Pregnant? Say Yes to Seafood

Limit albacore tuna to six ounces per week. This large species is highest in mercury, which is why there is widespread agreement that it should be avoided by women of childbearing ages and by young children. Also skip fried fish, especially from fast-food restaurants. It contains few omega-3 fatty acids and may have unhealthy trans fats.

Avoid raw fish, steak tartare and any other raw meat, poultry and dairy products. That means sushi, clams on the half shell, prosciutto, lox, smoked meats and various meat jerkies. All can be sources of listeria, a bacteria that sickens about 2,500 people annually and is particularly dangerous for pregnant women and their fetuses. For the same reason, skip refrigerated pâté and other meat spreads, as well as unpasteurized dairy products. These include cheeses made from raw, unpasteurized milk such as brie, Camembert, feta, blue cheese and queso blanco (as well as Mexican-style soft cheeses).

Eat these foods "only if the package says they are made from pasteurized milk," advises W. Allan Walker, director of Harvard Medical School's Division of Nutrition and author of "The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating During Pregnancy" (McGraw-Hill, $16.95). Skip them at restaurants where you can't be sure they are from pasteurized milk, Walker advises.

Abstain from alcohol. There is no safe level for pregnant women. At Lucile Packard Children's Hospital in Palo Alto, Calif., registered dietitian Trudy Theiss advises women trying to conceive to be teetotalers, because it takes at least a couple of weeks to confirm a pregnancy.

Reheat deli meats and hot dogs. Make sure they are steaming hot, Theiss advises, so that they reach a temperature of about 160 degrees, the level needed to kill listeria and other bacteria.

Go easy on the caffeine. Up to 300 milligrams per day seems to be safe, Theiss notes. That's the amount found in one or two small cups of coffee.

And if you like your beverages sweet but don't want added sugar, choose sugar substitutes wisely. Splenda does not seem to cross the placenta, Walker says, making it a safe choice for pregnant women who want to use a sugar substitute.

But skip saccharin, a sweetener that is a weak carcinogen, as well as stevia, which is sold as a dietary supplement but has not been approved as a food ingredient by the FDA. Also go easy on aspartame, sold as NutraSweet and Equal, since the FDA sets daily levels based on body weight.