Unpasteurized milk contaminated with H5N1, the bird-flu virus that has turned up in dairy herds in 9 states, has been discovered to quickly make mice sick, affecting a number of organs, according to a study published on Friday.
The findings usually are not completely shocking: No less than a half-dozen cats have died after consuming uncooked milk containing the virus. However the brand new information add to proof that virus-laden uncooked milk could also be unsafe for different mammals, together with people.
“Don’t drink uncooked milk — that’s the message,” stated Yoshihiro Kawaoka, a virologist on the College of Wisconsin, Madison, who led the examine.
Most industrial milk in america is pasteurized. The Meals and Drug Administration has discovered traces of the virus in 20 percent of dairy merchandise sampled from grocery cabinets nationwide. Officers haven’t discovered indicators of infectious virus in these samples and have stated that pasteurized milk is secure to eat.
However the findings have world implications, stated Dr. Nahid Bhadelia, director of the Boston College Heart on Rising Infectious Ailments, who was not concerned within the work.
“If this turns into a extra widespread outbreak in cows, there are different locations the place there isn’t central pasteurization,” she cautioned, “and there are much more rural communities that drink milk.”
