sushi during pregnancy, you should be careful. Sushi often contains raw fish, which can lead to foodborne infections. To be on the safe side, you should avoid raw fish completely during pregnancy. However, fish or meat products that have been sufficiently heated are safe.

At high heat, potentially dangerous pathogens are killed and there is no danger for you and your baby.

With These Alternatives You Can Enjoy Sushi During Pregnancy

If you do not want to do without sushi during pregnancy, you should pay attention to these tips.

You may not eat sushi with raw fish, but you can eat it with other delicious alternatives. There are many ways to get by without raw or smoked fish and still enjoy your favorite food.

The keyword is vegetarian sushi. So you don’t have to give up sushi during pregnancy, but avoids dangerous complications for you and your baby. Super or?

These filings are suitable for vegetarian sushi:

• Cream cheese
• Avocado
• Radish
• Cucumber
• Bell bell pepper
• Omelet
• Spring onions
• Mango
• Guacamole
• Zucchini
• Raspberries
• Carrots

With these tips, you’ll not only have a great alternative to raw fish, but you’ll also be doing your baby some good with the rich ingredients of vegetables.

This Is How Dangerous Sushi Really Is During Pregnancy

Many expectant mothers find it difficult to give up their favorite food during pregnancy. As you already know, you should avoid some foods during pregnancy because they pose a potential danger to you and your baby. It is the same with sushi during pregnancy.

The raw fish in sushi is a common carrier of foodborne infections such as toxoplasmosis or listeriosis. While an illness is completely harmless for most people, especially pregnant women or people with a weakened immune system suffer from the infections.

This is not only a danger for you because the infection can also be transmitted to your baby. In the worst case, it can even lead to a miscarriage. So: eliminate sushi from your diet during pregnancy.

Sources

https://www.netdoktor.de/krankheiten/toxoplasmose/

https://www.netdoktor.de/krankheiten/listeriose/

https://www.hallo-eltern.de/schwangerschaft/sushi-schwangerschaft/