#unpasteurized milk

[really-judey]

one of the greatest joys in life is getting the least popular result on a uquiz

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Why conservatives are now obsessed with raw milk

Raw milk represents being anti-establishment, which both far-left and conservative health types have in common

Earlier this month, public health officials rang alarm bells when a suspected case of bird flu in a California child may have resulted from the kid drinking raw milk. Fortunately, the child ultimately tested negative for bird flu, but the incident brought to the forefront yet again the potential dangers of consuming so-called raw milk, also known as unpasteurized milk, while the country is dealing with a bird flu outbreak that appears to be escalating. Just this week, the state of California declared bird flu a health emergency, and health officials announced they discovered a severe case in a Louisiana resident.

At the same time, the H5N1 avian flu virus has been detected in raw milk over the last month. One product, from a company called Raw Farm, led to a recall. While one might expect this would lead to consumers avoiding the product, raw milk sales are up by 65% . Red states, like Wisconsin, are even preparing for the raw milk industry to grow under a Trump presidency.

For decades, raw milk has been consumed by alternative health types, typically those who intersected with the “raw food” movement, a diet fad where people would eat only raw food. But recently it’s become popular among conservatives. It’s not hard to see where this is going. As scientists and public health officials warn consuming raw milk is unsafe amid the bird flu outbreak, conservative politicians and extreme wellness advocates are increasingly becoming bigger proponents of it, trying to create an "us versus them" situation. Mark McAfee, the CEO of the California-based company Raw Farm, — the company that recalled their raw milk after it was detected in California — recently claimed that public health regulators don’t want raw milk to “thrive.” The country’s potential incoming Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has long promoted the consumption of raw milk. Just this past summer, Kennedy bragged to an audience at an event that he only drinks raw milk, and more recently, claimed the Food and Drug Administration’s so-called “war on public health” includes “suppression” of raw milk.

How did raw milk become an alternative health trend MAGA conservatives can rally around?

“Since the pandemic, we have seen a strong nexus between wellness culture and the far right,” Dr Stephanie Alice Baker, Associate Professor at City St George’s, University of London, told Salon. “This could be seen as part of a return to tradition, but more so an emphasis on purity and the sanctity of the body.”

Indeed, what alternative health types who might have previously been viewed as “progressive” and far-left have in common with many Trump supporters is an anti-establishment sentiment. Both can unite around the idea that the past was better in some way than the present, which might include a time when the country didn’t pasteurize its milk. Some might call this declinism, the belief that a society or institution is on the decline, and it tends to spark a romanticized nostalgia, which can manifest as a raw-milk comeback being promoted by so-called homesteaders on social media and conservative politicians alike.

“It builds on the assumption that unprocessed products are healthier and more nutritious,” Baker added. “What is rarely discussed are the health risks associated with consuming unpasteurized milk.”

Pasteurization began in the United States in the 1890s after the discovery of germ theory to control the hazards of highly contagious bacterial diseases which could be easily transmitted to humans through raw milk. It played an important role in decreasing infant mortality at the time. Once pasteurization became more common, infectious diseases with high infant mortality rates decreased by 50%. The CDC states today that pasteurization is “crucial for milk safety,” which can kill harmful germs that can cause illness. But raw milk advocates say that drinking unpasteurized milk is a “natural” food that contains more amino acids, vitamins, minerals and fatty acids. There have also been claims that it's better for those with lactose intolerance, asthma, and allergies. However, those claims have been widely discredited.

“The distrust of pasteurization is part of the distrust of big food corporations and industries in general,” Baker said. “It builds on the idea that nature is perfect in its original state.”

Derek Beres, co-host of the Conspirituality Podcast which investigates wellness grifters, told Salon he recalls buying and consuming raw milk in 2008 in Brooklyn, New York. At the time, and he said this remains true today, part of the appeal to raw milk was that it’s had “little contact with modern society.”

“And that is just absurd, but that is how people in these spaces think,” Beres said. “I think now because of the MAHA [Make America Healthy Again] movement, it’s become a much bigger issue than it was before.”

RFK Jr., Beres said, helped bring raw milk into the spotlight this year. However, its rise in popularity, especially among conservatives, is a reflection of people not trusting the system. But this line of thought can be fatal, literally, especially when it comes to health. For example, it was recently reported that flu vaccines among kids were at a record low within the last decades despite pediatric influenza cases rising. In September, the CDC reported that the total number of U.S. pediatric deaths for the 2023-2024 season was 200, exceeding the previous high reported for a regular flu season.

