The Food and Drug Administration is warning the public of the hazards of drinking raw milk after at least 12 people in the Midwest have gotten sick from an outbreak of campylobacteriosis.
The infection, which can cause symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal pain and fever, appears to be linked to raw milk from a dairy in Indiana, the FDA said in a statement.
Raw, or unpasteurized, milk carries risks of a wide variety of nasty bacteria, including E.coli, listeria and salmonella and about half of all states ban the sale of raw milk. (Maryland's among them. Although here, it's legal to drink it if you own the cow).
While most healthy people can recover quickly from the illnesses these bacteria can cause, pregnant women, the elderly, infants and people with weakened immune systems are at higher risk for complications, the FDA warns.
And yet, raw milk has faithful devotees.
Meredith Cohn wrote about the debate over raw milk in this story last year, which highlighted how those who prefer raw milk insist it's more nutritious and how a movement to make it more accessible triggered proposed legislation from Maryland lawmakers.
Elsewhere, others who object to statewide bans on raw milk sales insist that not only is it safe to drink, it might just have healing properties. Public health officials who maintain its unsafe continue to clash with advocates. The debate is heating up in statehouses and grocery stores alike. Whole Foods is pulling raw milk from its shelves in certain states, according to this WSJ piece.
Any raw milk drinkers here? Those on the other side? What do you think?