Can I eat pizza while pregnant?
Check
Doola Scan's answer in the United States
Doola Scan's answer in the United StatesCheese pizza with grated mozzarella, baked hot, isn't on the pregnancy food lists of the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or Ireland, so Doola Scan shows No known issues for it. The toppings decide the rest. Pepperoni, ham and fresh mozzarella get Check in all six countries: the NHS asks for cold cured meats like pepperoni to be cooked until steaming hot, and accepts any cheese cooked until steaming hot. Toppings added cold after baking are different: prosciutto laid on a baked pizza shows Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, and burrata shows Avoid in New Zealand.
Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · UpdatedCheese pizza with grated mozzarella, baked hot
No known issuesIn all six countriesMargherita with fresh mozzarella, baked until bubbling
CheckIn all six countriesPepperoni pizza
CheckIn all six countriesHawaiian pizza with ham and pineapple
CheckIn all six countries
What each country says
Pizza while pregnant: what each country says.
Each country's own pregnancy guidance on pizza, with a link to it. Doola Scan uses your country's first.
United States
- Cheese pizza with grated mozzarella, baked hotNo known issues
- Margherita with fresh mozzarella, baked until bubblingCheck
- Pepperoni pizzaCheck
- Hawaiian pizza with ham and pineappleCheck
- CDCAvoid unheated queso fresco-type cheeses (queso fresco, queso blanco, requesón) even when made with pasteurized milk; heat to 165°F.Source
- FDASoft cheese from raw milk can carry listeria.Source
- FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Pasteurised; queso fresco-type fresh soft cheeses only when heated to 165°F, even if pasteurised.Source
- USDA FSISAvoid soft cheeses not made with pasteurised milk.Source
- FDAAvoid deli meats, fermented and dry sausage unless reheated until steaming hot.Source
- FDAListeria grows at fridge temperatures; heating kills it.Source
- FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Reheat hot dogs, deli meats and fermented or dry sausage to steaming hot or 165°F.Source
- USDA FSISPregnant mothers should avoid deli meats and hot dogs not heated to 165°F.Source
- FDAAvoid cold cuts and deli meats unless reheated until steaming hot (not just chilled and in date).Source
United Kingdom
- Cheese pizza with grated mozzarella, baked hotNo known issues
- Margherita with fresh mozzarella, baked until bubblingCheck
- Pepperoni pizzaCheck
- Hawaiian pizza with ham and pineappleCheck
- NHSPasteurised soft cheeses such as mozzarella, feta, paneer, ricotta, burrata are safe.Source
- NHSCured meat may carry listeria or toxoplasma.Source
- NHSCold cured meats (salami, pepperoni, chorizo, prosciutto) should be cooked until steaming hot.Source
- NHSChilled ready-to-eat meats can carry listeria.Source
Canada
- Cheese pizza with grated mozzarella, baked hotNo known issues
- Margherita with fresh mozzarella, baked until bubblingCheck
- Pepperoni pizzaCheck
- Hawaiian pizza with ham and pineappleCheck
- CPSAvoid soft cheeses like Brie or Camembert, even if pasteurized.Source
- Health CanadaAvoid uncooked soft, semi-soft and blue cheese even if pasteurized; fine cooked.Source
- CPSOnly non-dried deli meats are listed; dried cured meats are not.Source
- Health CanadaDried and salted deli meats such as salami and pepperoni are listed as SAFER alternatives (no cooking/freezing needed).Source
- CPSAvoid uncooked hot dogs and non-dried deli meats.Source
- Health CanadaHot dogs not straight from pack - heat to 74 °C; avoid non-dried deli meats (bologna, roast beef, turkey) unless steaming hot.Source
- CPSAvoid non-dried deli meats (UK: fine if chilled and in date).Source
- Health CanadaAvoid refrigerated non-dried deli meats unless heated until steaming hot.Source
Australia
- Cheese pizza with grated mozzarella, baked hotNo known issues
- Margherita with fresh mozzarella, baked until bubblingCheck
- Pepperoni pizzaCheck
- Hawaiian pizza with ham and pineappleCheck
- Better Health Channel (Victoria)Soft cheeses only if served cooked and hot.Source
- FSANZAvoid soft, semi-soft and surface-ripened cheese incl. brie, camembert, mozzarella, ricotta, feta, blue - unless baked to 75 °C.Source
- NSW Food AuthoritySoft and semi-soft cheeses only if cooked to at least 75°C and eaten soon after.Source
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)No soft cheeses (brie, camembert, blue, ricotta, feta) unless cooked to at least 75°C and eaten straight away.Source
- Better Health Channel (Victoria)Avoid ham, salami and fermented meats unless cooked or heated.Source
- NSW Food AuthorityProcessed meats only if cooked to at least 75°C and eaten soon after.Source
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Avoid cold cured meats (salami, ham, luncheon meat) unless cooked to 75 °C and eaten straight away.Source
- NSW HealthDo not eat cold deli meats.Source
- Better Health Channel (Victoria)Deli meats only if further cooked or heated.Source
- FSANZAvoid unpackaged deli-counter and packaged sliced cold meats unless freshly cooked or reheated steaming hot.Source
