Hot Dogs
Everyday exposureFood & drinkAlso called · 7 names▾▴
hot dogs, hot dog, hotdog, frankfurters, frankfurter, wieners, lunch hot dogs
Listeria group
General information · effects depend on amount, timing, and how it is used. About these sources
Research strength: 3 / 5
CDC guidance for people at higher risk of Listeria includes unheated hot dogs and recommends reheating them to 165°F (74°C) or until steaming hot. FoodSafety.gov and FDA give the same heating advice, including for products labeled precooked. The UK NHS says thoroughly cooked sausages are suitable and advises keeping cold pre-cooked meats chilled and using them by the use-by date; its page does not give a hot-dog-specific reheating step. FDA and NHS say Listeria in pregnancy can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, or serious illness in a newborn; a 2005 outbreak study recorded these outcomes but traced the outbreak to contaminated cheese, not hot dogs. Ask your provider about your situation.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-18
Sources
- CDC: Preventing Listeria InfectionUS government
- FoodSafety.gov: People at Risk, Pregnant Women
- FDA Listeria guidance for pregnant peopleUS government
- NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancyUK government
- MacDonald et al., Clinical Infectious Diseases 2005 outbreak investigationUS government
Research strength: 3 / 5
CDC, FoodSafety.gov, and FDA recommend heating hot dogs to 165°F (74°C) or until steaming hot before eating during pregnancy, even when labeled precooked. The UK NHS describes thoroughly cooked sausages as suitable and advises keeping cold pre-cooked meats chilled and within their use-by date; it does not give a separate hot-dog reheating step. The difference is in how specifically the hot dog is addressed, not whether Listeria can occur in food. FDA and NHS describe pregnancy-related miscarriage, stillbirth, or serious newborn illness from listeriosis. Ask your provider about your situation.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-18
Sources
- CDC: Preventing Listeria InfectionUS government
- FoodSafety.gov: People at Risk, Pregnant Women
- FDA Listeria guidance for pregnant peopleUS government
- NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancyUK government
- MacDonald et al., Clinical Infectious Diseases 2005 outbreak investigationUS government
Research strength: 3 / 5
CDC, FoodSafety.gov, and FDA give the same hot-dog reheating advice for pregnancy: 165°F (74°C) or until steaming hot, including for precooked products. The UK NHS says thoroughly cooked sausages are suitable and puts cold pre-cooked meats in a chilled, use-by-date category, without a separate hot-dog reheating step. FDA and NHS say Listeria in pregnancy can cause stillbirth or serious newborn illness. In MacDonald et al.'s 2005 outbreak report, 11 pregnant patients were among the cases, with 5 stillbirths, 3 early births, and 3 infected newborns; investigators traced the outbreak to contaminated cheese, so these figures are not hot-dog-specific. Ask your provider about your situation.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-18
Sources
- CDC: Preventing Listeria InfectionUS government
- FoodSafety.gov: People at Risk, Pregnant Women
- FDA Listeria guidance for pregnant peopleUS government
- NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancyUK government
- MacDonald et al., Clinical Infectious Diseases 2005 outbreak investigationUS government
Hot Dogs — Breastfeeding
Research strength: 2 / 5
CDC says breastfeeding mothers generally do not need to limit or avoid specific foods, and the AAP likewise says no special foods need to be eaten or excluded. The CDC Listeria page lists pregnancy, newborns, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems as higher-risk groups, but does not list breastfeeding alone as a separate group. Neither page gives a breastfeeding-specific hot-dog reheating rule. FDA explains that contaminated food can cause Listeria illness, so general food handling still matters. Ask your provider about your situation.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-18
Sources
- CDC: Maternal Diet and BreastfeedingUS government
- AAP HealthyChildren: Breast-Feeding Questions, Mother's Diet
- CDC: Preventing Listeria InfectionUS government
- FDA Listeria guidance for pregnant peopleUS government
Pregnancy
Moran et al.'s 2018 systematic review included 11 observational studies and reported that pregnancy-associated listeriosis cases were more likely to have consumed some ready-to-eat foods. One outbreak-associated case-control analysis included 55 people (11 cases and 44 controls) and reported an association between reported hot-dog consumption and listeriosis (OR 4.6, 95% CI 1.1-19.4). This was an univariable association in a small study, not an estimate of the risk from one hot dog. MacDonald et al. reported 13 outbreak patients, 11 of them pregnant; infection was associated with 5 stillbirths, 3 premature deliveries, and 3 infected newborns. Investigators traced the outbreak to contaminated fresh Mexican-style cheese made with raw milk, not hot dogs. A 2026 Australian cross-sectional study of 1,604 mother-infant pairs estimated potential food exposure from a questionnaire. It found no significant association with preterm birth, low birthweight, or neonatal intensive or special-care admission, but reported a statistically significant association with shorter hospital stay outside special care with a minimal clinical effect. The study did not test for Listeria infection or identify a hot-dog-specific effect. A 2026 CDC case-case analysis of 3,413 reported Listeria cases found that food associations varied by population and pregnancy status; its abstract did not report a hot-dog-specific pregnancy estimate.
