Ate Slightly Pink Steak-Worried!

[Ladybuggz]

Hey Ladies,
I've just come back from Frankies and Bennys and am a little concerned. I ordered my steak to be very well done while hubs ordered his to be medium to well done. I think the chef slightly mixed up the orders as hubs steak was completely brown (both inside and out) and although my steak looked very well done, was a little pinky in the middle of the thickest part of the steak (there was no blood though). I stupidly ate it and am now panicking! It was only pinkish in one small area (I only ate one mouthful of the pinkish part) but feel terrible

 

[Ladybuggz]

The photo I've attached is a similar pinkness to the piece I ate (my steak was slightly more cooked than this).

 

[wellsk]

You probably be fine, the risk is probably minimal anyway. But the colour of the steak suggests to me that it was probably well heated. So the bacteria was more than likely destroyed.
Try not to stress too much, it happens! Remember that some women do not realise they're pregnant and eat rare steak, drink alcohol, smoke, etc. and their babies are fine and healthy. One little steak won't hurt you

 

[sammi.bump]

i would have sent it back. or swapt with hubby, i think you need to eat a lot more raw meat that 'MIGHT' have bacteria in it to actually make a problem, you will be fine xx

 

[happigail]

Darling, don't worry! You'll be completely fine and you can take that to the bank I'm so sure x

 

[smallpeanut]

Mmmmmmm rare steak. Yummy! I ate two rare steaks before I knew I was pregnant and so far everything is ok x

 

[Ladybuggz]

Thanks for the reassurance. Got a bit freaked out as I read on the NHS website to avoid any pink or red meat. I mean, the outside of the steak was practically black!

 

[wellsk]

Read this, this should definitely put your mind at ease...
The DoH pregnancy book now says:
"Raw or undercooked meat.
Cook all meat and poultry
thoroughly so that there is no
trace of pink or blood. Take
particular care with sausages and
minced meat. It is fine to eat steaks
and other whole cuts of beef and
lamb rare, as long as the outside
has been properly cooked or sealed"

 

[Ganton]

I agree with the above post. Although I avoided rare steak in my first pregnancy, I have since come to understand that the bacteria is only on the outside of whole cuts of meat, so as long as the outer is cooked then the job of killing the bacteria has been done.

I'm off the France in a couple of weeks and I know I'll be so tempted by their lovely steaks. I've not decided yet whether to stay clear or not.

 

[bounceyboo]

Don't worry my oh is a chef and often made steak like this for me when I was pregnant and now we have a healthy 11 month old ull be fine

 

[Jessica_MTY]

i think the chances of problems from a steak are v v low - far smaller than with chicken or with pork. with beef, its fine to have steak pink (if well cooked on outside/heated through) but not hamburger
also, food poisoning generally hits very rapidly. if you feel fine, you most likely will be fine

 

[JessPape]

I hate medium cooked steak my whole pregnancy with my daughter. She's fine

 

[Jamandspoon]

I live in France and no matter how "bien cuit" you ask for you steak to be done it will still be a lot pinker than that in the middle! I've had lots of steak since being pregnant with no issues at all Also the NHS website states that as long as the steak is well sealed on the outside then the bacteria as killed....try not to panic, you would know by now if you were going to be ill!

 

[Misscalais]

That's how I ate my steaks with both my healthy pregnancies my children are fine a healthy no issues at all.

 

[Ladybuggz]

Thanks for all the replies so far, my main concern is toxoplasmosis.

 

[Jamandspoon]

Thanks for all the replies so far, my main concern is toxoplasmosis.

Toxoplasmosis has NEVER been found in edible beef in either Europe or North America so I really wouldn't worry about that from a slightly pink steak in a reputable restaurant

Source:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1118145/

 

[Eltjuh]

On my wedding day I was about 8 weeks pregnant with my son and ate a steak that was slightly pink (less than that though!!!) and my son is perfectly fine!!
My friend freaked me out cause she said: oh you know what you ate on your wedding day, you're not really supposed to eat that!! Way to freak someone out!!

Anyway, I'm sure you'll be fine. Maybe not make a habit out of it, but you'll be fine!!

 

[Moolia]

I read in NHS pregnancy book, as people above have said, that it is fine to have medium or rare steak as long as outside is well sealed. They wouldn't say that if there was a risk, so don't worry about it! I couldn't believe it when I saw it though, as I avoided it all throughy last pregancy! I also avoided cold meats e.g. Salami, chorizo, Parma ham but I read on NHS website today that the NHS do not advise avoiding these (although some other countries do) so I had some for dinner!!

 

[mdjoy]

I always eat mine medium, can't eat well done steak. I also have eaten lunch meat here and there (fresh cut that day only) hot dogs (a lot as I crave em!) soft serve ice cream and shakes, runny eggs on a few occasions, I have with both my sons also

 

[supertabby]

Thanks for all the replies so far, my main concern is toxoplasmosis.

You wouldn't get that from steak don't worry.

The reason meat should be cooked through is the risk carried to the baby by certain types of food poisoning. People eat rare meat every day and food poisoning can happen but is not very common - I like my steak blue (when not pg) and have never had food poisoning from it. So you're very unlikely to get food poisoning, secondly if you do get food poisoning most types are harmless - it's only certain variants of food poisoning that are harmful to the baby. So the chances are tiny. Undercooked poultry is much higher risk than undercooked red meat though.

I avoid rare meat, runny eggs etc when pregnant because I'd rather be safe but the risks are so small that I wouldn't panic if I accidently ate homemade mayonnaise etc. Fortunately for me I've gone off red meat in both pregnancies so it's no biggie lol, but I would love a runny poached egg on toast if I could!

PS - liver/pate etc doesn't come under food poisoning risk, it's the high vitamin A content (think its A..) that should be avoided in pregnancy.