{"id":17903,"date":"2024-12-06T23:13:05","date_gmt":"2024-12-07T00:13:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/?p=17903"},"modified":"2024-12-07T00:24:34","modified_gmt":"2024-12-07T00:24:34","slug":"is-milk-safe-your-questions-about-bird-flu-and-dairy-answered","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/?p=17903","title":{"rendered":"Is Milk Safe? Your Questions About Bird Flu and Dairy, Answered"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-79rysd e1wiw3jv0\">Federal officials will soon begin testing the country\u2019s milk supply for the virus. Here\u2019s what to know.<\/p>\n<section class=\"meteredContent css-1r7ky0e\">\n<div class=\"css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn\" data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The U.S. Department of Agriculture <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/12\/06\/health\/usda-bird-flu-milk-testing.html\" title>announced Friday<\/a> that it would soon begin testing the country\u2019s milk supply for H5N1, the virus that causes avian influenza.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Milk has been a central concern as cases of bird flu have ticked up over the past year. Researchers believe the virus has <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/12\/05\/science\/bird-flu-milk-dairy-h5n1.html\" title>spread between cows<\/a> and to farmworkers through contaminated milk. More than 700 dairy herds have been affected by the virus, and at least 58 people, mostly farm workers, have been sickened.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Here\u2019s what we know about the virus and its potential impact on milk.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-1u37br4 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-78958fd9\">Why do officials want to test unpasteurized milk?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Health officials will now begin testing milk from large storage tanks at dairy processing facilities, which typically pool milk from many dairy farms, before it is pasteurized. Farmers and dairy processors will also have to provide milk samples if the government requests them, and provide details to help identify more cases if a sample is positive. This testing was previously voluntary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Testing can help officials understand which farms and cows are infected, and how the virus is moving between them, said Matthew Moore, an assistant professor in the department of food science at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. It will also help protect farm workers from exposure, according to the U.S.D.A.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"Dropzone-1\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn\" data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The new testing strategy is focused on dairy processing facilities, but does not cover farms that directly process and sell their own raw milk. Regulations on raw milk farms can vary from state to state.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-1u37br4 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-1708dea4\">How much of the virus might be in raw milk?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">When cows are infected with bird flu, the virus is shed in <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41586-024-07849-4\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">very high concentrations<\/a> in their milk, said Dr. Meghan Davis, a veterinarian and environmental epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Far more virus is found in their milk than in nasal swabs or blood, which may help explain why milk appears to be the main way the virus is spreading between cows and from cows to people, she said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1336jj\">\n<div class=\"css-121kum4\">\n<div class=\"css-171d1bw\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-asuuk5\">\n<div class=\"css-7axq9l\" data-testid=\"optimistic-truncator-noscript\">\n<div data-testid=\"optimistic-truncator-noscript-message\" class=\"css-6yo1no\">\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">We are having trouble retrieving the article content.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1dv1kvn\" id=\"optimistic-truncator-a11y\">\n<hr \/>\n<p>Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/myaccount.nytimes.com\/auth\/login?response_type=cookie&amp;client_id=vi&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2024%2F12%2F06%2Fwell%2Fbird-flu-milk.html&amp;asset=opttrunc\">log into<\/a>\u00a0your Times account, or\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/subscription?campaignId=89WYR&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2024%2F12%2F06%2Fwell%2Fbird-flu-milk.html\">subscribe<\/a>\u00a0for all of The Times.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1g71tqy\">\n<div data-testid=\"optimistic-truncator-message\" class=\"css-6yo1no\">\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">Thank you for your patience while we verify access.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">Already a subscriber?\u00a0<a data-testid=\"log-in-link\" class=\"css-z5ryv4\" href=\"https:\/\/myaccount.nytimes.com\/auth\/login?response_type=cookie&amp;client_id=vi&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2024%2F12%2F06%2Fwell%2Fbird-flu-milk.html&amp;asset=opttrunc\">Log in<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-3kpklk\">Want all of The Times?\u00a0<a data-testid=\"subscribe-link\" class=\"css-z5ryv4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/subscription?campaignId=89WYR&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2024%2F12%2F06%2Fwell%2Fbird-flu-milk.html\">Subscribe<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Federal officials will soon begin testing the country\u2019s milk supply for the virus. Here\u2019s what to know.The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Friday that it would soon begin testing the country\u2019s milk supply for H5N1, the virus that causes avian influenza.Milk has been a central concern as cases of bird flu have ticked up over the past year. Researchers believe the virus has spread between cows and to farmworkers through contaminated milk. More than 700 dairy herds have been affected by the virus, and at least 58 people, mostly farm workers, have been sickened.Here\u2019s what we know about the virus and its potential impact on milk.Why do officials want to test unpasteurized milk?Health officials will now begin testing milk from large storage tanks at dairy processing facilities, which typically pool milk from many dairy farms, before it is pasteurized. Farmers and dairy processors will also have to provide milk samples if the government requests them, and provide details to help identify more cases if a sample is positive. This testing was previously voluntary.Testing can help officials understand which farms and cows are infected, and how the virus is moving between them, said Matthew Moore, an assistant professor in the department of food science at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. It will also help protect farm workers from exposure, according to the U.S.D.A.The new testing strategy is focused on dairy processing facilities, but does not cover farms that directly process and sell their own raw milk. Regulations on raw milk farms can vary from state to state.How much of the virus might be in raw milk?When cows are infected with bird flu, the virus is shed in very high concentrations in their milk, said Dr. Meghan Davis, a veterinarian and environmental epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Far more virus is found in their milk than in nasal swabs or blood, which may help explain why milk appears to be the main way the virus is spreading between cows and from cows to people, she said.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and\u00a0log into\u00a0your Times account, or\u00a0subscribe\u00a0for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber?\u00a0Log in.Want all of The Times?\u00a0Subscribe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17905,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17903","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17903"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17903\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17906,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17903\/revisions\/17906"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/17905"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}