Can you eat crab when pregnant?

Last modified on Friday 26 June 2020

Charlotte Thomas

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Find out if it's safe to eat crab during pregnancy, plus precautions to take to keep you and your baby healthy.

The official advice on eating crab in pregnancy

Good news! Crab is safe to eat in pregnancy, as long as it's well cooked.

Crab is a shellfish and the NHS says cooked shellfish including crabs, prawns, mussels, scallops and lobster, is fine to eat when you're pregnant.

However, brown crab meat can contain pollutants, which could harm your baby if you eat too much. So it's best to stick to no more than two portions of brown crab meat per week while you're pregnant. You can have as much white crab meat as you want.

You should also avoid eating raw or undercooked shellfish, as it can cause food poisoning. During pregnancy, you're more susceptible to food poisoning. While it's unlikely to do your baby any harm, it can be very unpleasant.

Cooking shellfish helps kills off the bacteria which can cause food poisoning.

Crab sticks are also safe to eat in pregnancy, although they don't actually contain any crab. They're made from fish, which has been pre-cooked so is ok to eat.