What foods should I avoid while pregnant?

The reasoning behind the main exclusions

• Mould-ripened and unpasteurised cheeses can carry listeria — rare, but serious in pregnancy. Hard cheeses (cheddar, parmesan) and cooked-until-steaming soft cheeses are fine.
• All pâté, including vegetable pâté, is a listeria risk; liver pâté adds a vitamin A problem on top.
• Liver and game contain retinol (vitamin A) at levels that can harm a developing baby.
• Swordfish, marlin and shark concentrate mercury; tuna is limited (4 cans or 2 steaks a week) rather than excluded.
• Raw shellfish carries food-poisoning risk that's worth avoiding while immunity is naturally suppressed.

What's changed in recent years

Runny eggs with the British Lion stamp are now considered safe, and sushi is fine if the fish was previously frozen — two areas where older advice lingers online. Caffeine stays capped at 200mg a day (roughly two mugs of instant). When a food isn't on any list you trust, the NHS foods-to-avoid page is the tiebreaker — it's updated as evidence changes.