(Probaby stupid) question about feta cheese

[Vickster]

Hi everyone

I am 17 weeks pregnant with baby number 2, and ate feta cheese throughout my first pregnancy. It was always on every 'safe' list I looked at.

We are going to Greece on holiday in a week's time, and someone mentioned to me yesterday that certain types of feta in Greece should be avoided as they are made with unpasturised milk. Does anyone know if this is true, as I was planning on Greek salad being my staple diet in the tavernas! Also, any Greek linguists out there that could send me the Greek for 'pasturised' so I know what I am looking for in the supermarket if I buy it myself. that would be fantastic.

Victoria

[supergolden88]

The eternal feta question... Yes some is not pasturised and I have had some trouble finding some in the UK that specifies that it is. I think I got one in Waitrose that was in a small plastic tub - can't remember the brand.

I would say if you buy prepackaged feta in Greece it should say on it (in English as well as Greek) whether it is pasturised. This is probably the brands that are exported here. Dont buy from the barrel I would suggest.

In Greek pasturised = pasteriasmeni (feta)

[Vickster]

Thanks very much supergolden88

Looks like I should avoid all restaurant feta then :(

Do you know what the translation into the greek alphabet is of pasteriasmeni, as I guess that is what will be displayed on the packages. I guess I can always ask in the shops as well.

[Sanne Panne]

παστεριωμένος

[pommie]

I went to greece when i was pregnant with my daughter and unfortunately i had to avoid all feta cheese there which was so annoying as i love the stuff

[Vickster]

Thanks very much Sanne Penne

[supergolden88]

On the bright side you can have feta saganaki and cooked in pies.

Honestly I dont think many pregnant women in Greece (including all my friends) stop eating feta just as I dont believe that french women cut out all the restricted cheeses. Still better safe than sorry

[Vickster]

Yes, spanakopita here I come!

Usually I am not worried about the cheese thing, as there are so many other things to eat, but in Greece as I am veggie the options are already a bit limited.

[esme]

i ate feta whilst pregnant as i thought it was pretty safe to eat, unlike brie & stilton etc. which can be a bit dodgy. i think the worst thing with feta would be a tummy upset rather than it actually having anything harmful - apparently the cheese avoidance is largely down to the risk of food poisoning (which can cause miscarriage if you're really unlucky) so on the whole it seems best to trust your instincts :)

[prm]

I don?t mean to scare anyone but in my opinion avoiding unpasteurised / certain cheeses (I don?t have any specific info on feta, so can?t comment on that) is THE most important thing in pregnancy and I would take zero risk. It is not just the risk of miscarriage in early pregnancy, I know a case of someone who got Listeria at 8+ months pregnant from eating some kind of cheese (don?t know which one exactly) and as a result had a severely disabled baby.