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Can You Eat Sausage When Pregnant? Is It Safe or Risky 2024?
Can you eat sausages, hot dogs, or chicken sausage when pregnant? You may be craving sandwiches with deli meat, but you’re unsure whether they are safe to eat while pregnant.
In pregnancy, healthy and balanced nutrition hugely impacts babies. Some foods pose a risk to your unborn baby. That’s why knowing which food to eat or avoid is beneficial. You don’t want to restrict unnecessarily foods that you enjoy eating from time to time.
Continue to learn how to safely eat sausages while pregnant.
Can You Eat Sausage While Pregnant?
Sausages are not the most healthy foods you can find; however, do you have to restrict them? Because sausages are meat products, they are rich in fat, protein, iron, and B12. There are no specific benefits of eating sausages you can not get from other foods. Still, you may want to enjoy eating sausages from time to time.
Pregnant women worry that sausages may contain harmful bacterias that hurt their baby. Although this is a possibility, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)[1] and American Pregnancy Association (APA)[2] do not condemn sausage consumption while pregnant. Because if safety instructions were followed, you would not likely get infected by sausages.
Sausages[3] can be:
- Uncooked – can be fresh or smoked. Uncooked sausages should be fully cooked to prevent food poisoning
- Fresh sausages – must be kept refrigerated and thoroughly cooked before eating.
- Cooked and/or smoked sausages
- Cured sausages
- Ready-to-eat–can be dry, semi-dry, and/or cooked.
Either fresh or precooked, you should cook sausages before eating to prevent foodborne illness:
- If sausage contains ground beef, pork, or lamb, it should be cooked until it reaches 160 °F
- If sausage is made of ground turkey and chicken, it should be cooked until it reaches 165 °F
Types of Sausages You Could Eat While Pregnant
Fresh sausages
It can be made from meat or meat products such as the heart, kidney, liver, etc. Keep in mind that the UK National Health Service (NHS) recommends avoiding liver[4] and liver products while pregnant.
You can eat some fresh sausage[3] types which are fresh beef sausages, fresh pork sausages, whole hog sausages, breakfast sausages, and Italian sausage products during pregnancy.
Cooked and/or smoked sausages
Can you eat hot dogs or microwaved hot dogs while pregnant? Hotdogs fall into the category of cooked and/or smoked sausages. It is made of chopped and ground meats which are seasoned, cooked, and/or smoked.
One or various types of meat can be used. Liverwurst, hot dog, bologna, and cooked bratwurst fall into this category.
Dry and semi-dry sausages
They are fermented, dried meats. They may also be cultured with lactic acid, and some types can be cooked too. Pepperoni, soppressata, and genoa salami are an example of dry sausages.
Semi-dry sausages are Lebanon bologna, summer sausage, cervelat, and Thuringer.
Types of Sausages You Should be Careful with
Here are what not to eat when pregnant:
Dry sausages
Dry sausages[3] are not cooked; you may want to avoid them unless it is fully cooked to the recommended safe temperature.
Cured sausages or cold-cured meats
Cured sausages or cold-cured meats such as salami or pepperoni should not be eaten before it’s fully cooked.
Also, cured meats may carry E.coli, bacteria causing foodborne illness. Because the ingredient used for curing may not kill the bacteria. Thus it is best to choose thoroughly cooked sausages.
Hot dogs
Hot dogs. Most people think eating a hotdog should be fine because it is pre-cooked. Read-to-eat foods such as hot dogs may get contaminated with Listeria[5]. If you eat hot dogs, ensure they are reheated until they’re steaming hot.
Side Effects of Consuming Sausage While Pregnant
Listeriosis
According to the CDC[6], annually, 1600 people get Listeria infection called listeriosis. Women get more susceptible to infection while pregnant. They are 10 times more likely to get listeriosis than other people.
Deli meats[7] are not recommended unless cooked at the temperature stated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)[8].
Listeria monocytogenes can cause miscarriages[9], stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn. Symptoms may arise 2 to 30 days after exposure.
Symptoms of listeriosis
- Fatigue
- Muscle aches
- Fever
- Chills
- Headache
- Backache
- Abdominal pain
- Diarrhea
What can’t you eat when pregnant? The APA[10] warns pregnant women about eating hot dogs, deli meats, or luncheon meat unless they are cooked at the proper temperature just before eating.
Especially, you should not eat deli meats at restaurants because they probably do not reheat deli meats. Also, you should not eat refrigerated pates and meat spreads.
Toxoplasmosis
Raw or undercooked meat and meat products such as sausages may contain Toxoplasma gondii, which is a harmful bacteria that may affect your unborn baby. In the U.S., 300 to 4000 fetuses are infected each year by toxoplasmosis.
According to the CDC[11], in the U.S., approximately 50% of toxoplasmosis infections are foodborne. Others may contract the illness from cat feces[12](litter boxes).
Toxoplasma gondii can cause serious health problems in your baby, such as hearing loss, blindness, and intellectual disability.
Good obstetrical care includes testing for your susceptibility to toxoplasmosis with a simple blood test (you may already be immune).
Symptoms of toxoplasmosis
- Swollen glands
- Fever
- Headache
- Muscle pain
- Fatigue
- Stiff neck
Increased salt and additives intake
Sausages are processed foods that may contain different degrees of saltiness, spiciness, and additives. Processed meat such as sausage can be avoided while pregnant to have a healthier diet.
If you have concerns about your blood pressure or heartburn, you may choose not to eat high-salt and spicy sausages, respectively.
