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Can I eat ice cream while pregnant?

Check Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Shop-bought ice cream made with pasteurised milk shows No known issues in Doola Scan in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, and the NHS lists pasteurised ice cream among the foods you can have in pregnancy. Two kinds differ. Soft serve from a machine gets Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland and Check in the US, UK and Canada. Homemade ice cream made with raw egg gets the same split. Ice cream made with unpasteurised milk gets Avoid in all six.

Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · Updated

  • Shop-bought ice cream, tubs, cones and bars

    No known issuesIn all six countries

  • Soft serve from a machine, such as a cone or a 99

    CheckUnited StatesUnited KingdomCanadaAvoidAustraliaNew ZealandIreland

  • Homemade ice cream made with raw egg

    CheckUnited StatesUnited KingdomCanadaAvoidAustraliaNew ZealandIreland
Doola Scan checking a plate
What each country says

Ice cream while pregnant: what each country says.

Each country's own pregnancy guidance on ice cream, with a link to it. Doola Scan uses your country's first.

  • United States

    • Shop-bought ice cream, tubs, cones and barsNo known issues
    • Soft serve from a machine, such as a cone or a 99Check
    • Homemade ice cream made with raw eggCheck
    • FDAAvoid raw or undercooked eggs and foods containing them; foods made with pasteurized eggs are fine.Source
    • FDARaw eggs can carry salmonella.Source
    • FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Foods with raw or lightly cooked eggs only with pasteurised eggs.Source
    Ice cream made with unpasteurised milk
    • FDADo not drink raw milk or eat foods made with unpasteurized milk during pregnancy.Source
    • FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Avoid raw milk; only pasteurised milk and milk products.Source
    • USDA FSISNever drink raw milk.Source

  • United Kingdom

    • Shop-bought ice cream, tubs, cones and barsNo known issues
    • Soft serve from a machine, such as a cone or a 99Check
    • Homemade ice cream made with raw eggCheck
    • NHSAny pasteurised ice cream is safe in pregnancy; only unpasteurised ice cream avoided.Source
    • NHSRaw eggs that are not Lion-stamped may carry salmonella.Source
    • NHSRaw-egg foods like mayonnaise and mousse fine if made with British Lion or Laid in Britain hen eggs.Source
    Ice cream made with unpasteurised milk
    • FSAPregnant women should not consume raw drinking milk or cream.Source
    • NHSRaw milk can carry listeria and other harmful bacteria.Source

  • Canada

    • Shop-bought ice cream, tubs, cones and barsNo known issues
    • Soft serve from a machine, such as a cone or a 99Check
    • Homemade ice cream made with raw eggCheck
    • CPSAvoid raw egg and egg dishes with runny yolk.Source
    • Health CanadaAvoid raw-egg foods (homemade mayonnaise, batter, ice cream) unless made with pasteurized liquid eggs.Source
    • CPSAvoid raw egg and egg dishes with runny yolk, such as eggnog.Source
    • Health CanadaAvoid foods with raw egg: some dressings, sauces, cookie dough, cake batter, homemade eggnog (unless heated to 71 °C).Source
    Ice cream made with unpasteurised milk
    • CPSAvoid unpasteurized milk, cheese and dairy products.Source
    • Health CanadaAvoid raw or unpasteurized dairy products; choose pasteurized.Source

  • Australia

    • Shop-bought ice cream, tubs, cones and barsNo known issues
    • Soft serve from a machine, such as a cone or a 99Avoid
    • Homemade ice cream made with raw eggAvoid
    • NSW Food AuthorityDo not eat soft serve.Source
    • NSW HealthDo not eat soft serve ice cream.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Soft-serve machines can let listeria grow if not kept cold and clean.Source
    • NSW Food AuthorityDo not eat raw egg in food (home-made mayonnaise, aioli, mousse, batter).Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)No homemade mayonnaise, aioli, mousse or raw cake batter; commercial mayo/custard OK.Source
    • FSANZSafer alternatives to raw egg dishes: pasteurised eggs, commercial custard and dressings.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Commercially made products with egg (e.g. shop mayonnaise) are fine; not homemade mayonnaise, aioli, mousse or raw cake batter.Source
    Ice cream made with unpasteurised milk
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Avoid unpasteurised milk and foods made from it.Source
    • FSANZAvoid raw milk and raw-milk cheeses; choose pasteurised dairy.Source
    • NSW Food AuthorityDo not drink or use unpasteurised (raw) dairy.Source
    • NSW HealthDo not eat unpasteurised milk or milk products.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Only dairy made from pasteurised milk.Source

