Before you were pregnant, food recalls may not have been on your radar. But now that you’re eating for two, you might be paying more attention to the latest foodborne illness outbreaks — including the latest recalls over listeria concerns.

Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria that – although generally not harmful to younger or healthier people – can cause serious illness in pregnant women and their unborn babies. Listeria symptoms include fever, chills, muscle aches and diarrhea, and often appear within days of consuming contaminated food. (Other people, however, may not experience symptoms until months later.)

People can often “clear the bacteria from their gastrointestinal tract and have mild illness,” it said Scott Roberts, MDOpens a new window., assistant professor of infectious diseases at the Yale School of Medicine. “But when the bacteria (travels) into the bloodstream, it can cross the placenta and lead to infection in the fetus.” Pregnant women may be at particular risk for listeria because pregnancy suppresses the immune system, he says.

These are the things to throw out of the fridge and avoid eating because they are labeled for listeria:

Soft cheese voluntary recall

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which monitors food recalls, does listed the following soft cheesesOpens a new window as potentially contaminated with listeria:

• Aldi Emporium Selection Brie 12/8 oz (Global Trade Number: 10041498111325)

• Supreme Oval 6/7 oz (GTN: 10071448504211)

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• La Bonne Vie Brie 6/8 oz (GTN: 10820581678538)

• La Bonne Vie Camembert 6/8 oz (GTN: 10820581678613)

• Industrial Brie 12/8 oz (GTN: 10077901005226)

• Market Basket Brie 6/8 oz (GTN: 10049705666309)

• Glenview Farms Spreadable Brie 2/3 lb (GTN: 50758108712312)

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All cheeses have a shelf life of 24.12.2024. except for Glenview Farms Spreadable Brie, which has an expiration date of 1/13/2025. Although none of the products have been linked to any reported illness, routine testing revealed that processing equipment may have been contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, and Savencia Cheese USA voluntarily recalled the product, according to the FDA.

If you have recently bought any of these products, do not eat them. Either throw it away or return it to the store for a refund.

Withdrawal of prepared meat and poultry

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has expanded the recall to include ready-to-eat meat and poultry products distributed by Yu Shang Food, Inc. that are contaminated with Listeria.

Updated recall includes 72,240 lbs. productsOpens a new window with the established number “P-46684” or “EST. M46684” in the USDA mark of inspection. They were produced before 28.10.2024.

So far, 19 people have been infected with the listeria virus, including one pregnant mother and four babies. If you have recalled food in your home, throw it away immediately and clean out the refrigerator. For more information, check CDC recallOpens a new window.

Voluntary recall of frozen waffles

In October 2024 TreeHouse Foods, Inc. voluntarily withdrewOpens a new window products for waffles and pancakes produced in one of their facilities. The products are sold at most retail stores, according to the FDA, including Aldi, Dollar General, Food Lion, Giant Eagle, Kroger, Target, Trader Joe’s and Wegmans. Some of the more popular products include:

• 365 Everyday 9oz Organic Homestyle Mini Waffles (Universal Product Code: 099482436995)

• 365 Everyday Organic Waffles 7.4 oz (UPC: 099482436964)

• Food Lion 12.3 oz Blueberry Waffles (UPC: 035826091444)

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• Giant Eagle 12.3oz Blueberry Waffles (UPC: 030034011642)

• Giant Eagle 12.3oz Buttermilk Waffles (UPC: 030034011635)

• Giant Eagle 9 oz Mini Homestyle Waffles (UPC: 030034088347)

• Good and Gather 10.7 oz Buttermilk Vanilla Waffles (UPC: 085239157961)

• Good and Gather 13.75 oz Belgian Waffles (UPC: 085239157947)

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• Good and Gather 9 oz Organic Blueberry Mini Waffles (UPC: 085239343012)

• Gordon Foodservice 74 oz Homestyle Waffles (UPC: 093901894793)

• Premium Buttermilk Waffles 12.3 oz (UPC: 078742088587)

• Premium Waffles 12.3 oz (UPC: 078742088532)

• Kodiak Cookies 10.72 oz Chocolate Waffles (UPC: 705599013201)

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• Kodiak Cookies 14.8 oz Blueberry Belgian Waffles (UPC: 705599014826)

• Kodiak Cookies 9.88 oz Original Mini Waffles (UPC: 705599017148)

• Kroger 16.5 oz Original Pancakes (UPC: 011110811769)

• Natures Basket 7.41 oz Organic Homemade Waffles (UPC: 030034944483)

• Nature’s Path 7.4 oz Organic Buckwheat Berry Waffles (UPC: 058449590583)

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• Nature’s Path 7.4 oz Organic Homemade Waffles (UPC: 058449590545)

• Trader Joe’s Blueberry Waffles 11 oz (UPC: 000000201063)

• Wegmans 13.75oz Belgian Waffles (UPC: 077890550342)

All products have a best buy date of October 1, 2024. until 11.10.2025. For a more comprehensive list, visit FDA Safety Recall NoticeOpens a new window. Although none of the products have been linked to any reported illness, testing at the manufacturing facility revealed that the products may have been contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

Why do listeria outbreaks occur so often?

It may seem like foodborne illnesses are on the rise. In fact, the number of Americans who feel confident in the government’s ability to maintain the food supply in the US fell 11% from 68% in 2019 to 57% in 2024, according to a recent Gallup pollOpens a new window.

But in recent years there has not actually been a significant increase in the incidence, he says Janet BufferOpens a new windowsenior institute manager of the Institute for Food Safety and Nutrition at George Washington University, in Washington, DC There were 47 listeria recalls in 2023, 43 in 2022 and 56 in 2019. report by the public interest group US PIRGOpens a new window. (Numbers for 2024 have not yet been released.)

So why do we always hear about epidemics? There’s more focus on foodborne illness than in previous years — both from the media and experts, Buffer says. “We have better epidemiological algorithms that can identify an outbreak much faster, so we may hear about it a little more,” she says.

There have also been initiatives to increase food safety awareness, she says, and possibly increased media awareness, which seems to be reporting more on foodborne illness.

All this awareness is actually a good thing, says Buffer. “We quickly identify the sources so we can get food off the market,” she says. In this way, “we can stop the epidemic and make people aware of how they are less likely to consume something that might be contaminated.”

What to do if these products are in your home

First, don’t panic. Food recalls are often made because there is a possibility that the food may be contaminated — not because the food is, in fact, contaminated or linked to a foodborne illness outbreak, according to US Department of Health and Human ServicesOpens a new window.

Additionally, you should not eat food that has been recalled, even if it looks good. You cannot see, smell, or taste the bacteria or virus that causes listeria or other foodborne illnesses. If you haven’t opened it yet, don’t do it now.

If you have opened the product, wash your hands thoroughly with warm water and soap for 20 seconds and wipe down everything you touched, including the refrigerator or freezer. “I would recommend disinfecting the area where it was in the fridge – wipe it down, clean it and throw away the food next to it, especially if it touched (the contaminated product),” says Dr. Roberts.

Listeria can spread through the air, and since air circulates through the refrigerator, it’s possible the bacteria has contaminated other foods, Buffer says.

When companies issue a recall, they will tell you what to do with the product. In many cases, you can return it to the store where you bought it for a refund; other times you’ll have to throw it away.

If you have already eaten the product or show any signs of infection, call your doctor, who may recommend that you have a blood test, according to American College of Obstetricians and GynecologistsOpens a new window (ACOG). You may be prescribed an an antibioticas it is ampicillinOpens a new windowwhich can help keep the infection from harming the baby.

This story originally appeared on WhatToExpect.com.