Sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do …
That’s the way I felt about eating the best quality cheeses, especially brie cheese, when I was pregnant.
Like other expecting mothers, I was warned during prenatal consultations to avoid soft cheeses like brie due the risk of Listeria monocytogenes, an organism that can trigger a food borne bacterial infection which carries the potential risk of miscarriage.
The trouble was, I craved brie cheese like crazy when I was pregnant!
So what did I do?
I concluded that the risk from eating brie was probably incredibly small and overblown due to the misguided, prejudiced view against unpasteurized dairy products by government health authorities which are responsible for putting together these types of frequently foolish recommendations.
So I indulged my craving and ate brie cheese to my heart’s content figuring there was something in this particular traditional food that I needed even though I didn’t know what it was at the time.
I am so glad I followed my instincts!
In a podcast as co-host with Fearless Parent Radio awhile back, I interviewed Dr. Kate Rheaume-Bleue, author of Vitamin K2 and the Calcium Paradox: How a Little Known Vitamin Could Save Your Life. It is, without a doubt, one of the best health books I have read – ever.
Dr. Kate goes over the huge benefits of Vitamin K2 to health (including straight, cavity free teeth and plaque free arteries), why nearly everyone is deficient, and those foods that are highest in it. You guessed it, brie is one of the best sources and is critical to healthy development of an infant! Incidentally, gouda cheese is another food extremely high in K2.
Turns out Dr. Kate craved and ate brie cheese when she was pregnant too! I encourage you to read this book if you have pregnancy related brie cravings too!
More Information
The Vitamin Deficiency That is Written All Over Your Face
I have had terrible pregnancy nausea and one food that always sounds good to me is brie and crackers. I was doing some research online because I (as a raw cheese/milk drinker) find it hard to believe that this is truly as dangerous as presented. Glad to hear I’m not alone in this (as I am currently stuffing my face with Brie lol). Thanks!