“It’s just evidence of people not trusting any system,” he said. “And I hate to be so reductive, but every time it comes back to ‘owning the Libs’”

There is also, Beres said, an undercurrent of “chemophobia,” as in a fear of chemicals.“Which underlies all of this wellness grifting,” Beres said. “But the irony in this case, is that there are no chemicals, it’s just heating, but because it falls under the broader umbrella of intervention, people don't care.”

He added that when it comes to conservatives supporting and promoting raw milk, a part of this trend can be attributed to the Reagan era.

“America is built on this idea of rugged individualism and that that has always been the connective tissue between the right and the left in conspirituality spaces,” he said. “Reagan's tenure really kind of hits the modern version of this, when the idea is that individual health is all that matters.”

Meanwhile, reports continue to roll in about the dangers of raw milk during this time — and it’s not only humans who are at risk. The Los Angeles Health Department reported that it’s possible two cats died of bird flu after consuming raw milk.

“The risk of H5 bird flu remains low in Los Angeles County, but this suspected case of the virus in a pet cat that consumed raw milk is a reminder that consuming raw dairy products can lead to severe illness in cats," Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, said in a media statement.

[tomorrowusa]

Raw Milk’s Risks Don’t Stop Right-Wing Commentators From Defiantly Pushing It

On sites like Infowars, Gab and Rumble, federal concerns about raw milk are seen as overreach, but there are serious health risks and no sci

The latest far right fad is raw milk. Perhaps they regard Louis Pasteur as a woke socialist. Seriously, government health advisories about raw milk only make it more attractive to the conspiracy theory fringe.

Commentators on sites like Infowars, Gab and Rumble have grown increasingly vocal about raw milk in recent weeks. They see the government’s heightened concerns about the dangers as overreach. “They say: ‘Bird flu in milk! Bird flu in milk! Oh, it’s the scariest thing!’” Owen Shroyer said on the April 29 episode of his “War Room” podcast from Infowars. He added: “They’ll just make raw milk illegal. That’s what this is all about.” Public health officials have long warned Americans of the severe health risks that can come with drinking raw milk instead of pasteurized milk, which is heated to kill bacteria, viruses and other germs. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found more than 200 disease outbreaks linked to unpasteurized milk from 1998 to 2018, leading to 2,645 illnesses, 228 hospitalizations and three deaths.

The far right, including anti-vaxxers, seems to have an affinity for pathogens. Either that or they feel that pathogens don't really exist and perhaps were made up by Hillary Clinton and George Soros. Whatever they think, don't expect them to make sense.

Contrary to claims, there’s little or no evidence that drinking raw milk provides health benefits, including protection from certain infectious diseases, said Dr. Megin Nichols, the deputy director of the Division of Foodborne, Waterborne and Environmental Diseases at the C.D.C. The Food and Drug Administration says pasteurizing milk kills the virus. The F.D.A. said in a statement that there are no scientifically proven benefits to drinking raw milk and that “the health risks are clear.”

Epidemics get rightwingers agitated. The latest bird flu outbreak has them acting like mad cows.

Matt Gertz, a senior fellow at Media Matters, a left-leaning watchdog that looked at the trend this month, said raw milk promotion had been intensifying on the right since the start of the bird flu outbreak. “What you have is a bunch of right-wing influencers who know that they can build substantial audiences and retain their audiences and excite their audiences by telling them that what medical authorities are saying about raw milk, about bird flu, is not credible,” Mr. Gertz said.

Basically the wingnuts are telling people: Don't trust science, trust Infowars instead! Paranoia is good for clicks.

As for bird flu, there is clear evidence of it being easily transmissible between mammals.

After mice drink raw H5N1 milk, bird flu virus riddles their organs

Despite the delusions of the raw milk crowd, drinking unpasteurized milk brimming with infectious avian H5N1 influenza virus is a very bad idea, according to freshly squeezed data published Friday in the New England Journal of Medicine. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison squirted raw H5N1-containing milk from infected cows into the throats of anesthetized laboratory mice, finding that the virus caused systemic infections after the mice were observed swallowing the dose. The illnesses began quickly, with symptoms of lethargy and ruffled fur starting on day 1. [ ... ] Before the mouse data, numerous reports have noted carnivores falling ill with H5N1 after eating infected wild birds. And a study from March in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases reported that over half of the 24 or so cats on an H5N1-infected dairy farm in Texas died after drinking raw milk from the sick cows. Before their deaths, the cats displayed distressing neurological symptoms, and studies found the virus had invaded their lungs, brains, hearts, and eyes.

So we have bovines, rodents, and felines all being infected by H5N1. Several primates (i.e. humans) have also been infected. But generally, humans whose health practices are influenced by the germ theory of infection stand a darn good chance of avoiding it.

