The risk in the US with smoked salmon is not listeria. Salmon carries more bacteria than any other fish which is why, when used for sushi, it has to be treated in more ways than other fish. Smoked salmon is a risk b/c the smoking process does not kill all the bacteria. However, the risk is minimal. I eat smoked salmon all the time and have never gotten sick. I won't eat it during pregnancy b/c I don't want the added risk but I don't know anyone who has ever gotten sick from it.
raw egg - yeah we all know the risk with that.
Anything that is kept in a cold section in a market or store is a risk b/c of listeria. Not all are kept to the proper temperature so that is why deserts, chicken salad, tuna salad etc are risks. The food can easily spoil.
Salmon does not have a high mercury content. The risk right now is with Pacific salmon b/c of the nuclear power plant explosion in Japan. The fish does not seem to be highly contaminated but sockeye and coho have been dying in large numbers so I am not eating it right now. Atlantic salmon is healthier but, until the nuclear power plant issue, the pollution levels were much higher in the Atlantic - red tide etc.
Farm fish is okay but you need to find out what they are feeding their fish. We all need fish but pollution and farm hormones are all becoming a big issue.
Re: nuts - now "they" are saying nuts are good to eat during pregnancy b/c, by eating them, we can help prevent allergies.
The truth is all of these studies are constantly changing. Eat generation has new rules and most of them are just fads. The basics are there - heat deli meats and don't eat raw eggs or sprouts (sprouts have higher rates of salmonella than raw eggs).
