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Can I eat oysters while breastfeeding?

Check Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Oysters, raw or cooked, show Check in Doola Scan for breastfeeding in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, because they count toward each country's fish advice. The FDA puts oysters among its lower-mercury Best Choices, and the FDA says breastfeeding mothers should eat 8 to 12 ounces of a variety of lower-mercury fish a week. The raw oyster warnings from the FDA and the NHS name pregnancy, young children, older people and a weakened immune system, not breastfeeding, but the NHS says raw oysters can contain viruses such as norovirus.

Checked against Doola Scan's breastfeeding rules · Updated

  • Raw oysters on the half shell

    CheckIn all six countries

  • Cooked oysters: fried, grilled, steamed or Rockefeller

    CheckIn all six countries

  • Smoked or canned oysters

    CheckIn all six countries
Doola Scan checking a plate
What each country says

Oysters while breastfeeding: what each country says.

Each country's own breastfeeding guidance on oysters, with a link to it. Doola Scan uses your country's first.

  • Doola has no source from New Zealand on this yet; its answer comes from the other countries' guidance.

  • United States

    Check
    • FDAFish is nutritious for baby's brain development; choosing lower-mercury fish limits mercury exposure.Source

  • United Kingdom

    Check
    • NHSAim for at least 2 portions (about 140g each) of fish a week; no more than 2 portions of oily fish.Source

  • Canada

    Check
    • Health CanadaEat a variety of fish; low-mercury fish listed with no weekly amount; limits only on predatory fish.Source

  • Australia

    Check
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)2 to 3 serves (150 g each) a week of fish not on the higher-mercury list.Source

  • Ireland

    Check
    • HSEBreastfeeding: no more than 2 portions of oily fish a week.Source
What to check

Before you eat oysters.

  1. Count oysters in your fish for the week

    The CDC's advice while breastfeeding is to limit fish from the FDA's Best Choices, which include oysters, to 2 to 3 servings (8 to 12 ounces) a week. A serving is 4 ounces, measured before cooking. CDC

  2. Know what raw oysters can carry

    The NHS says raw shellfish, particularly oysters, can contain viruses such as norovirus, and that raw or undercooked shellfish can cause food poisoning. Cooking them until the shells open, as the FDA describes, is the cooked alternative. NHS

  3. Cook oysters until the shells open

    The FDA says oysters' shells open during cooking, and to throw away any that stay closed. It also asks you to discard oysters with cracked or broken shells, and to buy live ones that close when tapped. FDA

Questions

About oysters
while breastfeeding.

Raw oysters show Check in Doola Scan for breastfeeding in all six countries, the same as cooked ones, for your weekly fish. The FDA and NHS advice to avoid raw oysters names pregnancy, not breastfeeding, though the NHS says raw oysters can carry norovirus.

The CDC's limit is 2 to 3 servings a week of Best Choices fish, 4 ounces each, and oysters are on that list. The NHS says at least 2 portions of fish a week, and Pregnancy, Birth and Baby 2 to 3 serves of 150g. Health Canada sets no weekly amount for low-mercury fish.

The FDA puts oysters in its Best Choices, its lower-mercury group. The CDC says most fish contain some mercury, which can pass to a baby through breast milk, and that lower-mercury fish are a good choice.

The NHS says shellfish are low in fat and a source of selenium, zinc, iodine and copper, and that oysters contain some omega-3 fats. The FDA says iodine, zinc and omega-3 fats are particularly important while breastfeeding.

The HSE says you can eat most low-mercury seafood while breastfeeding and suggests 2 portions of fish a week. It asks you to take care with scallops, which can contain biotoxins.

Los ostiones, crudos o cocidos, muestran Check en Doola Scan para la lactancia en los seis países, porque cuentan en el pescado de la semana. El NHS señala que los ostiones crudos pueden contener norovirus.

Yes. Take a photo of the menu or the plate, and Doola Scan checks each item against your country's guidance for breastfeeding. Food scans are free, 3 a day.
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Point Doola at a plate, a menu or a label. It checks every ingredient against your country's breastfeeding guidance and shows its sources. 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' breastfeeding guidance names it, not a promise that a food is safe.