Soft cheeses should be off the menu for pregnant women - but what if that's your craving? Our midwife advises...

Raisingkids member's problem
I am in the second trimester of my second pregnancy and all is going well. There is one slight problem - I am craving soft cheeses - brie, camembert, cambozola etc. If they are pasteurised why can I not eat them? I have always eaten cheese and have never been ill so what are the risks surrounding soft cheese and listeria and are there some cheeses which are OK and those which should be really avoided?

Midwife Genevieve Kingston's Advice
Sorry, I haven't got good news for your cravings. The government's advice is that the method of manufacture, storage conditions, and the time soft cheese may be kept before eating can allow harmful organisms to multiple. The advice applies to both unpasteurised and pasteurised soft cheeses.

The risk is that if you do contract listeria, the bugs that cause listeriosa can also damage the baby's brain. They turn brain matter into liquid. Whilst, as you rightly say, you have never been ill after eating soft cheeses, the fact is that there is a risk from eating these whilst pregnant, not so much to yourself but to your baby. It may not be common, but pregnant women do contract listeria from soft cheese, and their babies are still born.

Sorry to sound so ominous, but I would be negligent if I didn't drive this message home. The only soft cheeses which are safe are ones that have been processed from hard cheese- Philadelphia, Dairylea and that ilk.