Can you eat scallops while pregnant?

What to avoid

• Level E FDA: Partially cooked seafood, such as shrimp and crab (chart «Do not eat», Seafood row) FDA, Food Safety for Pregnant Women and Their Unborn Babies (booklet), accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E FDA: Raw or undercooked fish or shellfish, or food containing raw or undercooked seafood (for example, sashimi) found in some sushi or ceviche. (FDA list of foods for at-risk groups to avoid: pregnant women, children, older adults, people with weakened immune systems) FDA, Selecting and Serving Fresh and Frozen Seafood Safely, accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E FoodSafety.gov: Raw seafood may contain parasites or germs, including Listeria, that can make pregnant women sick and could potentially harm their babies. FoodSafety.gov, People at Risk: Pregnant Women, accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E ACOG: You should also avoid raw fish and shellfish, including sushi. Raw fish has a higher risk of making you sick. ACOG, Nutrition During Pregnancy (FAQ), accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E FDA: Refrigerated smoked seafood and raw or undercooked seafood. («Make Safe Menu Choices», Higher Risk) FDA, Food Safety for Pregnant Women and Their Unborn Babies (booklet), accessed 2026-10-12

Amounts and limits

• Level E FDA: Those who are pregnant or breastfeeding consume between 8 and 12 ounces per week of a variety of seafood from choices that are lower in mercury. FDA, Food Safety for Pregnant Women and Their Unborn Babies (booklet), accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E FDA: Goal: Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should eat 2 to 3 servings and children should eat 2 servings of a variety of fish each week from the “Best Choices” list. FDA, Selecting and Serving Fresh and Frozen Seafood Safely, accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E ACOG: You should eat two or three servings of fish or shellfish per week before getting pregnant, while pregnant, and while breastfeeding. ACOG, Nutrition During Pregnancy (FAQ), accessed 2026-10-12

Safer choices and when it is OK

• Level E FDA: Fully cooked fish that is firm and flaky. («Make Safe Menu Choices», Lower Risk) FDA, Food Safety for Pregnant Women and Their Unborn Babies (booklet), accessed 2026-10-12

How to cook or handle it

• Level E FoodSafety.gov: All seafood dishes should be cooked to 145°F (63°C). FoodSafety.gov, People at Risk: Pregnant Women, accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E FDA: Most seafood should be cooked to an internal temperature of 145°F. FDA, Selecting and Serving Fresh and Frozen Seafood Safely, accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E FoodSafety.gov: Shrimp, lobster, crab, and scallops Cook until flesh is pearly or white, and opaque (Safe Minimum Internal Temperature chart row (cells joined by a space)) FoodSafety.gov, Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures, accessed 2026-10-12
• Level E FDA: Cook shrimp, lobster, and crab until they turn red and the flesh is the color of pearls. FDA, Food Safety for Pregnant Women and Their Unborn Babies (booklet), accessed 2026-10-12

Word-for-word quotes from official US sources. Level E means the position of an expert body. How we grade evidence.

Mercury: FDA testing 1990 to 2012. Groups and servings: FDA and EPA advice for people who are or may become pregnant and those who are breastfeeding. A serving is 4 oz (113 g) before cooking.

USDA FoodData Central, Mollusks, scallop, (bay and sea), cooked, steamed. It has 126 calories. Daily Values are the standard adult label values, not pregnancy targets.

• Level E The FDA and EPA fish advice lists scallop among the Best Choices, the lowest-mercury group, and tells pregnant and breastfeeding women to eat 2 to 3 servings a week from that list, a serving being 4 ounces. FDA and EPA, Advice about Eating Fish, fda.gov

Levels: A is a meta-analysis of trials, B a randomized trial, C an observational study, D lab or animal work, E an expert position. How we grade evidence.

Scallops had the lowest mercury of any seafood FDA tested, a mean of 0.003 ppm across 39 samples, and they are a Best Choice (Level E). A 4 oz serving of cooked scallops has 23.3 g of protein and 126 mg of choline.

The catch is doneness. FoodSafety.gov says scallops are done when the flesh is pearly or white and opaque, so seared scallops that are still translucent in the middle are undercooked by that standard. Raw scallop in sushi or crudo is on the avoid list in pregnancy.

Evidence behind this note

1. Level E The FDA and EPA fish advice lists scallop among the Best Choices, the lowest-mercury group, and tells pregnant and breastfeeding women to eat 2 to 3 servings a week from that list, a serving being 4 ounces. FDA and EPA, Advice about Eating Fish, fda.gov

Written from the agency positions and data on this page, reviewed by the Bioma editorial system. How we verify.

• Scallops: what the research says
• Can you eat scallops raw?