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What to Know About Raw Milk

Politicians and social media influencers are hyping the health benefits of raw milk, and its sales have surged in recent months. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says drinking raw or unpasteurized milk is risky and can even be deadly.

Why Is Everyone Talking About Raw Milk?

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. says he only drinks raw milk and has pledged to protect farmers’ rights to sell it. With his potential position as the new secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, we could see widespread availability of raw milk in grocery store dairy aisles.

Raw milk is part of Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” campaign, and promotions include the sale of “Got Raw Milk? t-shirts and “Make Milk Raw Again!” hats.

Raw milk is also the new darling on TikTok. Supporters are enthusiastically praising the benefits of drinking raw milk, claiming that it’s safe or even healthier than traditional milk.

All of this attention has caused sales of raw milk to surge, even though raw milk is linked to serious health risks and there are no scientifically proven benefits, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

[Read: Which Milk Is the Healthiest?]

What Is Raw Milk?

Raw milk is milk that hasn’t been pasteurized, or heated to a temperature high enough to kill bacteria and viruses. It’s also not homogenized, a process that emulsifies the milk fat to prevent the cream from rising to the top.

We have French scientist Louis Pasteur to thank for this process that is credited for saving millions of lives. Before he invented pasteurization in 1864, milk was a common source of bacteria that caused tuberculosis, diphtheria, typhoid fever and other foodborne illnesses.

Pasteurization is designed to kill harmful microbes in milk without any significant impact on its nutritional value or taste.

Each state makes its own laws about selling raw milk. It’s legal in about 30 states, however, federal regulations prevent the sale of raw milk across state lines. Some states permit raw milk to be sold in stores, while others limit the sale directly from dairy farms.

[READ: Is Organic Food Better?]

Is Raw Milk Safe?

No. It is incredibly risky to drink raw milk or eat products made from raw milk, including cheese, yogurt and ice cream, warns the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It’s become an even bigger public health concern after the highly pathogenic avian influenza (bird flu), which can cause serious illness, was detected in raw milk.

Raw Farm, a Fresno, California-based dairy farm, recently recalled its raw milk and cream products after the bird flu virus was detected, according to the California Department of Public Health. The farm has been involved in more than a dozen product recalls, and it was linked to a multistate outbreak of E. coli in raw cheddar cheese and salmonella outbreaks in milk.

Even if farmers have safety protocols and testing in place for their raw milk, pathogenic bacteria can still be hiding in the milk, says Utah-based microbiologist Weston Hutchison, who has posted several videos on TikTok (@microbiologywes) trying to correct the misinformation about raw milk.

Those who consume raw milk are 840 times more likely to contract a foodborne illness than those who drink pasteurized milk, according to the CDC. Harmful bacteria that can be found in raw milk include:

— Salmonella

— E. coli

— Listeria

— Campylobacter

— Staph aureus

— Brucella

Consuming raw milk may result in vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain, which are common symptoms of foodborne illness. Raw milk is also linked to serious complications including tuberculosis and typhoid fever, along with paralysis, kidney failure, stroke and even death.

The Food and Drug Administration says raw milk can be especially dangerous to:

— Children

— Older adults

Pregnant people

— People with weakened immune systems, such as transplant patients and individuals with HIV/AIDS, cancer and diabetes

“TikTok’s seemingly new obsession with raw milk might be one of the most dangerous and misinformed food trends,” says registered dietitian nutritionist Abbey Sharp, who has tried to correct the widespread misinformation about raw milk on her website Abbey’s Kitchen and YouTube channel.

Raw Milk Facts

Raw milk advocates falsely claim that pasteurization destroys nutrients. Claims that raw milk can cure lactose intolerance, allergies and asthma are also not true. Here’s the truth behind some of the popular claims:

Pasteurization does not destroy the nutrients in milk.

Raw milk does not contain probiotics.

Raw milk isn’t easier to digest and doesn’t cure lactose intolerance.

Drinking raw milk will not prevent allergies or asthma.

Raw milk will not build stronger immune systems in children.

Pasteurization does not destroy the nutrients in milk

One of the biggest myths is that pasteurization strips all the nutrients in milk. Raw milk influencers say pasteurized milk is “dead.” That couldn’t be further from the truth.

“The nutritional profile of pasteurized milk is virtually identical to unpasteurized milk, says Hutchison.

A meta-analysis of 40 studies confirms this. Results found that certain water-soluble vitamins, especially vitamin C, may be impacted by the heat used in pasteurization, yet milk is not a significant source of those nutrients. Studies show that pasteurization actually increases the concentration of vitamin A in milk.

Instead of fewer nutrients in pasteurized milk, the opposite is likely true. Pasteurized milk is routinely fortified with vitamin D, an essential bone-building nutrient that is low in raw milk. The protein, minerals and most vitamins in milk are not impacted by pasteurization. A 1-cup serving of milk is a good or excellent source of 13 nutrients.

Raw milk does not contain probiotics

Another common claim involves the supposedly gut-healthy probiotics in raw milk. Yet, that’s not true either.

