Listeria symptoms during pregnancy

Listeria and Pregnancy | ACOG

• Listeria is a kind of bacteria that is found in soil, water, and some animals, including cattle and poultry. When eaten, Listeria causes a foodborne illness called listeriosis. Listeriosis is one of the most serious types of food poisoning.

• Listeriosis can cause mild, flu-like symptoms such as fever, chills, muscle aches, and diarrhea or upset stomach. You also may have a stiff neck, headache, confusion, or loss of balance. Symptoms may appear as late as 2 months after you have eaten something with Listeria. Many pregnant women do not have any symptoms. Even if you do not feel sick, you can pass the infection to your fetus.

• Pregnant women are 10 times more likely to get listeriosis than the general population. Vomiting and diarrhea can cause the body to lose too much water. This is called dehydration. Listeriosis also can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, or preterm labor.

• Babies born with listeriosis may have serious infections of the blood or brain. Listeriosis can cause lifelong health problems for your baby, including intellectual disability, paralysis, seizures, blindness, or problems with the brain, kidneys, or heart. Listeriosis also can cause death in newborns.

• If you think you have eaten food contaminated with Listeria or if you have any of the symptoms of listeriosis, contact your obstetrician–gynecologist (ob-gyn) or other health care professional right away. Remember that it can take 2 months for symptoms to appear.

• Your ob-gyn or other health care professional may give you a blood test to see if you have listeriosis. You may need to take antibiotics to treat the infection and prevent your fetus from becoming infected.

• To help prevent listeriosis, avoid eating the following foods while you are pregnant:

  • Unpasteurized milk and foods made with unpasteurized milk, including soft cheeses

  • Hot dogs and luncheon meats, unless they are heated until steaming hot just before serving

  • Refrigerated pâté and meat spreads

  • Refrigerated smoked seafood

  • Unwashed raw produce such as fruits and vegetables

  Avoid all raw and undercooked seafood, eggs, meat, and poultry while you are pregnant. Do not eat sushi made with raw fish (cooked sushi is safe). Cooking and pasteurization are the only ways to kill Listeria.

• Follow these steps for food safety:

  Clean

  • Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds before and after touching raw food, and after using the bathroom, changing diapers, or touching an animal.

  • Rinse all raw produce thoroughly under running water before eating, peeling, cutting, or cooking.

  • Do not rinse raw meat or poultry before cooking. That can spread bacteria to other kitchen surfaces.

  • Keep your kitchen clean. Wash your utensils, countertops, and cutting boards with soap and hot water after using them.

  Separate

  • Keep raw meat, poultry, eggs, seafood, and their juices away from other food.

  • Use a separate cutting board for raw meat, poultry, and seafood.

  • Do not put cooked food on a plate that also held raw food, unless the plate was washed.

  • Do not put cooked food in the same sauce that was used to marinate raw food, unless the sauce is boiled first.

  Cook

  • Use a food thermometer to check that meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs are at a safe temperature.

  • Place the food thermometer in the thickest part of the food, away from bone, fat, and gristle.

  • Cover, stir, and rotate food in a microwave to cook the food evenly. Allow for standing time before using a food thermometer.

  Chill

  • Keep your refrigerator at 40°F or below and your freezer at 0°F or below.

  • Thaw food in a refrigerator, microwave, or cold water. Cook food immediately after thawing in a microwave or cold water.

  • Meat and poultry thawed in the refrigerator may be refrozen before or after cooking. If thawed in a microwave or cold water, cook before refreezing.

  • Do not leave perishable food at room temperature for more than 2 hours (1 hour when the outside temperature is above 90°F).

  • Only buy eggs that are refrigerated. Store eggs in the refrigerator in their original carton and use within 3–5 weeks.

  • Only buy precut produce that is refrigerated or surrounded by ice. Keep precut produce refrigerated at home.

• Antibiotics: Drugs that treat certain types of infections.

  Fetus: The stage of human development beyond 8 completed weeks after fertilization.

  Listeriosis: A type of illness you can get from bacteria found in unpasteurized milk, hot dogs, luncheon meats, and smoked seafood.

  Miscarriage: Loss of a pregnancy that is in the uterus.

  Obstetrician–Gynecologist (Ob-Gyn): A doctor with special training and education in women’s health.

  Pasteurization: The process of heating certain foods to a specific temperature for a set period of time to kill harmful bacteria.

