RFK Jr and his choice for the next U.S. Surgeon General, Casey Mean, are fervent advocates of drinking raw (unpasteurized) milk. Should you listen to them?
In 1862, Louis Pasteur invented a method of killing bacteria in wine and beer without affecting the taste. Beginning in 1920, Americans began to pasteurize milk using his method.
The process is simple: milk is rapidly heated to at least 161 degrees F (71.7 C) for at least 15 seconds and then rapidly cooled. This extends the shelf-life of milk and kills the harmful bacteria that can be transmitted in milk.
Today, about 3% of Americans consume raw milk and the MAHA movement wants to increase that number. Much of the rationale is simply “freedom to choose,” while touted benefits include more nutritional content and better taste. There have also been some observational studies that claimed that children who drank raw milk had fewer allergies.
The taste issue is false – it is impossible for most people to taste any difference. Pasteurization has minimal effect on the nutritional value of milk. A few vitamins may be decreased by pasteurization, but these are not in high content in milk in any form.
Since most children who currently drink raw milk live on farms, it is hard to say whether it is the milk or the farm environment that leads to fewer allergies. (We know that children who are allowed to play in the dirt have fewer allergies than those who are kept in pristine environments.)
What is clearly true is that drinking unpasteurized milk can lead to serious infections. Each year there are milk-associated outbreaks of infections with listeria, campylobacter, salmonella and toxin-producing E Coli. These are not trivial illnesses, and can be particularly dangerous to small children or those with immune deficiencies. Virtually every outbreak has been associated with drinking raw milk.
Can you follow Dr. Mean’s advice to “look the farmer in the eye and pat the cow” before drinking milk from that farm? No. Up to a third of all raw milk sampled contains harmful bacteria, and a healthy-appearing animal can be the source.
Protect yourself and protect your children – only consume dairy products that are pasteurized!
Edward Hoffer MD is Associate Professor of Medicine, part-time, at Harvard.
What Does The Doctor Say?
By Dr. Edward Hoffer