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Processed meats only if cooked to at least 75°C and eaten straight away.Source
- FSANZAvoid cold RTE meats incl. packaged sliced meats and cold pre-cooked chicken; hot takeaway chicken OK if eaten immediately.Source
- NSW HealthDo not eat pre-cooked cold chicken.Source
- Better Health Channel (Victoria)Cold pre-cooked meats and chicken only if further cooked or heated.Source
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)No cold ready-to-eat meats or cold cooked chicken unless heated to 75°C and eaten straight away.Source
Leftover pizza kept in the fridge- NSW Food AuthorityLeftovers in the fridge, eaten within a day and reheated to at least 60°C.Source
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Leftovers: fridge, reheat thoroughly, not more than one day old.Source
- Better Health Channel (Victoria)Avoid leftover meats refrigerated more than a day unless reheated.Source
- FSANZVulnerable people: eat refrigerated leftovers within 1 day; reheat to 75 °C steaming hot.Source
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Store leftovers in the fridge and use them within a day of cooking.Source
New Zealand
- Cheese pizza with grated mozzarella, baked hotNo known issues
- Margherita with fresh mozzarella, baked until bubblingCheck
- Pepperoni pizzaCheck
- Hawaiian pizza with ham and pineappleCheck
- Health NZAvoid soft, semi-soft and surface-ripened cheeses such as brie, camembert, ricotta, blue and feta.Source
- MPI (NZ Food Safety)Avoid processed meats (ham, pâté, salami, luncheon) in pregnancy.Source
- Health NZAvoid cold meats from deli counters and sandwich bars, and packaged sliced ready-to-eat meats.Source
- MPI (NZ Food Safety)Avoid cold cooked or smoked chicken and chilled RTE deli/buffet foods unless heated piping hot.Source
Ireland
- Cheese pizza with grated mozzarella, baked hotNo known issues
- Margherita with fresh mozzarella, baked until bubblingCheck
- Pepperoni pizzaCheck
- Hawaiian pizza with ham and pineappleCheck
What to check
Before you eat pizza.
Make sure pepperoni is baked until steaming hot
The NHS lists cold cured meats such as salami, pepperoni, chorizo and prosciutto among the foods to cook until steaming hot. In the US, FoodSafety.gov asks for fermented or dry sausage reheated to steaming hot or 165°F. NHS
In Australia, ham and salami need 75°C
Pregnancy, Birth and Baby asks you to avoid cold cured meats such as salami and ham unless cooked to 75°C and eaten straight away. By that line, ham baked on a pizza and eaten fresh from the oven is cooked; ham added after baking isn't. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby
Let soft cheese bake until it bubbles
The NHS accepts any cheese cooked until steaming hot, soft cheese included, and FSANZ accepts soft cheeses baked to 75°C. By those lines, fresh mozzarella, goat's cheese or feta baked on the pizza is cooked; the same cheeses added after baking aren't. NHS
Skip toppings added cold after baking
Ireland's HSE asks you to avoid cold cured meats such as salami, Parma ham, chorizo and pepperoni, and Health NZ names soft cheeses among foods to avoid. Prosciutto or burrata laid on a pizza once it's out of the oven is eaten cold. HSE
QuestionsAbout pizza
About pizza
in pregnancy.
A cheese pizza baked hot shows No known issues in Doola Scan in all six countries. Pepperoni, ham and fresh mozzarella show Check, because each country asks for them cooked until hot, and toppings added cold after baking can show Avoid.
Mozzarella, pizza sauce and pineapple baked on the pizza show No known issues. Pepperoni, ham and fresh mozzarella show Check, and the check is that they're baked until steaming hot. Prosciutto and burrata added cold after baking show Avoid in some countries.
Hawaiian pizza shows Check in all six countries, for the ham. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby asks for ham cooked to 75°C and eaten straight away, and the NHS asks for cold cured meats cooked until steaming hot. The pineapple shows No known issues.
A margherita with fresh mozzarella baked until bubbling shows Check in all six countries. The NHS accepts any cheese cooked until steaming hot, and FSANZ accepts soft cheese baked to 75°C.
Leftovers show Check in all six countries. The FSA asks for leftovers reheated until steaming hot throughout, Health NZ asks for them reheated until piping hot and never eaten cold, and FSANZ asks pregnant women to eat refrigerated leftovers within 1 day.
Doola Scan reads a takeaway pizza by its toppings, whichever chain it comes from: cheese baked hot shows No known issues, and pepperoni or ham shows Check. Eat it hot, soon after it's baked.
The guidance is the same in every trimester. The rules on cured meat, soft cheese and leftovers apply from the first weeks of pregnancy to the last.
La pizza de queso horneada y caliente no aparece en las listas de alimentos para el embarazo de estos seis países, y Doola Scan muestra No known issues. El pepperoni, el jamón y la mozzarella fresca tienen Check: deben hornearse hasta que estén muy calientes.
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Download app nowDoola 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.