  Preterm: Less than 37 weeks of pregnancy.

  Stillbirth: Birth of a dead fetus.

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FAQ501
Published: June 2018
Last reviewed: August 2022

Copyright 2022 by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. All rights reserved. Read copyright and permissions information.

This information is designed as an educational aid for the public. It offers current information and opinions related to women's health. It is not intended as a statement of the standard of care. It does not explain all of the proper treatments or methods of care. It is not a substitute for the advice of a physician. Read ACOG’s complete disclaimer.

Listeria During Pregnancy | American Pregnancy Association

During pregnancy, it is important to be aware of what you put inside your body. You should be aware of what is good to eat and also what is not so good to eat. Listeria is a type of bacteria that can be found in some contaminated foods. Listeria can cause problems for both you and your baby. Although listeriosis (the illness from ingesting Listeria) is rare, pregnant women are more susceptible to it than non-pregnant healthy adults.

Listeria monocytogenes is a type of bacteria that is found in water and soil. Vegetables can become contaminated from the soil, and animals can also be carriers. Listeria has been found in uncooked meats, uncooked vegetables, unpasteurized milk, foods made from unpasteurized milk, and processed foods. Listeria is killed by pasteurization and cooking. There is a chance that contamination may occur in ready-to-eat foods such as hot dogs and deli meats because contamination may occur after cooking and before packaging.¹

What are the risks of a pregnant woman getting listeriosis?

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), an estimated 1,700 persons become seriously ill each year in the United States and among these, 260 will die. Although the CDC states that pregnant women are 20 times more likely to become infected than non-pregnant healthy adults, the number of cases of listeriosis in pregnant women is about 17%.

How will I know if I have listeriosis?

Symptoms of listeriosis may show up 2-30 days after exposure. Symptoms in pregnant women include mild flu-like symptoms, headaches, muscle aches, fever, nausea, and vomiting. If the infection spreads to the nervous system it can cause a stiff neck, disorientation, or convulsions. Infection can occur at any time during pregnancy, but it is most common during the third trimester when your immune system is somewhat suppressed. Be sure to contact your health care provider if you experience any of these symptoms. A blood test can confirm an infection from listeriosis.

Will this harm my baby?

If you are pregnant and are infected with listeriosis, you are at an increased risk of :

• Miscarriage
• Premature delivery
• Infection to the newborn
• Death to the newborn (about 22% of cases of perinatal listeriosis result in stillbirth or neonatal death)

Early treatment with antibiotics may prevent fetal infection and other severe fetal complications. Not all babies whose mothers are infected will have any problems related to listeriosis.

How is it treated?

Listeriosis is treated with antibiotics during pregnancy. These antibiotics, in most cases, will prevent infection to the fetus and newborn. These same antibiotics are also given to newborns with listeriosis.

What can I do to protect my baby from listeriosis?

Following these guidelines can greatly reduce your chances of contracting Listeriosis:

• 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 that do not state they are pasteurized. 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 to read the labels!
• Be cautious when eating hot dogs, luncheon meats, or deli meats unless they are properly reheated to steaming (or 160 degrees F.): Eating out at certain restaurants that provide deli meat sandwiches is not recommended for pregnant women since they do not reheat their deli meats. Restaurants such as Subway recommends that pregnant women eat the following non-luncheon meat items such as meatball, steak and cheese, roasted chicken, and tuna (limit 2 servings a week).
• Do not eat refrigerated pates or meat spreads.
• Do not eat refrigerated smoked seafood unless it is contained in a cooked dish, such as a casserole.

Practice safe food handling:

• Wash all fruits and vegetables
• Keep everything clean including your hands and preparation surfaces
• Keep your refrigerator thermometer at 40 degrees or below
• Clean your refrigerator often
• Avoid cross-contamination between raw and uncooked foods (this includes hot dog juices)
• Cook foods at proper temperatures (use food thermometers) and reheat all foods until they are steaming hot (or 160 F)

Proper Temperatures for Cooking Foods:

• Chicken: 165-180 F
• Egg Dishes: 160 F
• Ground Meat: 160-165 F
• Beef, Medium well: 160 F
• Beef, Well Done: 170 F (not recommended to eat any meat cooked rare)
• Pork: 160-170 F
• Ham (raw): 160 F
• Ham (precooked): 140 F

Refrigerate or freeze food promptly.
For more information on food safety and prevention of food-borne illnesses such as listeria you can contact:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Food-borne Illness Line
(24 hr recorded information)
1-888-232-3228
https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/
U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition
1-888-SAFEFOOD
https://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/CentersOffices/OfficeofFoods/CFSAN/

Want to Know More?

