Pregnant women issued urgent warning over eating fish after listeria outbreak

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Pregnant women have been issued a warning over eating smoked fish after an outbreak of listeria. Cases of listeria monocytogenes - a bacteria that can cause the illness listeriosis - have been linked to smoked fish including salmon.

A number of cases of listeriosis have been found since January this year across England and Scotland - including one case in a pregnant woman.

The illness can cause vomiting and diarrhoea and can be dangerous for elderly, vulnerable and pregnant women. It can also lead to miscarriage and even stillbirth in severe cases.

Due to the recent outbreak, official information for people who are pregnant has been updated to advise that they thoroughly cook smoked fish before eating it.The UKHSA, Food Standards Agency and Food Standards Scotland issued the warning which was shared by NHS Tayside's Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists on social media.The post read: "As a precautionary measure, government agencies are advising anyone currently pregnant to make sure that any smoked fish – such as smoked salmon or trout - has been thoroughly cooked before eating."This is due to a Listeria infection linked to smoked fish, and this contamination can be particularly unsafe for pregnant women."The UKHSA, Food Standards Agency and Food Standards Scotland are investigating an outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes linked to smoked fish.