The question of whether raw milk is safe to drink can be as polarizing as "Is a hot dog a sandwich?"Discussion.But it is much more serious: there is much more at stake lettuce a foot long.
Last month, for example, for example an outbreak associated with raw milk, a group of children inMinnesotaLast summer, another inTennesseeLed to the hospitalization of two babies.Despite these reports, interest in rough milk is growing., the sale of unpasteurized dairy products is permitted in 30 states, but prohibited in the other 20, according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
So what is the right deal behind raw milk?
First, let's see what "raw milk" really means.
In short, raw milk is not -pasteurized milk;It was not treated with heat during a certain period to eliminate harmful pathogens that can be in it,Nicole Martin, Ph.D., an assistant research professor in Microbiology from Dairy Products at Cornell University, says itself.Food -Transferred Diseases(More about them later).
I 1987FDAMandate that milk sold in the United States must be treated, heat,John Lucey, Ph.D., The director of the Center for Dairy Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, says itself.CDC).
Despite some raw milk fans, the pasteurization process had to be messy, not with the food composition of the drink.Nutrition today.What is more, the proof of immune -strengthening effects is not there either.FDA"Ultimately, we did not see any [general] advantage of consuming raw milk," says Dr. Lucey.
So what are health risks when drinking raw milk?
According to a 2022inspectionUnder the leadership of CDC, there were 202 outbreaks from RAW-MILK-related diseases from 1998 to 2018 (the latest available data).
It may not lookbeeHigh of a number, but if you compare the chance to get sick of pasteurized milk compared to the raw things, a fairly clearly inconsistent is created, says Dr. Martin.Selvom unpasturized products are a smaller percentage (less than estimated 1%)of the total dairy consumption in the United States, they account for 60% of all dairy-associated outbreaks, according to an assessment 2012 inNew infectious diseases.And you are 840 times more likely to get sick if you use raw dairy products compared to the pasteurized things, according to separate research ofCDC.