  • New Zealand

    • Shop-bought ice cream, tubs, cones and barsNo known issues
    • Soft serve from a machine, such as a cone or a 99Avoid
    • Homemade ice cream made with raw eggAvoid
    • Health NZAvoid soft serve ice cream (listeria).Source
    • MPI (NZ Food Safety)Avoid raw eggs (smoothies, mayonnaise, mousse).Source
    • Health NZRaw eggs in eggnog, smoothies, home-made mayonnaise, mousse, tiramisu etc: don't eat; no pasteurised-egg exception.Source
    Ice cream made with unpasteurised milk
    • Health NZAvoid unpasteurised dairy products.Source

  • Ireland

    • Shop-bought ice cream, tubs, cones and barsNo known issues
    • Soft serve from a machine, such as a cone or a 99Avoid
    • Homemade ice cream made with raw eggAvoid
    • HSEAvoid soft-serve ice cream (such as a '99') in pregnancy.Source
    • HSEAvoid foods made with raw or under-cooked eggs, e.g. homemade mayonnaise; cook eggs thoroughly.Source
    • HSEAvoid foods made with raw or under-cooked eggs, such as homemade mayonnaise.Source
    Ice cream made with unpasteurised milk
    • HSEAvoid unpasteurised dairy (milk and cheese).Source
    • FSAIDo not drink raw milk without boiling it first.Source
What to check

Before you eat ice cream.

  1. Choose ice cream made with pasteurised milk

    The NHS lists pasteurised ice cream among the foods you can have in pregnancy, and unpasteurised ice cream among the ones to avoid. Read the label, and at a farm shop or small maker, ask how the ice cream is made. NHS

  2. In Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, skip soft serve

    Health NZ and the HSE advise avoiding soft-serve ice cream in pregnancy, and NSW Health says not to eat it. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby says soft-serve machines can let listeria grow if they aren't kept cold and clean. Scooped ice cream from a tub isn't soft serve. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby

  3. Make homemade ice cream with pasteurised eggs

    Health Canada names homemade ice cream among raw-egg foods to avoid unless made with pasteurised liquid eggs, and FoodSafety.gov accepts raw-egg foods made with pasteurised eggs. Health NZ and the HSE ask you to avoid foods made with raw egg, with no pasteurised-egg exception in Health NZ's guide. Health Canada

Questions

About ice cream
in pregnancy.

Doola can't tell you for a given brand or shop, so read the label or ask. The NHS lists pasteurised ice cream among the foods you can have in pregnancy, and unpasteurised ice cream as one to avoid.

Soft serve shows Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, where Health NZ, the HSE and NSW Health advise against it, and Check in the US, UK and Canada. In the UK, the NHS's line is about pasteurisation, with only unpasteurised ice cream to avoid.

Gelato made with pasteurised milk shows No known issues in all six countries, as shop ice cream does. The gelato page covers flavours with caffeine, such as coffee and chocolate.

Homemade ice cream made with raw egg shows Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland and Check in the US, UK and Canada. In the UK, the NHS accepts raw-egg foods made with British Lion or Laid in Britain hen eggs.

None of these countries' pregnancy food lists names ice cream as a good pregnancy food. The NHS lists ice cream among foods high in fat, sugar or both, and suggests not snacking on those between meals.

The guidance is the same in every trimester. Pasteurised shop ice cream shows No known issues from the first weeks on, and the soft serve and raw egg advice applies all through pregnancy.

Es krim kemasan dari susu yang dipasteurisasi menunjukkan No known issues di keenam negara. Es krim soft serve dari mesin menunjukkan Avoid di Australia, Selandia Baru, dan Irlandia, dan es krim dari susu yang tidak dipasteurisasi menunjukkan Avoid di keenam negara.

Yes. Take a photo of the label or the menu, and Doola Scan checks each ingredient against your country's pregnancy guidance. Food scans are free, 3 a day.
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Doola shows what official guidance says; it never diagnoses. No known issues means none of these countries' pregnancy guidance names it, not a promise that a food is safe.