Breastfeeding
CDC guidance says breastfeeding mothers generally do not need to limit or avoid specific foods, and AAP HealthyChildren says no special foods need to be eaten or excluded. Neither page gives a hot-dog-specific lactation rule. No hot-dog-specific breastfeeding study or recommendation was identified in the sources reviewed. The evidence gathered here does not make a claim about Listeria transfer through breast milk or infant effects through milk.
This entry concerns hot dogs as a food, not a specific brand formula. FDA describes hot dogs as one possible source of Listeria exposure and states that Listeria can grow in cold temperatures, including inside refrigerators. CDC, FDA, and FoodSafety.gov focus their pregnancy guidance on reheating unheated hot dogs to 165°F (74°C) or until steaming hot.
What was tested
The MacDonald et al. 2005 outbreak investigation used food-history interviews and case-control comparisons; the 2018 review summarized 11 observational studies. The EFSA survey sampled 13,088 ready-to-eat food products across 26 EU member states and Norway from 2010 to 2012; its packaged meat category was broader than hot dogs, and it tested contamination rather than pregnancy outcomes. The 2026 Australian analysis used a questionnaire-derived exposure score in 1,604 mother-infant pairs, not laboratory-confirmed infection or hot-dog-specific exposure. The 2026 CDC case-case analysis compared reported food exposures among 3,413 listeriosis cases from 2016 to 2022; its abstract did not provide a hot-dog estimate for pregnant people.
How specifically hot dogs need reheating during pregnancy
- Source A says
- CDC, FDA, and FoodSafety.gov include unheated hot dogs in pregnancy or higher-risk Listeria guidance and recommend reheating them to 165°F (74°C) or until steaming hot, including when labeled precooked. (CDC: Preventing Listeria Infection, FDA Listeria guidance for pregnant people, FoodSafety.gov: People at Risk, Pregnant Women)
- Source B says
- The NHS says thoroughly cooked sausages are suitable and advises keeping cold pre-cooked meats chilled and using them by the use-by date; its page does not name hot dogs or give a separate reheating step for them. (NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy)
- Why they differ
- The US sources give hot dogs a Listeria-specific reheating instruction. The NHS page separates thoroughly cooked sausages from cold pre-cooked meats and does not name hot dogs in its text. This is a difference in how specific the food handling steps are, not evidence that every serving causes illness.
- Other sources
- A small outbreak-associated case-control study reported an association between hot-dog consumption and listeriosis, but investigators traced that outbreak to contaminated fresh cheese made with raw milk. (Moran et al., Journal of Nutritional Science 2018 systematic review, MacDonald et al., Clinical Infectious Diseases 2005 outbreak investigation)
- What the evidence shows overall
- The sources support a real but controllable Listeria concern for unheated hot dogs during pregnancy. The US advice is more specific about reheating, and the UK page does not directly contradict it. The single hot-dog association does not establish that hot dogs caused the reported outbreak or predict the risk from one serving.
- CDC advises reheating hot dogs to 165°F (74°C) or until steaming hot for people at increased risk of Listeria infection. (CDC: Preventing Listeria Infection)
- FoodSafety.gov gives the same reheating instruction for hot dogs even when the package says precooked. (FoodSafety.gov: People at Risk, Pregnant Women)
- The NHS says thoroughly cooked sausages are suitable during pregnancy and advises keeping cold pre-cooked meats chilled and eating them by the use-by date; it does not give a separate hot-dog reheating step. (NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy)
Not enough research found yet.
Experiences from moms and non-medical voices. Not medical evidence.
- CDC: Preventing Listeria InfectionUS governmentSecondaryPage dated 2025-01-31
- FoodSafety.gov: People at Risk, Pregnant WomenSecondaryPage dated 2026-10-05
- FDA Listeria guidance for pregnant peopleUS governmentSecondary
- NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancyUK governmentSecondaryPage dated 2026-06-15Independent check
- MacDonald et al., Clinical Infectious Diseases 2005 outbreak investigationUS governmentPrimary
- Moran et al., Journal of Nutritional Science 2018 systematic reviewUS governmentPrimaryPage dated 2018-07-19Independent check
- EFSA: EU-wide baseline survey of Listeria in ready-to-eat foodsEU agencySecondaryPage dated 2013-06-27Independent check
- CDC: Maternal Diet and BreastfeedingUS governmentSecondaryPage dated 2026-08-25
- Ooi et al., Journal of Pregnancy 2026 Australian exposure analysisUS governmentPrimaryIndependent check
- Namwase et al., Public Health Reports 2026 CDC case-case studyUS governmentPrimary
- AAP HealthyChildren: Breast-Feeding Questions, Mother's DietSecondaryIndependent check
Last reviewed 2026-10-18
Independent check 2026-10-18
Not yet clinician-reviewed
Ask your provider about your situation.