7 Safety Tips for Eating Sausages During Pregnancy
Reheat precooked sausage
Hot dogs, deli meats, cold cuts, and fermented or dry sausage should be reheated to steaming hot[13] or 165°F
Fully cook uncooked or undercooked sausages
Uncooked or undercooked meat and poultry may contain harmful bacteria such as E.coli, Toxoplasma gondii, and Salmonella. The CDC recommends cooking meat to a minimum safe internal temperature[14], which is:
- 160 °F if sausage contains ground beef, pork, or lamb cooked
- 165 °F if sausage is made of ground turkey and chicken, cooked until it reached
These recommended cook times often are accompanied by “rest times”, which are waiting to cut and serve meat so that the juices can redistribute after cooking and so that internal cooking can compete.
Avoid sausages made with liver, liver products, and/or game meats
According to the NHS, if the sausages contain liver, liver products, or game meats, you should avoid them while pregnant. You can check the ingredients to make sure the sausages don’t have meat types to avoid when pregnant.
Be sure to check what the casings are made from, because they may differ from what the actual sausage contains.
Follow Recommended Dates
You should follow recommended dates to minimize the risk of food poisoning. Foodborne illness can cross the placenta and infect your unborn baby. You should look for[3]:
- Dates – you should look for the “sell by” date. Don’t buy sausages whose sell-by date expired.
- Some sausages have a “use-by” date. It indicates the last time the product was at its peak quality. This may vary from the officially stamped “use-by” date if it’s stored properly.
- Storage – you should refrigerate sausages unless it is dry sausage.
Here are recommended storage times for the sausages with a “sell-by” date or no date. These recommendations in no way imply they should ever be eaten without thoroughly cooking.
Sausage type | Refrigerated, before opening | Refrigerated, after opening | Freezer |
Fresh Sausage (Uncooked) | 1-2 days unopened or opened | 1-2 days unopened or opened | 1-2 months |
Fresh Sausage, after cooking | 3-4 days | 2-3 months | |
Summer Sausage (Semi-dry) | 3 months | 3 weeks | 1-2 months |
Hard/Dry Sausage | 6 weeks in the pantry; indefinitely in the fridge | 3 weeks | 1-2 months |
Hot Dogs and other Cooked Sausage | 2 weeks | 7 days | 1-2 months |
Look for labels
Look for the labels required by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)[3] on sausages like “uncooked,” “ready to cook,” “cook before eating,” “cook and serve,” “need to be fully cooked,” and “keep refrigerated.”
Follow Simple Hygiene Rules
You should follow simple hygiene rules[5] which can protect your baby from serious health problems.
4 Easy Steps to Prevent Foodborne Illness:
- Wash your hands and surfaces
- Separate surfaces for raw and cooked foods
- Cook to the recommended temperature and use “rest time,” if appropriate
- Refrigerate right away or with little delay
The Bottom Line
As long as you follow food safety guidelines, you’re safe to eat fully cooked sausages while pregnant. You should thoroughly cook or reheat if the sausage is fresh or precooked until its internal temperature reaches 165 °F., and include any recommended “rest time.”
It is recommended to avoid eating deli meats at a restaurant; you may want to avoid eating deli sandwiches and pates because you can not be sure if it is refrigerated or reheated just before eating. Also, remember that “summer sausage” is deli meat.
+ 14 sources
Health Canal avoids using tertiary references. We have strict sourcing guidelines and rely on peer-reviewed studies, academic researches from medical associations and institutions. To ensure the accuracy of articles in Health Canal, you can read more about the editorial process here
- for, S. (2019). People at Risk: Pregnant Women. [online] FoodSafety.gov. Available at: https://www.foodsafety.gov/people-at-risk/pregnant-women
- admin (2013). Deli Meats. [online] American Pregnancy Association. Available at: https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/is-it-safe/deli-meats/
- Usda.gov. (2012). Sausages and Food Safety | Food Safety and Inspection Service. [online] Available at: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/safe-food-handling-and-preparation/meat/sausages-and-food-safety
- NHS Choices (2022). Foods to avoid in pregnancy. [online] Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/keeping-well/foods-to-avoid/
- Center (2022). Fact or Fiction from Food Safety for Moms to Be. [online] U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Available at: https://www.fda.gov/food/people-risk-foodborne-illness/fact-or-fiction-food-safety-moms-be
- CDC (2017). People at Risk – Pregnant Women and Newborns. [online] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/listeria/risk-groups/pregnant-women.html
- admin (2013). Deli Meats. [online] American Pregnancy Association. Available at: https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/is-it-safe/deli-meats/.
- Usda.gov. (2021). Cooking Meat? Check the New Recommended Temperatures. [online] Available at: https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2011/05/25/cooking-meat-check-new-recommended-temperatures
- CDC (2020). Listeriosis. [online] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/dotw/listeria/index.html
- editor (2017). Listeria During Pregnancy. [online] American Pregnancy Association. Available at: https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/pregnancy-concerns/listeria-during-pregnancy/
- Center (2022). Toxoplasma from Food Safety for Moms to Be. [online] U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Available at: https://www.fda.gov/food/people-risk-foodborne-illness/toxoplasma-food-safety-moms-be
- Dubey, J.P. (2018). Toxoplasmosis in Cats. [online] Merck Veterinary Manual. Available at: https://www.merckvetmanual.com/cat-owners/disorders-affecting-multiple-body-systems-of-cats/toxoplasmosis-in-cats
- for, S. (2019). People at Risk: Pregnant Women. [online] FoodSafety.gov. Available at: https://www.foodsafety.gov/people-at-risk/pregnant-women
- for, S. (2019). Cook to a Safe Minimum Internal Temperature. [online] FoodSafety.gov. Available at: https://www.foodsafety.gov/food-safety-charts/safe-minimum-internal-temperatures