Can I eat canned couscous when pregnant ?

Is it safe to eat canned couscous while pregnant?

Pregnancy is definitely a life-changing event. How amazing it is the idea of giving birth! It’s natural for mothers to feel a little lost when it comes to getting used to new food habits and restrictions. What is good and what is bad for the baby? Can we eat canned couscous while pregnant? We have clarified some of the questions about eating meat while pregnant in a different article. In this post, we are going to talk about the potential risks of eating meat-based dishes .

can-i-eat-Meal with meat-pregnant

Is it ok to eat canned couscous when you’re pregnant?

Most kinds of meat are safe to be eaten while pregnant. Whether it is beef, mutton, pork, chicken, turkey… pretty much all of them. It won’t be a problem for you to eat canned couscous during your pregnancy under one condition; it is necessary that the meat is well cooked. A little reminder of the kinds of meat you can eat and the ones you should avoid while pregnant.

It’s safe to eat:

  • All beef, chicken, turkey, cooked pork;
  • Ham

You should avoid:

  • Delicatessen;
  • Rillettes and pâtés;
  • Offal.

What measures should you take when eating canned couscous during pregnancy?

The cooking

Your meat must be either already cooked (like ham, for example), or cooked to a minimum of 70°C/158°F, regardless of if it’s cooked in a pan, in the oven or barbecue. This is the same thing as saying that in order to eat canned couscous safely during your pregnancy you have to make sure that it is well cooked.

The conservation

If you warm up a meal, remember that it has to be well cooked in the first place. In the refrigerator, keep the cooked and the raw food on different shelves to avoid contamination from the bacteria that the raw food might contain.

Risks associated with eating canned couscous while pregnant

The problems associated with meat consumption are related with the contamination with listeriosis and toxoplasmosis – a bacterium and a parasite, respectively. To avoid being infected by these two germs, it is necessary to make sure that the meat you eat has been cooked at high temperatures. The heat from cooking the meat at a certain temperature will kill both listeriosis and toxoplasmosis.

Can you eat canned couscous during pregnancy when it is served with other ingredients?

Alcohol

Certain meat recipes might include alcohol like wine or rum as an ingredient. It is advisable to check if that is the case with canned couscous before eating. If it is the case, you should make sure that it only contains a small amount that has been cooked for very long enough. The minimum time for alcohol to evaporate is after boiling for 1h30.

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Eating canned couscous and vegetables while pregnant

Raw vegetables

canned couscous might quite often be served with raw vegetables. To avoid being infected by toxoplasmosis (this applies to pregnant women without antibodies against toxoplasmosis), it is very important to wash the vegetables before eating them.

Cooked vegetables

If the vegetables are cooked, than you have nothing to worry about. Toxoplasmosis cannot survive the heat, and so it won’t survive the cooking temperatures.

Cheese

Same thing goes for listeriosis, which can be present in some types of cheese. Again, if the cheese is cooked, it won’t be a risk for your pregnancy. For this reason, it is safe to eat canned couscous while pregnant even if it contains cheese.

Cream or milk

If the dish happens to be made with cream or milk, it is preferable to make sure they’re pasteurized.

Salt

It is advisable to moderate the use of salt while pregnant. Large quantities of salt might promote an increase in your blood pressure.

Conclusion

It is okay to eat canned couscous while pregnant, as long as you make sure the ingredients are either safe or well cooked.

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