Can Contain Dangerous Germs
Raw cow’s, sheep’s, and goat’s milk contain bacteria.
Not all bacteria found in milk are harmful, but some can cause illnesses in humans.
It is not unusual for people to become ill from drinkingraw milk.
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Between 1998 and 2018, 2,645 illnesses and 228 hospitalizations in the United States were associated with raw milk.
Raw milk can cause illness in anyone, including healthy kids, teens, and older adults.
However, some groups of people are at increased risk of becoming ill from raw milk.
It can also cause illness or death in a newborn baby.
Lactose intolerance causes abdominal pain, diarrhea, and nausea.
As with pasteurized milk, raw milk contains lactose and can cause these symptoms in lactose-intolerant people.
Raw milk does not contain more nutrition than pasteurized milk.
It can also not treat medical conditions or kill other harmful bacteria in the body.
Dairy farmers generally do not pasteurize milk.
This helps ensure standardization in these processes.
Can You Drink Raw Milk Safely?
Do Amish Farmers Pasteurize Their Milk?
People from any community who drink raw milk are subject to the same risk of foodborne illness.
Old Order Amish are a religious group that generally shuns electricity and other technology developed after the 1700s.
Serious cases can lead to serious illnesses requiring medical care or being hospitalized for treatment.
Summary
Raw milk has no more nutritional value than pasteurized milk.
No evidence supports claims that raw milk is healthier or can treat any disease or condition.
Drinking raw milk or eating foods made from it can lead to illness because it contains harmful bacteria.
Pasteurization kills these bacteria to make milk safer.
Foodborne illness from raw milk can cause digestive problems and flu-like symptoms.
It can also lead to miscarriage.
Health experts consider raw milk unsafe for anyone.
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Food and Drug Administration.Raw milk misconceptions and the danger of raw milk consumption.
Cavaillon JM, Legout S.Louis Pasteur: between myth and reality.Biomolecules.
2022;12(4):596. doi:10.3390/biom12040596.
Catanese L.Why drinking raw milk can be dangerous.
Dairy Management Inc.Farm to table: how milk goes from the cow to your home.
2022;150:e183.
The National Agricultural Law Center.Amos Miller and the regulation of raw milk.
2020;103(1):176-178. doi:10.3168/jds.2019-16703