• Pregnancy Nutrition
• You are What You Eat…The Bumpy Truth About Nutrition
• Herbal Tea and Pregnancy

Compiled using information from the following sources:

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

https://www.cdc.gov

2. Williams Obstetrics Twenty-Second Ed. Cunningham, F. Gary, et al, Ch. 58

3. Organization of Teratology Information Specialists, OTIS.

4 main symptoms of listeriosis and how to avoid it

Listeriosis is a foodborne bacterial disease that can lead to devastating consequences in pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems. Listeria is most commonly found in improperly processed and cooked meats and unpasteurized dairy products.

Healthy people rarely experience this infection, but it can be fatal for newborns or unborn babies. Immunocompromised individuals are also at higher risk of life-threatening complications. That is why, at the first suspicion, it is necessary to take an analysis for listeriosis. Timely treatment helps prevent or mitigate the development of complications.

The peculiarity of this bacterium is the ability to survive and develop in chilled and even frozen foods. For this reason, people who are at higher risk of infection should avoid foods that may contain this bacterium.

If you develop this infection, you may experience the following symptoms:

1. Fever,
2. Muscle pain,
3. Nausea,
4. Diarrhea.

Symptoms of listeriosis may appear several days after eating contaminated food. However, for some, a month or even more passes before the first signs of the disease appear.

If listeria spreads to the nervous system, the patient may experience additional symptoms, including:

• Headaches,
• Hardening of the neck muscles,
• Confusion in the mind,
• Loss of balance,
• Seizures.

How does listeriosis manifest itself during pregnancy and newborns?

Compared to other healthy adults, pregnant women are more susceptible to this infection. In most pregnant women, the bacterium causes only mild symptoms. But the consequences for the child can be dire. The baby may die unexpectedly or face a life-threatening infection during the first days after birth. Sometimes miscarriages happen.

As with adults, listeriosis symptoms in newborns may be mild. They include:

• Weak desire to eat,
• Irritability,
• Fever,
• Vomiting.

Listeriosis in people with weakened immunity:

This category of people includes:

• persons over 60 years old,
• AIDS/ AIDS,
• people who are taking place chemotherapy,
• People with kidney disease or diabetes,
• People taking large doses of prednisone or certain drugs for rheumatoid arthritis,
• People taking drugs after organ transplants (immunosuppressants).

Listeria can be found in soil, water or animal feces. Most often people become infected after eating:

• Infected meat,
• Unpasteurized milk or products made from it0012
• Raw vegetables that have been contaminated from soil or manure used as fertilizer.

When to run to the doctor?

If you've been eating foods that have since been taken off the market because of Listeria, listen to your body. If the four main symptoms appear, immediately go to the doctor. The same goes for eating foods that may have been contaminated: unpasteurized milk, an undercooked hot dog, or deli meats. If after using them symptoms of listeriosis appear, go get tested.

If you have additional symptoms that affect the nervous system, call an ambulance. These symptoms may indicate the development of one of the life-threatening complications - bacterial meningitis.

In most cases, this infection is so mild that patients may not notice anything. But this does not negate the fact that this disease can lead to life-threatening complications. These include:

• Blood poisoning (septicemia),
• Inflammation of the membranes and fluid that surrounds the brain (meningitis),
• Miscarriage in early pregnancy (in 20% of cases),
• The development of a deadly infection in a child during the first days after birth (even if the infection was very mild in the mother).

The most effective way to detect this infection is through a blood test to determine the DNA of the bacterium. By the way, if you live in Kyiv, you can take this test at our medical center in Troyeschina.

In some cases, additional research methods are required - analysis of urine or cerebrospinal fluid.

Treatment for listeriosis varies according to the severity of the symptoms. Most people with a mild infection do not need to be treated, but should be monitored by a doctor. In severe cases, antibiotics are prescribed.

Listeriosis during pregnancy must be treated very quickly. The main goal is to prevent the transmission of infection from mother to child. If the baby was born with this infection, he may be prescribed a combination of several antibiotics.

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