Can I eat ranch dressing while pregnant?
Doola Scan's answer in the United StatesRanch dressing isn't named on the pregnancy food lists of the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or Ireland, and its usual ingredients, buttermilk, mayonnaise, sour cream and herbs, show No known issues in Doola Scan. The one thing that changes it is raw egg. The FDA says commercial dressings contain pasteurised eggs, but ranch made with homemade raw-egg mayonnaise is Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland and Check in the US, UK and Canada. So the checks are the label, and how a kitchen makes it.
Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · UpdatedBottled ranch dressing from the shop, or from a restaurant's bottle
No known issuesIn all six countriesHomemade ranch with jarred mayonnaise, buttermilk and sour cream
No known issuesIn all six countriesRanch dip made with sour cream and a seasoning mix
No known issuesIn all six countries
Ranch dressing while pregnant: what each country says.
Each country's own pregnancy guidance on ranch dressing, with a link to it. Doola Scan uses your country's first.
No known issuesNone of the six countries' pregnancy guidance names ranch dressing.
United States
No known issuesUnited Kingdom
No known issuesCanada
No known issuesRanch made with homemade mayonnaise from raw egg- 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
Australia
No known issuesRanch made with homemade mayonnaise from raw egg- 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
New Zealand
No known issuesIreland
No known issues
Before you eat ranch dressing.
Read the bottle's label
The FDA says commercial mayonnaise, dressings and sauces contain pasteurised eggs, and asks you to check that dairy, such as the buttermilk in ranch, is made with pasteurised milk. Both show on the ingredients list. FDA
Making it at home: use jarred mayonnaise
Australia's Pregnancy Birth and Baby says you can eat commercially made products containing egg, such as mayonnaise, but not homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg. Health Canada suggests pasteurised liquid eggs for raw-egg foods that won't be cooked. Pregnancy Birth and Baby
Eating out, ask how the ranch is made
The FDA lists homemade and fresh-made dressings and sauces made with raw eggs among the foods to avoid in pregnancy. Ask whether the ranch is made in the kitchen with raw egg or comes from a bottle. FDA
Keep it in the fridge
Ranch is made with milk products, and the FDA asks for milk products to be kept refrigerated at 40°F (4°C). Put an opened bottle or a bowl of dip back in the fridge rather than leaving it out. FDA
About ranch dressing
in pregnancy.
Not sure about a meal? Scan it.
Point Doola at a plate, a menu or a label. It checks every ingredient against your country's pregnancy guidance and shows its sources. Food scans are free, 3 a day.
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.