SaraJane’s Recent Comments

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  Actually, it was changed to H1N1 because that is the scientific term for this kind of flu - it marks the types of H and N proteins on the surface, which is the way molecular biologists and epidemiologists track strains of flu. H1N1 isn't 'rebranding', it's scientifically much more appropriate than swine flu. The thing is, this strain of flu can pass from human to human now, so calling it swine flu is misleading - you're a lot more likely to catch the flu from another human than from a pig.

  I believe the worry with pork products only applies to contamination durring butchering. The meat itself should not have virus particles in it, and if it does they are destroyed durring the cooking process. Freezing for transport and storage might not be enough however. So this applies a lot more to people handling pork durring transit than end consumers.

  As far as pig snot... all flu is spread by sneezes and "fomite" transmission. Always wash your hands frequently in flu season!

  On Uncomfortable facts about the swine flu outbreak posted 6 months ago 8 Responses

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  yum!

  That sounds delicious, I am going to have to hunt up some virgin coconut oil! :)On A decadent chocolate cake for your sweetie, minus the animal products posted 9 months ago 11 Responses

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  Thank you!

  This is very important info, thank you so much for posting. I was shocked to read this - I've taken HFCS out of my diet as much as possible for health and environmental reasons, but I am still shocked by this!

  I reposted this information on my blog with a link leading back to this article, http://themeadowlark.livejournal.com/210554.html - people need to be aware of this! Thank you for posting this article.On The FDA sat on evidence of mercury-tainted high-fructose corn syrup posted 9 months, 2 weeks ago 13 Responses

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  Scientific research on raw milk avail. at PubMed

  I went on PubMed to look at the current state of peer reviewed raw milk research - there is quite a bit on the public health and safety side, not as much on the nutritional side (that I could find at this time). (I'm a public health/molecular biology gradstudent, this is what I do for a living :)

  Multiple studies a significant prevelence of salmonella, e. coli O157:H7, and other pathogens in bulk raw milk tanks. Two molecular epidemiology studies ("A survey of foodborne pathogens in bulk tank milk and raw milk consumption among farm families in pennsylvania." by Jayarao et al, and "Prevalence of Salmonellae, Listeria monocytogenes, and fecal coliforms in bulk tank milk on US dairies." by Van Kessel et al) looked at hundreds of samples from different dairies and both found around a 2-3% prevelence of salmonella, and as high as a 6.5% prevelence of Listeria monocytogenes (Van Kessel).

  I also found two strong case studies of e. coli O157:H7 outbreaks, one in Oregon in the 90s and a more recent outbreak in Washington ("A prolonged outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 infections caused by commercially distributed raw milk.", Keene et al, and "Outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 associated with raw milk consumption in the Pacific Northwest.", Denny et al).

  This article was written in response to a question from a mother worried about her toddler's health. Salmonella, e. coli, and listeria can KILL or debilitate young children. The risks associated with drinking raw milk for an adult and the risks associated with drinking raw milk for children are not the same. In light of this, Umbra's response was completely appropriate. You may have made the choice to drink raw milk for yourself. The mother needs to have ALL this information available to make that choice!

  In response to MsKellyann's comment directly above, "If you add e. coli to raw milk, the healthy bacteria will fight against it and may even eliminate it; if you add e. coli to pasteurized milk, the e. coli stays and multiplies" - well, I was not able to find any peer reviewed evidence of this. I have however read many competition experiments in other systems. Probiotics are great, and I'm not knocking them, I make yogurt at home! But it takes a VERY low level of e. coli to cause disease, especially in a child who's immune system is not yet fully developed. In competition experiments, what you usually see is a reduction in the population, and then only that when there are limited resources available.

  Of further interest may be:

  "Foodborne pathogens in milk and the dairy farm environment: food safety and public health implications." by Oliver et al

  Hehe, wow, that got a bit longer than I had intended and I'd better go use that last 10 minutes of my lunch break to eat some food!

  all of the above studies can be found at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/ - just type the title into the search box or start your own search on raw milk!On Umbra on raw milk posted 9 months, 4 weeks ago 20 Responses