Forgetting to wash/cook frozen berries >_<

[TicToc]

Since becoming pregnant I have been making sure to thoroughly wash all my fresh produce by soaking it in vinegar for 15 minutes and scrubbing it down before eating, unless I am going to cook it then I just rinse it off. I just realized though that I have totally neglected to wash frozen berries, I have just been letting them thaw a bit before eating them with my apples and peanut butter.

I just ate some and realized I felt kind of ill after, so after it dawned on me I also remembered that the last time I did this (berries from the same bag) I also felt kind of sick to my tummy for a while. I did some Googling to see how risky this was and was flooded with horror stories of hepatitis, E. coli, and parasites of all kinds.

So naturally, I am freaking out. Has anyone else been doing this and either had or not had any problems? I will ask my doctor about it in a few weeks when I go but I know unless I am obviously sick with something he just say I am probably fine and then look at me like I have been on the internet again. >_<

 

[bozzy]

Wow, that all sounds very thorough!

I rarely wash anything before eating and have minimal worries about food poisoning. Personally I wouldn't worry too much if I was in your shoes!

 

[Olivette]

I give fruit/veg a quick rinse before cooking but haven't worried about it TOO much. I've not done much differently to what I did before being pregnant and have never personally suffered from food poisioning or the other things you mentioned in your post. That being said it has been on my mind that I might need to pay more attention to making sure the veg is thoroughly washed but I haven't had anything yet where i haven't cooked it thoroughly afterwards if you get what I mean.

If you have felt a little iffy twice from the same bag of frozen fruit fif it was me I'd just throw the bag away and not eat from that packet again. I'd try not to worry too much, easier said than done I know though.

Ox

 

[Bonnie11]

Same as you guys, run it under that tap for a few seconds but don't soak them. Also hadnt even crosses my mind to wash frozen berries, the freezing alone would kill any bacteria so I wouldn't worry. I think the feeling iffy is in your head, even the worst cases of food poisoning aren't immediate, they take at least a few hours to show, and that would be nothing you would get from berries anyway

 

[Clo]

The freezing would kill any bacteria so it would be fine. Ive had frozen blueberries recently and felt fine x

 

[babydustpower]

My husband just started recently rinsing the frozen berries due to the Hepatitis scare from the frozen berries from Townsend Farms.

 

[Ninagrrl]

Frozen fruits and veggies are actually washed before being frozen, canned are cooked. From what I understand of it, what you really need to know is about how to wash fresh produce. Wash your hands before handling and wash all fruits a veggies even if the have inedible skins like oranges and avocados because you could contaminate the inside with potential bacteria on the outside, peel outside leaves on heads of lettuce and use a potato brush on harder skinned produce.

 

[TicToc]

Thanks guys. I feel less paranoid today. Sometimes my mind gets the better of me.