Is Khoa / mawa safe during pregnancy?
Indian foodMilk, cheese & dairy Also called H., Kan., Mal., P., Tel. Khoa (Bengali); Thirattupal (Tamil); Mavo (Gujarati).
No official guidance
None of the official sources we searched names khoa / mawa in its pregnancy advice, so there is no official verdict. The general rules below still apply.
No official guidance
We searched these official sources for “Khoa”, “Khoya” and “Mawa”. None names this food in its pregnancy advice, so this page gives no verdict of its own.
- US FDA / US EPA: Advice about Eating Fish (For Those Who Might Become or Are Pregnant or Breastfeeding and Children Ages 1 - 11 Years)
- US FDA: Meat, Poultry & Seafood (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be)
- US FDA: Dairy and Eggs (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be)
- US FDA: Fruits, Veggies and Juices (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be)
- US FDA: Ready-to-Eat Foods (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be)
- US FDA: Eating Out & Bringing In (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be)
- US FDA: Dietary Advice Before and During Pregnancy
- US CDC: Safer Food Choices for Pregnant Women
- US CDC: Preventing Listeria Infection
- NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy
- NHS: Have a healthy diet in pregnancy
- NHS: Pregnancy vitamins and supplements
- NHS: Drinking alcohol while pregnant
- FSANZ: Listeria in food
- FSANZ: Food safety for vulnerable people
- FSANZ: Mercury in fish
- FSANZ: Pregnancy and healthy eating
- FSANZ: Raw fish dishes
- FSSAI: Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020 - Compendium Version VIII, Reg. 9 (warnings/declarations)
- FSSAI: Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011 - Chapter 2.10 Beverages (Version 3): standards for carbonated and non-carbonated caffeinated beverages
- ICMR-NIN: Dietary Guidelines for Indians 2024
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: cinnamon
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: fenugreek
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: garlic
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: soy
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: turmeric
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: ginger
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: flaxseed-and-flaxseed-oil
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: pomegranate
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: licorice-root
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: aloe-vera
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: peppermint-oil
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: green-tea
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: bromelain
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: ashwagandha
- NIH NCCIH: Herbs at a Glance: chamomile
General rules that still apply
NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy
- Cheese, milk and other dairy › Safe to eat: Pasteurised milk, butter, yoghurt, cream and ice cream, from cows, sheep or goats, are safe in pregnancy.[1]
- Cheese, milk and other dairy › Foods to avoid: Unpasteurised milk, cream, yoghurt, butter and ice cream, from cows, sheep or goats, are on the list of foods to avoid in pregnancy.[1]
US CDC: Safer Food Choices for Pregnant Women
US FDA: Dairy and Eggs (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be)
Be sure that all the dairy products you consume are made with pasteurized milk. Check the label.
[3]
ICMR-NIN: Dietary Guidelines for Indians 2024
- Because milk can easily become contaminated, use pasteurised or boiled milk to keep it safe. (p. 90) (general-population advice, not specific to pregnancy)[4]
Sources
- NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy · nhs.uk. Paraphrased. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (OGL v3.0). Not endorsed by the NHS.
- US CDC: Safer Food Choices for Pregnant Women · cdc.gov. US government work, public domain; quoted. No endorsement implied.
- US FDA: Dairy and Eggs (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be) · fda.gov. US government work, public domain; quoted. No endorsement implied.
- ICMR-NIN: Dietary Guidelines for Indians 2024 · nin.res.in. Printed page 90. Paraphrased and cited by printed page; the text is not reproduced.
Sources checked 26 September 2026.
Quotes are checked word for word against each source page, and paraphrases against the original text. Official bodies are named as sources only: none of them reviewed or endorses this page.
Educational information, not medical advice. Your own doctor or midwife may advise differently for you — follow their advice.