Foods that pregnant women should avoid

Extract

[...] In addition to the previously mentioned malformations, babies exposed to 20,000 international units of vitamin A during the first trimester were 4 times more likely to be born with defects such as a cleft lip, a cleft palate, hydrocephalus and major heart deformities. To put this into perspective, one 3-ounce serving of beef liver may contain over 30,000 international units of vitamin A and some supplement tablets exceed 10,000 international units. Therefore, women should not consume liver or liver products such as pâté and should not take vitamin A tablets. [...]

[...] Authoritynutrition.com (accessed 25/1/2017) also describes the implications of toxoplasmosis in later life, as side effects such as blindness and intellectual disabilities may develop. To avoid toxoplasmosis, pregnant women are not advised to eat raw or undercooked meat and are told to thoroughly wash fruit and vegetables because the parasite may linger on their skin. According to nhs.uk/conditions (accessed 23/1/2017), an infection known as listeriosis is caused by eating food contaminated with listeria bacteria. If a pregnant woman gets listeriosis, there is a risk of miscarriage, still birth or severe illness in the unborn baby. [...]

[...] The example given in the piece describes the effect on a toddler exposed to high levels of mercury in the womb; side effects included "delay in walking and talking . permanent deficits in IQ, attention and memory." Authoritynutrition.com (accessed 25/1/2017) warns against the high mercury content of shark, king mackerel and halibut. Additionally, the "Eating while you are pregnant" leaflet, published by the Food Standards Agency in 2002, recommends that pregnant women should not eat more than 2 portions of oily fish per week. Fresh tuna (not canned), mackerel, sardines and trout are considered oily fish and pregnant women should limit their intake. [...]

[...] Salmonellosis is caused by salmonella bacteria. According to marchofdimes.com (accessed 21/2/2017), salmonellosis can cause severe diarrhoea and fever in the baby after birth. The baby may also be at risk of developing meningitis later on. To avoid salmonellosis, pregnant women should not eat raw cake batter or cookie dough, products made from unpasteurised milk, raw or undercooked sprouts like alfalfa, homemade eggnog, mayonnaise or ice cream (eggs should always be cooked thoroughly), undercooked poultry or stuffing because these foods may become contaminated with salmonella bacteria. [...]

[...] I think that it is the best way to get the message across and grab the attention of my audience through the use of headlines, pictures and colour. I hope that the audience will be engaged by the steam lined layout a leaflet provides and I will use bullet points and coherent information to do this. The information I used to make this decision was at pulsecreativemarketing.co.uk (accessed 21/2/2017). [...]