Is Smoked salmon (lox) safe during pregnancy?

Seafood & shellfish

Cook until steaming hot; shelf-stable smoked fish is the US exception

The NHS says cold-smoked fish must be cooked until steaming hot; the US CDC and FDA say to avoid refrigerated smoked seafood unless it is in a cooked dish, while canned or shelf-stable smoked seafood is okay to eat.[1,2,3,4,5,6]

What official sources say

NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy

  • Fish and seafood › Foods to be careful with: Cold-smoked and cured fish, such as smoked salmon, needs care in pregnancy: cook it until steaming hot.[1]
  • Raw, cold-smoked and cured fish should be avoided because it could contain listeria bacteria, which can cause listeriosis.[1]

US CDC: Safer Food Choices for Pregnant Women

  • Riskier Choice: Refrigerated smoked seafood (except in a cooked dish). Refrigerated smoked seafood is usually labeled as "nova-style," "lox," "kippered," "smoked," or "jerky"[2]
  • Safer Choice: Smoked fish in sealed, airtight packages or containers that don't need to be kept refrigerated before opening[2]
  • Safer Choice: Smoked fish cooked in a casserole or other cooked dishes[2]

US CDC: Preventing Listeria Infection

  • Avoid: Refrigerated smoked fish (advice for vulnerable people, including pregnant women)[3]

US FDA: Ready-to-Eat Foods (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be)

  • Don't eat: Refrigerated smoked seafood - unless it's in a cooked dish, such as a casserole.[4]
  • It's okay to eat: Canned or shelf-stable smoked seafood.[4]

FSANZ: Listeria in food

  • Avoid pre-prepared ready-to-eat foods, especially: chilled seafood such as raw oysters, sashimi and sushi, smoked ready-to-eat seafood and cooked ready-to-eat prawns (advice for vulnerable people, including pregnant women)[5]

FSANZ: Food safety for vulnerable people

  • Higher-risk foods: Smoked seafood, chilled cooked prawns (advice for vulnerable people, including pregnant women)[6]

Nutrition per 100 g (USDA)

Energy117 kcal
Protein18.28 g
Fibre0 g
Sugars0 g
Iron0.85 mg
Calcium11 mg
Folate (DFE)2 µg
Folate, total2 µg
Vitamin A (RAE)26 µg
Vitamin C0 mg
Vitamin D17.1 µg
Vitamin B123.26 µg
Choline89 mg
DHA (omega-3)0.267 g
EPA (omega-3)0.183 g
Caffeine0 mg
Sodium672 mg

USDA FoodData Central: Fish, salmon, chinook, smoked (FDC ID 173687), per 100 g. Public domain. Values describe that USDA record; composition varies with variety and preparation.

Sources

  1. 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.
  2. US CDC: Safer Food Choices for Pregnant Women · cdc.gov. US government work, public domain; quoted. No endorsement implied.
  3. US CDC: Preventing Listeria Infection · cdc.gov. US government work, public domain; quoted. No endorsement implied.
  4. US FDA: Ready-to-Eat Foods (Food Safety for Moms-to-Be) · fda.gov. US government work, public domain; quoted. No endorsement implied.
  5. FSANZ: Listeria in food · foodstandards.gov.au. © Food Standards Australia New Zealand, licensed under CC BY 4.0; quoted. No endorsement implied.
  6. FSANZ: Food safety for vulnerable people · foodstandards.gov.au. © Food Standards Australia New Zealand, licensed under CC BY 4.0; quoted. No endorsement implied.

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.