TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Over 20 individuals fell sick from consuming uncooked milk offered within the Sunshine State, in line with a bulletin from the Florida Division of Well being (FDH).
The FDH bulletin, which supplied an replace on uncooked milk availability in northeast and Central Florida, stated there have been 21 circumstances of individuals falling sick from campylobacter and shiga toxin-producing E. coli.
The diseases have linked to the consumption of uncooked milk from “a particular” farm, however the bulletin didn’t title the farm. Six of those circumstances embrace youngsters below the age of 10.
Well being officers stated out of the 21 circumstances, seven have resulted in hospitalizations, and no less than two have suffered “severe complications.”
“STEC bacteria in its most severe form can result in hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) which is characterized by hemolysis and kidney failure, which is of particular concern for children,” the bulletin acknowledged. “Groups at higher risk for severe illness include infants and young children, pregnant women, elderly individuals, and those with weakened immune systems.”
What’s uncooked milk? Why is it harmful?
Uncooked milk is milk from sheep, cows, goat, or any animal that has not been pasteurized. Pasteurization is the method of mildly heating milk or different packaged meals merchandise to assist get rid of dangerous micro organism.
As a result of uncooked milk doesn’t undergo this course of, it will probably include harmful micro organism that may trigger illnesses like listeriosis, typhoid fever, tuberculosis, diphtheria, Q fever, and brucellosis —in line with the U.S. Division of Agriculture.
The Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) additionally warns that consuming uncooked milk can even expose individuals to germs resembling campylobacter, cryptosporidium, E. coli, listeria, brucella and salmonella. Youngsters below the age of 5, individuals over 65, pregnant girls and people with weakened immune techniques are particularly prone to severe sickness.
Whereas some uncooked milk advocates declare it’s more healthy and safer, this isn’t supported by science, as pasteurization doesn’t scale back milk’s dietary worth.
Frequent myths embrace that uncooked milk eliminates pathogens by itself, which is fake, and that pasteurized milk causes lactose intolerance.
Within the context of that second delusion, the power to digest lactose is definitely a mutation that’s solely current in 35 p.c of the human inhabitants, principally these of European descent. In actuality, most people lose the power to digest milk as they develop, which was the default human situation till the mutation appeared between 2,000 and 20,000 years in the past.
These with milk allergy symptoms will endure signs whether or not they drink uncooked or pasteurized milk as a result of proteins contained in the product.
In response to the FDH, uncooked milk can solely be offered within the state of Florida for pet or animal consumption, and uncooked milk merchandise have to be labeled “for animal consumption only.”
Legal guidelines range by state, with some native governments outright prohibiting the sale of uncooked milk, whereas others, like California, Idaho, Washington and Arizona permit it below particular circumstances.
Well being specialists have acknowledged that uncooked milk marketed for pets and animals “IS NOT safe for people to drink.”