None of the bacteria in raw milk meet the scientific criteria to be classified as a probiotic, including a defined strain of microbes with a documented health benefit, says Chris Cifelli, senior vice president of nutrition research for the National Dairy Council.

What you will likely find are pathogenic bacteria that could lead to foodborne illness, he says.

If you’re looking for good bacteria, it’s a lot safer to consume probiotic-fortified pasteurized dairy products like yogurt or kefir, says Sharp.

Fluid milk is typically not a source of probiotics, but some new products are beginning to add probiotics after pasteurization, including Good Culture Probiotic Milk, which is ultra-pasteurized, a process that heats milk to a higher temperature to extend the shelf-life.

Raw milk is not easier to digest

There’s no scientific evidence to support claims of healing lactose intolerance with raw milk.

Stanford researchers compared raw and pasteurized milk among people with lactose intolerance and found no difference in symptoms.

Lactose, the natural sugar in milk, is found in both raw and pasteurized milk. People with lactose intolerance lack the enzyme lactase to properly digest lactose.

Raw milk advocates claim pasteurization destroys the lactase enzyme, which they say is secreted by probiotics. However, raw milk does not contain lactase or probiotics. Our bodies produce lactase, we’re not getting it from milk. Fermented dairy products like yogurt may be easier to digest because the probiotics do provide some lactase to help digest milk sugar.

“If you are lactose intolerant and want to buy raw milk, it’s not going to help nor is it beneficial to your gut,” says Sharp. “If anything, getting a bad case of salmonella is probably going to do a real number on your digestion and wipe out the beneficial microbiome colonies you do have.”

Drinking raw milk will not prevent allergies or asthma

If you’re allergic to store-bought milk, you’ll be allergic to raw milk, too. Pasteurization does not change the allergenicity of milk protein. Research revealed that children with cow’s milk allergies had the same allergic reactions to raw and pasteurized milk.

Other videos on social media tout raw milk as a way to prevent asthma and certain allergies in children, such as eczema. These claims are the result of misinterpreted findings from a large European study called PARSIFAL, which Sharp says “has been misquoted and misused by raw milk advocates to confirm their beliefs.”

The five-country study compared nearly 15,000 children in suburban and rural environments. Results found an inverse association (negative relationship) of farm-produced milk with asthma and allergy. Although the authors say “the present study does not allow evaluating the effect of pasteurized vs. raw milk consumption because no objective confirmation of the raw milk status of the farm milk samples was available.”

In reality, about half of the farm milk used in the study was boiled. The authors warn that raw milk may contain pathogens and its consumption could result in serious health risks. “Consumption of raw farm milk cannot be recommended as a preventive measure,” they conclude.

“The study findings are not that surprising considering that living on a farm, in general, is associated with lower rates of allergy and asthma by creating early life opportunities for allergen exposure,” says Sharp.

Raw milk will not build stronger immune systems in children

Some of the most alarming TikTok videos feature parents who boast about giving raw milk to their young kids, one of the groups most vulnerable to the risks of foodborne illness.

Contrary to the TikTok influencers’ claims, raw milk does not contain natural antimicrobial compounds that kill pathogens and make it safe to drink. And as the FDA indicates, there are no immunoglobulins in raw milk that enhance the immune system.

One recent study by researchers at University of California, Davis found that raw milk can hold a huge amount of antimicrobial-resistant genes if left at room temperature. This is especially alarming after watching one TikTok creator who said raw milk never goes bad; she said it simply turns into buttermilk. This is incredibly harmful advice since pathogenic bacteria will have more time to multiply and cause illness.

The American Academy of Pediatrics strongly recommends against children drinking and eating raw milk products, says Cifelli.

“Pasteurized milk offers the beneficial nutrition of milk without the substantial risk of foodborne illness,” he said.

Raw Milk: Risky and Without Nutrition Benefits

“Anecdotes are not science,” Sharp says. “It is dangerous to recommend people do their own research by reading anti-science Reddit threads or blogs and watching creators on TikTok with no healthcare credentials.”

The glamorization of raw milk is part of the anti-authority movement that is skeptical of credentialed experts, including conventional healthcare, Sharp notes.

“I think a lot of the increase in the popularity of raw milk comes from a large misunderstanding of what pasteurization is,” says Hutchison.

These raw milk enthusiasts tend to say that “our ancestors drank raw milk and they were fine” he says, but they ignore the long history of milk-borne illnesses that fatally infected infants and children before Louis Pasteur created pasteurization.

The best-selling author John Green is also alarmed by the onslaught of raw milk influencers on TikTok. He posted a recent video sharing two memoirs of women who contracted tuberculosis from drinking raw milk, ending with the message: “There is a reason we pasteurize milk.”

As a registered dietitian, I am extremely concerned to see so much enthusiasm for raw milk by these social media influencers. I’m especially worried to think raw milk could be more widely available and sanctioned by government officials. There are zero benefits, with too many risks.

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What to Know About Raw Milk originally appeared on usnews.com

Update 01/15/25: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.

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