Fortunately, for the bulk of Americans who heed germ theory, pasteurization appears completely effective at deactivating the virus in milk, according to thorough testing by the FDA. Pasteurized milk is considered safe during the outbreak.

As with 17th century patriarchy and religious practices, the fringe right seems eager to return to the medical dark ages before germ theory and vaccination. In the century between 1870 and 1970 life expectancy almost doubled because of related discoveries. The far right seems to have some sort of death wish.

Vote for pro-science candidates. Support groups like 314 Action which are dedicated to electing candidates with a science background.

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[vikimarie-blog]

Fablehaven by Brandon Mull

“For centuries mystical creatures of all description were gathered into a hidden refuge called Fablehaven to prevent their extinction. The sanctuary survives today as one of the last strongholds of true magic. Enchanting? Absolutely. Exciting? You bet. Safe? Well, actually, quite the opposite. 

Kendra and her brother, Seth, have no idea that their grandfather is the current caretaker of Fablehaven. Inside the gated woods, ancient laws keep relative order among greedy trolls, mischievous satyrs, plotting witches, spiteful imps, and jealous fairies. However, when the rules get broken – Seth is a bit too curious and reckless for his own good – powerful forces of evil are unleashed, and Kendra and her brother face the greatest challenge of their lives. To save their family, Fablehaven, and perhaps even the world, Kendra and Seth must find the courage to do what they fear most.”

I read this book when I was in 6th grade. At the time I was just getting into the magic that is stories between two covers. This book was the start of my interest in fantasy books. All the mythological creatures and magic got me intrigued and sucked me in. Soon I had easily read all 6 books within 2 months.

I give this book a 9.5/10. I loved this book so much as a 12 yr.old girl. It had everything from centaurs to satyrs to witches and even pixies, or fairies.

The characters were very relatable in what they were thinking. The author perfectly got the curiosity of kids their age down and the bond of siblings.

I remember the scene in the book where Seth, the youngest, wanted to go into the forest, where they were forbidden to go, and Kendra had pulled a big sister move and scolded him not to. Of course, being as he is so close to her age, he does not see her as being in charge of his actions. He goes anyways.

Why did I say this? This proves my point of the relationship between them as siblings is relatable. Do your younger siblings listen to what you advise of them to do or not do? I did not think so.

Besides that point, Brandon Mull moves his plot along very smoothly. He makes the transaction from Kendra discovering all the keys in her grandfather’s game to unlock a book that leads to the huge discovery of all the magical creatures on their grandparents property. To think, it all started with a treasure hunt and the two of them drinking Viola's unpasteurized milk. The book is concluded perfectly and leaves the readers wanting for more, which is exactly what gave us, more. The rest of the series went just as well and sucked us even more into the depth of its dimension only to spit us back out after the very last book and leave us feeling sucked of emotion due to all the feelings that were jerked around (not as much as other books, though. Many books will cause you to go on a non stop roller coaster of feels that only goes up). In conclusion, Fablehaven by Brandon Mull is a must read for those into mythical and magical stories. It is not anything like Percy Jackson, it may have some of the same creatures, but it is much, much different in so many ways. I suggest to readers 11 and older.(No one will judge if you are a 16yr.old and reading it. There is no shame in that. I was 15 when I read the Percy Jackson series.) Thanks for reading my review! See ya, ~Victoria~

[papirouge]

why can't USAmerican act normal about unpasteurized milk???

[ismellpestilence]

Very friendly reminder that bird flu, a disease we've been fighting to control for a very long time, has been found in raw milk.

I repeat: raw milk may contain bird flu.

This is not the time to fuck up here. If this disease spreads further we risk losing our livestock, or worse, we could be hit by another pandemic. The best thing we can do is avoid either of those happening.

The problem with a disease like the bird flu is that birds, well...fly. We need to be extremely careful to avoid infection. That includes keeping our cats indoors, stay up to date on your other vaccines, either thoroughly cleaning bird feeders or taking them down, and of course, stop fucking drinking raw milk.

How America lost control of the bird flu and raised the risk of another pandemic

Exclusive reporting reveals how the United States lost track of a virus that could cause the next pandemic. Problems like the sluggish pace

To Feed or Not to Feed Wild Birds | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Do you feed birds in your yard? Welcome to the club!

[yugiohz]

get herrr

[goatvetoz]

Researchers assess raw milk quality in England | Food Safety News

Public Health England researchers have looked at the microbiological quality of raw drinking milk and unpasteurized dairy products over a six-year period.

Results of raw (unpasteurized) goat milk and cheese microbiological examinations in the UK. UK goat farmers need to do better.