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Can I eat raw oysters while pregnant?

Avoid Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Raw oysters show Avoid in Doola Scan in all six countries: the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland all ask pregnant women not to eat raw shellfish. Cooked oysters, fried, steamed, grilled or baked as oysters Rockefeller, show Check, and so do canned and smoked oysters: the check is the weekly fish amount. The FDA lists oysters among its Best Choices, 2 to 3 servings a week, and asks you to avoid raw oysters even if they were treated after harvest.

Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · Updated

  • Raw oysters on the half shell

    AvoidIn all six countries

  • Cooked oysters: fried, steamed, grilled or Rockefeller

    CheckIn all six countries

  • Canned and smoked oysters

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

Raw oysters while pregnant: what each country says.

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

  • United States

    • Raw oysters on the half shellAvoid
    • Cooked oysters: fried, steamed, grilled or RockefellerCheck
    • Canned and smoked oystersCheck
    • FDAFish is recommended but amounts limit mercury exposure.Source
    • FDAPeople at higher risk, including pregnant women, should avoid raw shellfish and their juices.Source
    • FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Avoid raw oysters, clams and scallops.Source

  • United Kingdom

    • Raw oysters on the half shellAvoid
    • Cooked oysters: fried, steamed, grilled or RockefellerCheck
    • Canned and smoked oystersCheck
    • NHSTrying for a baby or pregnant: max 2 oily fish portions (140g) a week; tuna max 4 cans or 2 steaks a week.Source
    • NHSRaw shellfish can carry bacteria, viruses or toxins.Source

  • Canada

    • Raw oysters on the half shellAvoid
    • Cooked oysters: fried, steamed, grilled or RockefellerCheck
    • Canned and smoked oystersCheck
    • Health CanadaLow-mercury fish encouraged with no weekly amount; limit only fresh/frozen tuna, shark, swordfish, marlin, orange roughy, escolar.Source
    • CPSAvoid raw shellfish such as oysters and clams.Source
    • Health CanadaAvoid raw oysters, clams and mussels; eat only when cooked until shells open.Source

  • Australia

    • Raw oysters on the half shellAvoid
    • Cooked oysters: fried, steamed, grilled or RockefellerCheck
    • Canned and smoked oystersCheck
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Other fish or seafood no more than 2 to 3 times a week (150 g serve).Source
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Avoid raw oysters and other raw seafood.Source
    • FSANZAvoid raw oysters and other chilled raw seafood.Source
    • NSW Food AuthorityDo not eat raw seafood.Source
    • NSW HealthDo not eat raw seafood.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)No raw oysters or other raw seafood.Source

  • New Zealand

    • Raw oysters on the half shellAvoid
    • Cooked oysters: fried, steamed, grilled or RockefellerCheck
    • Canned and smoked oystersCheck
    • Health NZMost commonly eaten NZ fish can be eaten freely; low-mercury species need no restriction.Source
    • Health NZAny raw shellfish, including marinated raw mussels: don't eat.Source

  • Ireland

    • Raw oysters on the half shellAvoid
    • Cooked oysters: fried, steamed, grilled or RockefellerCheck
    • Canned and smoked oystersCheck
    • HSEAvoid clams, oysters, scallops, prawns and mussels.Source
What to check

Before you eat raw oysters.

  1. Skip raw oysters, treated ones too

    The FDA asks people at higher risk to avoid raw oysters, even if they are treated after they are harvested. It says post-harvest treatment removes some germs but not all of them. FDA

  2. Cook them until the shells open

    The FDA says oysters, clams and mussels are cooked when the shells open, and to throw out any that stay closed. Health Canada asks for oysters to be eaten only cooked until the shells open. FDA

  3. Reach your country's temperature

    Health Canada's chart gives 74°C (165°F) for shellfish, and the FDA says most seafood should reach 145°F. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby asks for seafood cooked to at least 63°C and eaten straight away. Health Canada

  4. Count cooked oysters in your weekly fish

    The FDA puts oysters on its Best Choices list and suggests 2 to 3 servings a week of 4 ounces. Australia's Pregnancy, Birth and Baby says most fish and seafood no more than 2 to 3 times a week. FDA

Questions

About raw oysters
in pregnancy.

Cooked oysters show Check in Doola Scan in all six countries, whether fried, steamed, grilled or baked as oysters Rockefeller. The check is the weekly amount of fish and seafood, and the shells should open as they cook.

Canned oysters and smoked oysters show Check in all six countries, the same as cooked oysters. Count them in your fish for the week.

The guidance is the same in every trimester. Raw oysters show Avoid in all six countries from the first weeks of pregnancy to the last.

If you've eaten raw oysters and you're worried, talk to your midwife or doctor. They can tell you what to look out for.

The FDA asks you to avoid raw shellfish and their juices, and FoodSafety.gov names raw oysters. The NHS says raw shellfish can carry bacteria, viruses or toxins. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby says no raw oysters, Health NZ says don't eat any raw shellfish, and Ireland's HSE lists oysters among the shellfish to avoid.

The FDA lists oysters among its Best Choices for pregnancy and says fish supply protein, vitamin B12, vitamin D and selenium. Its advice is for cooked oysters: it asks you to avoid raw ones.

Steamed oysters show Check in all six countries. Steam them until the shells open, and leave any that stay shut, as the FDA describes.

Yes. Take a photo of the menu, and Doola Scan marks each dish against your country's pregnancy guidance, raw oysters included. Menu scans are part of Premium.
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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.