Is it okay to eat Asiago cheese while your pregnant?

Question

The other day I had some Asiago cheese on my pasta and I didn't realize that it wasn't pasturized. I thought since it was a hard cheese it was fine. Now I'm worried.

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

You can eat any HARD cheese when pregnant -pasteurized or not. The warnings are only against soft (un-aged) unpasteurized cheeses.

"Eat hard cheeses instead of soft cheeses: The CDC has recommended that pregnant women avoid soft cheeses such as feta, Brie, Camembert, blue-veined cheeses and Mexican style cheeses such as queso fresco, queso blanco and Panela.

Hard cheeses such as cheddar and semi-soft cheeses such as mozzarella are safe to consume. Pasteurized processed cheese slices and spreads such as cream cheese and cottage cheese can also be safely consumed. The most important thing to do is read the labels! "
http://www.americanpregnancy.org/pregnan…

"Do not eat soft cheeses such as feta, Brie, Camembert, blue-veined cheeses, and Mexican-style cheeses such as "queso blanco fresco." Hard cheeses, semi-soft cheeses such as mozzarella, pasteurized processed cheese slices and spreads, cream cheese, and cottage cheese can be safely consumed."
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Fact_Sheets/Lis…

Answer 2

Don't be worried. It is true that you should avoid unpasteruized foods because they can lead to certain diseases and disorders. But keep in mind these are rare and doctors only suggest in order to eliminate risk.

Just be cautious for both you and your baby. He/She eats what you eat.

Congrats on the baby, best of luck

Answer 3

I got this information from WebMD. Seems to me, it is most likely okay, however if you are overly cautious (like I was) I would not eat it again. It is a point of debate in the medical community, and I know plenty of people who have had everything on the "dont eat potentially dangerous" list and their babies are perfectly healthy. So don't worry too much. I did paste in the block from Web MD for you.

Cheeses

The CDC says listeriosis, a food-borne illness with mild flu-like symptoms that can be overlooked, can result in premature delivery, miscarriage, severe illness, or death of the baby. Heidi Murkoff, author of What to Expect When You're Expecting, concurs with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which cautions that you not eat unpasteurized soft cheeses (and other unpasteurized dairy products), hotdogs, or lunch meat unless cooked.

Cheeses made in the U.S. must be made from pasteurized milk (this process kills the listeria organism), so they are fairly safe. Imported soft cheeses are potentially problematic. These may include Brie, Camembert, feta, goat, Montrachet, Neufchatel, and queso fresco. Listeria may also be found in unpasteurized semi-soft cheeses (slightly more solid cheeses that do not grate easily and are often coated with wax to preserve moisture and extend shelf life). Semi-soft cheeses include Asiago, blue, brick, Gorgonzola, Havarti, Muenster, and Roquefort.

Cheddar, mozzarella, cream cheese, and cottage cheese are fine. "Stay away from those yummy roadside ciders, too," Murkoff advises. "They're not pasteurized."

Source(s):

http://www.webmd.com/content/article/49/…

Answer 4

You should not eat unpasturized dairy or other products while pregnant... With that said, it was probably not enough to cause a problem. Call your doctor to find out if there are any symtoms you should look for, and let them know about what happened.

Answer 5

Don't worry. Although many doctors in the US warn against eating "raw" cheeses while pregnant, there is little statistical reason for concern.

I going to assume that you are in the US- where it is actually illegal to import raw cheeses that haven't been aged over a certain number of days. That extra aging time greatly reduces the number of potentially dangerous bacteria in the cheese. The kinds of asiago that are typically grated over pasta are usually well aged anyhow, and not all asiagos are unpasteurized.

To further allay your fears, I should mention that even raw milk cheeses that are barely heated at all, much less pasteurized, are handled very carefully to prevent any kind of contamination. Also, consider the fact that women in Europe have no prohibition against eating raw milk cheeses while pregnant, and their levels of birth defects and pregnancy complications are much lower than ours.

So basically, unless you have a seriously compromised immune system that cannot handle any bacteria (in which case you shouldn't be eating any cheese at all), there's not much to be worried about.

Source(s):

I worked as a cheese monger for 4 years.