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Can I eat tuna salad while pregnant?

Avoid Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Tuna salad from a deli or shop shows Avoid in Doola Scan in the US, Canada, Australia and Ireland, and Check in the UK and New Zealand; tuna salad made at home shows Check in all six. The shop salad's verdict comes from guidance on deli salads made ahead, which can carry listeria: FoodSafety.gov says not to buy premade seafood salad from delis. The NHS asks only that pre-packaged salads stay chilled and are eaten by the use-by date. At home, the check is your country's tuna limit.

Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · Updated

  • Tuna salad from a deli, salad bar or store

    AvoidUnited StatesAustraliaCheckUnited KingdomCanadaNew ZealandIreland

  • Tuna salad made at home with canned tuna and jar mayonnaise

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

Tuna salad while pregnant: what each country says.

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

  • United States

    • Tuna salad from a deli, salad bar or storeAvoid
    • Tuna salad made at home with canned tuna and jar mayonnaiseCheck
    • FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Don't buy or eat premade ham, chicken or seafood salad from delis.Source
    • FDADeli salads made on site may carry listeria.Source
    • ACOGLimit white (albacore) tuna to 6 oz a week; do not eat bigeye tuna.Source
    • FDACanned light tuna is Best Choice (2-3 servings a week); albacore and yellowfin only 1 serving and no other fish that week; bigeye avoid.Source
    Tuna salad kept in the fridge
    • FDAReheating kills bacteria that grow during storage.Source
    • FDARefrigerate within 2 hours, keep cooked meat or poultry leftovers 3 to 4 days, reheat leftovers to 165°F.Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • 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

  • United Kingdom

    Check
    • NHSPre-packaged sandwiches and salads: keep chilled and eat before the use-by date.Source
    • NHSTuna contains more mercury than most fish.Source
    Tuna salad kept in the fridge
    • FSAFridge within 2 hours, eat within 48 hours, reheat only once until steaming hot throughout.Source
    • FSABacteria grow if food is warmed rather than heated through.Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • 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

  • Canada

    Check
    • CPSAvoid fresh or frozen tuna; canned albacore up to 300 g a week; canned light tuna not limited.Source
    • Health CanadaCanned albacore up to 300 g a week; canned light tuna not limited; fresh/frozen tuna up to 150 g a month.Source
    Tuna salad kept in the fridge
    • Health CanadaRefrigerate within 2 hours, eat within 2 to 3 days, reheat to 74°C.Source
    • Health CanadaEat refrigerated leftovers within 2 to 3 days; reheat to 74°C.Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with 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

    • Tuna salad from a deli, salad bar or storeAvoid
    • Tuna salad made at home with canned tuna and jar mayonnaiseCheck
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Avoid pre-prepared salads that will not be reheated.Source
    • NSW Food AuthorityDo not eat pre-prepared or pre-packaged salads.Source
    • NSW HealthDo not eat pre-packed cold salads, including from buffets and salad bars.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Avoid pre-prepared or pre-packaged salads, including from buffets and salad bars.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Tuna falls under other fish: no more than 2 to 3 times a week.Source
    Tuna salad 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
    Homemade mayonnaise made with 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

    Check
    • Health NZPre-packaged and deli/salad-bar salads and coleslaws: don't eat; home-made salads OK if washed.Source
    • Health NZSkipjack tuna unrestricted; albacore 3-4 servings a week; southern bluefin one serving per 1-2 weeks.Source
    Tuna salad kept in the fridge
    • Health NZLeftovers: fridge, eat within two days, reheat until piping hot (over 70°C); never eat cold.Source
    • Health NZStore leftover cooked or canned food in fridge and use within 2 days (Health NZ listeriosis page: 24 hours).Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • 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

  • Ireland

    Check
    • FSAIPregnant, breastfeeding, childbearing age, young children: max 1 fresh tuna steak (~225 g) or 2 medium cans (225 g) per week.Source
    • HSETuna max one 150 g cooked fresh steak or two 240 g cans (140 g drained) per week.Source
    Homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg
    • 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
What to check

Before you eat tuna salad.

  1. Skip shop-made tuna salad in the US, Canada, Australia and Ireland

    FoodSafety.gov says not to buy or eat premade ham, chicken or seafood salad from delis in pregnancy. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby asks you to avoid pre-prepared or pre-packaged salads, including from buffets and salad bars. FoodSafety.gov

  2. Make it at home and keep it cold

    The FDA accepts deli-style salads freshly prepared at home. Health NZ says home-made salads are OK, while pre-packaged and deli salads are not. Keep the bowl in the fridge: Pregnancy, Birth and Baby asks for leftovers to be used within a day. FDA

  3. Use jar mayonnaise

    Pregnancy, Birth and Baby says commercially made products with egg, such as mayonnaise, can be eaten if stored correctly. Jar mayonnaise shows No known issues in Doola Scan; homemade mayonnaise made with raw egg shows Check in the US, UK and Canada and Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby

  4. Keep to your country's tuna limit

    The FDA lists canned light tuna as a Best Choice, 2 to 3 servings a week, and albacore as 1. The NHS says no more than 4 cans a week, Health Canada up to 300 g of canned albacore a week, and Ireland's FSAI 2 medium cans. FDA

Questions

About tuna salad
in pregnancy.

It depends on who made it. Shop or deli tuna salad shows Avoid in the US, Canada, Australia and Ireland and Check in the UK and New Zealand. Tuna salad made at home shows Check in all six, for the weekly tuna limit.

The FDA says deli salads made on site may carry listeria, and it accepts salads freshly prepared at home. Canned tuna on its own shows Check in all six countries, for mercury, not listeria.

Jar mayonnaise shows No known issues in Doola Scan. Mayonnaise made at home with raw egg shows Check in the US, UK and Canada and Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland.

Count the tuna in it. In the US, canned light tuna is 2 to 3 servings a week and albacore 1. The NHS says no more than 4 cans a week, and Ireland's HSE two 240 g cans a week.

The FSA in the UK says to eat leftovers within 48 hours, Health Canada within 2 to 3 days, and Pregnancy, Birth and Baby within a day. Keep it in the fridge the whole time.

The guidance is the same in every trimester. Shop tuna salad has the same verdict from the first weeks to the last, and homemade tuna salad shows Check throughout.

Yes. Take a photo of the tub, the label or the menu, and Doola Scan checks every 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.