Toxoplasmosis is largely preventable through safe food handling, careful hygiene around cats and soil, and a few simple kitchen habits. The parasite responsible, Toxoplasma gondii, spreads mainly through undercooked meat, contaminated soil, and cat feces. Most healthy adults who get infected never notice symptoms, but the infection poses serious risks during pregnancy and for anyone with a weakened immune system.
Cook Meat to Safe Internal Temperatures
Undercooked meat is one of the most common ways people pick up Toxoplasma. The parasite forms cysts in the muscle tissue of animals, and those cysts survive if the meat isn’t heated enough. A food thermometer is the only reliable way to confirm doneness, since color alone can be misleading.
Beef, lamb, and veal steaks or roasts should reach at least 145°F internally. Pork, ground meat of any kind, and wild game need a higher threshold of 160°F. Whole poultry should hit 180°F in the thigh. These temperatures are high enough to kill Toxoplasma cysts throughout the meat. If you eat cured meats, smoked meats, or dishes like steak tartare, be aware that none of those preparation methods reliably destroy the parasite.
Prevent Cross-Contamination in the Kitchen
Raw meat that touches a cutting board, knife, or countertop can leave Toxoplasma cysts behind. If you then chop vegetables on the same surface, you’ve created a path for infection that cooking the meat itself won’t fix. Wash all cutting boards, utensils, and surfaces with hot soapy water after they’ve come into contact with raw meat, poultry, or seafood. The same applies after handling unwashed fruits and vegetables, which may carry contaminated soil.
Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water after handling raw meat. This sounds basic, but it’s easy to forget mid-recipe when you’re reaching for spices or adjusting the stove.
Wash and Peel Fruits and Vegetables
Produce grown in or near soil can carry Toxoplasma oocysts (the environmental form of the parasite shed by cats). Outdoor and feral cats may deposit feces in garden beds, farms, and anywhere soil is exposed. Thoroughly wash all fruits and vegetables under running water before eating them. Peeling is even more effective for produce where it’s practical, like carrots, potatoes, or apples. This is especially important for anything you plan to eat raw.
Handle Cat Litter Safely
Cats are the only animals that shed Toxoplasma oocysts in their feces, and they typically do so for just a few weeks after their first infection. Here’s the critical detail: freshly deposited oocysts aren’t immediately infectious. They need one to five days to go through a maturation process called sporulation before they can infect a person. That window is your advantage.
Scoop the litter box every day. If you remove feces within 24 hours, the oocysts haven’t had time to become infectious, dramatically reducing your risk. Wash the litter box itself frequently with boiling water (regular disinfectants don’t reliably kill oocysts). If you’re pregnant, have someone else handle litter duty entirely. If that’s not possible, wear disposable gloves and wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water immediately afterward.
You don’t need to give up your cat. Indoor cats that eat only commercial dry or canned food are at very low risk of carrying the parasite in the first place. Cats become infected by hunting and eating prey like birds and rodents, or by being fed raw or undercooked meat. Keep your cat indoors and stick to commercial food to minimize the chance your cat ever picks up Toxoplasma.
Protect Yourself While Gardening
Outdoor soil is one of the most overlooked sources of Toxoplasma exposure. Cats (including neighborhood strays and feral cats) bury their feces in garden beds, sandboxes, and loose soil, where oocysts can survive for months. You don’t need to see cat feces to be at risk; the oocysts are microscopic.
Wear gloves every time you garden or work with soil or sand. After you finish, remove the gloves and wash your hands with soap and water before touching your face, eating, or preparing food. If you have young children, cover sandboxes when they’re not in use to keep cats from using them as litter boxes.
Extra Precautions During Pregnancy
A first-time Toxoplasma infection during pregnancy can cross the placenta and cause congenital toxoplasmosis, which may lead to vision problems, developmental delays, or other serious complications in the baby. If you were infected before pregnancy, you generally have immunity that protects the fetus.
The CDC recommends that healthcare providers discuss Toxoplasma prevention with pregnant patients at their first prenatal visit. The practical steps are the same ones outlined above, just applied more strictly: use a meat thermometer every time, avoid tasting meat before it’s fully cooked, delegate litter box cleaning, wear gloves for any soil contact, and wash all produce thoroughly. Avoid adopting or handling stray cats during pregnancy, since their infection status is unknown.
The United States does not currently recommend routine screening of all pregnant women for Toxoplasma. Some European countries do screen regularly, but U.S. guidelines focus on prevention education rather than universal blood testing. Your provider may order a blood test if you have symptoms or known exposure.
Risks for People With Weakened Immune Systems
For people living with HIV or those taking immunosuppressive medications after an organ transplant, toxoplasmosis can reactivate from a past infection and become life-threatening. The parasite can form brain lesions and cause encephalitis when the immune system can no longer keep it in check.
People with HIV are typically tested for Toxoplasma antibodies to determine whether they carry a dormant infection. If the test is positive and immune cell counts drop below a critical threshold, preventive medication is started to keep the parasite from reactivating. This prophylaxis continues until the immune system recovers with effective HIV treatment. All of the food safety and hygiene measures described above apply equally to immunocompromised individuals, and following them consistently helps prevent a new infection on top of any past exposure.