In recent months, food recall alerts have started to appear more and more frequent. This week, Treehouse Foods Inc. announced it will voluntarily recall more than 600 varieties of frozen waffles — which were sold under various brand names, including Gather & Good, Kodiak Cakes and Great Value — because of the possibility of listeria contamination.

Then last week, an ongoing listeria recall has been reissued to include an additional nearly 2 million pounds of meat and ready-to-eat poultry products that may be contaminated, bringing the recall to a total of nearly 12 million pounds of product. As Salon reported, the recalled foods, made by Oklahoma-based BrucePac, were sold at major retailers nationwide, including From Trader Joe’s, Walmart, AldiTarget, HEB, Giant Eagle and Kroger.

Amid the recall alert, the US Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) also said some of the potentially contaminated products were distributed to schools across the country.

This series of alarming food recalls has left many parents with a growing sense of unease. Each notification serves as a stark reminder that the meals they prepare for their children — once considered safe — can suddenly become potential sources of harm, just like breakfast and school lunches. While food safety experts point out that the recall system works primarily as a precaution, with only a small fraction of recalled products causing illness, the reality is that parents often bear the emotional toll of these alerts.

However, health and legal experts say there are also steps parents can take to feel more in control of their family’s food safety.

Amie Alexander, a registered dietitian at Nutri Peak, said, first of all, consumers shouldn’t feel like they need to panic whenever news of a recall hits the headlines.

“It’s overwhelming to think that something as simple as the food you pack for your kids, something you expect to be safe and healthy, could make them sick,” Alexander said. “However, while this is serious, it is important to remember that the recall system exists as a precaution for consumers.”

For example, it made headlines in June when it was reported that the Food and Drug Administration had “already removed more than 100 food and beverage products from the market deemed to be in ‘violation’ of the agency’s regulations.”

It seems like a staggering number of withdrawals, but according data reviewed by Newsweekof the 108 food and beverage products recalled by the FDA from January to May, only eight caused “harm or illness to at least one consumer.”

In the same time period last year, eight food and drink products again – but out of only 98 recalled – were linked to illness or adverse effects.

Alexander continued, “Often, potential dangers are caught long before someone gets sick.”

That said, for busy parents, even simply having to monitor the USDA and FDA for recall alerts can start to feel daunting. After all, there’s already a lot of unseen work involved in feeding a family, from the juggling act that is meal planning to accommodate different tastes and needs to shopping. Statistics also show that these tasks fall primarily on mothers.

According to one 2019 Time Use Survey sponsored by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), in households with both female and male heads and one or more children under 18, “80% of mothers say they are the household member who usually prepares the meals.”

This is the same as the share who say they are the main grocery shopper, according to a Pew Research Center analysis.

“Especially for mothers, we need to do more of the emotional work because the vast majority of us – not me, though – are ‘foodies,'” said Margaret Quinlana researcher at the University of North Carolina who studies the intersection of education and health. “We keep track of what we don’t have, buy groceries, keep up with kids’ tastes and safe foods, etc.”

According to Quinlan, children, especially those with pre-existing medical conditions that lead to school absences, can face disciplinary action at the district level if they get sick from food — another stress that parents don’t need.

“In my research partner’s children’s school, they can lose their magnet place if they are absent too much. My kids could be held back for missing too much school,” she explained. “Parents don’t have to worry about other red tape because corporations can’t be bothered to follow the rules. They can afford to pay to make the problem go away, but parents may have to do more to fix it.”

Quinlan continued: “It’s stressful and I feel like a Victorian before food regulations and inspections.”

Sylvia Smith, a relationship and parenting expert at Marriage.com, echoed Quinlan’s sentiments.

“With every notification of yet another recall — whether it’s contaminated prepackaged lunches or potentially unsafe food on the cafeteria menu — your alarm goes through the roof,” Smith wrote via email. “Food safety is one of those things that as a parent you just can’t compromise on; and when the memories come, sometimes it feels like the situation is out of your control.”

The key, she said, is trying to balance vigilance with a pragmatic approach.

“Recalls are usually issued as a precaution, meaning there’s a good chance the food in question hasn’t harmed anyone,” Smith said. “I think it’s important for parents to stay educated about the potential risks by keeping an eye on official recall alerts from agencies like the FDA or USDA. Ways to deal with this is to introduce a food safety system in your home, such as regularly checking product codes or lot numbers, which will help you manage stress and not get overwhelmed.”

For parents still reeling from the news of another recall, Smith said it might be time to rethink their approach to buying some groceries.

“On a practical level, you may want to limit your reliance on highly processed foods, which are more likely to be in a large-scale recall,” Smith said. “I also encourage you to get to know local vendors or farmers who can help you feel safer about the food you’re serving.”

It’s good advice, but Quinlan points out that some of it may not be realistic for every family, especially in the short term. “There’s judgment for parents who send their kids on processed foods, but I have one fussy eaterand if his safe foods are not safe, that’s a problem for our family,” she said.

On a larger scale, many parents’ concerns about the recent rise in withdrawals stem from a sense of helplessness when it comes to holding corporations accountable – especially repeat offenders.. But Oliver Morrisey, owner and director of Empower Wills & Estate Lawyers, believes that parents actually have more power in these situations than they realize.

“Let’s talk about class action lawsuits for a second,” Morissey wrote via email. “If you’re seeing recalls from the same company or supplier repeatedly, it’s worth considering whether negligence is at play. Parents can come together to file a class action lawsuit, which is a way to hold these companies accountable on a larger scale.”

According to Morissey, the idea is that if enough people take action together, it’s not just about making up for any harm already done as a result of recalled foods, but about forcing companies to improve their safety measures.

“It’s more than reacting to memories,” he continued. “This is about preventing future ones by making it clear that these failures are not acceptable. This type of class action is incredibly powerful and often pushes companies to address issues they might otherwise ignore.”

Parents can also advocate for stricter oversight of food provided to schools and other institutions that serve children. They can campaign for mandatory and more frequent food inspections, as well as push for tougher penalties for companies that fail to meet safety standards.

“This should not be done individually,” Morissey wrote. “You can work with other parents and legal experts to present a case to local authorities or school boards. The goal here is to make sure that safety measures are strengthened across the board so that these recalls don’t become such a regular occurrence.”