47. Raw Milk: Processing to the Rescue?

Raw milk’s having quite the moment with everyone from influencers to the US health secretary encouraging us to drink almost straight from the cow.

But what are the potential benefits and downsides of bypassing the pasteurization process?

Might drinking raw milk cure your lactose intolerance whilst at the same time giving you bird flu?

Listen on to find out how science has helped our duo decide whether this is for them or whether they’ll be sticking to their (slightly) heat treated milk in their morning coffee.

‍Yes, raw milk does contain probiotic bacteria, but unfortunately, they’re only the ones that give you salmonella, listeria and e-coli!

No, drinking raw milk will not protect you against the ‍H5N1 virus, responsible for bird flu and in fact, even just splashing yourself in the eye with raw milk could infect you with H5Ni!

‍ Here’s a good overview by the prestigious, Ivy League Brown University, on the potential benefits and risks of drinking raw milk.

‍Proponents of raw milk often suggest it might reduce childhood asthma, ignoring data that children brought up in rural areas are less likely to have asthma than their urban counterparts, with pollution likely being the key difference and cause of asthma.

‍‍Here’s an example of a site promoting raw milk but note when it says “ ‍‍First-hand accounts and surveys show that there are many people whose lactose intolerance symptoms are improved by drinking raw milk”. Asking people what they think and getting them to report on subjective symptoms when they know what they’ve drunk i.e already believe in and have paid money for, is not science!

Here’s one of the studies quoted in the above link which demonstrates the poor quality of the original article’s “data”.

‍ ‍Oh dear, this influencer claimed her lactose intolerance was cured by drinking raw milk but the dieticians, nutritionists and scientists in this article easily debunk her explanation.‍ ‍

And with a truly heavy heart, WTYT? asks you to take a look at this article. This story appeared just a couple of days after your WTYT? duo had their discussion about raw milk.

No “told you so’s” just a desperate sadness for this poor family who we have absolutely no doubt, were absolutely doing what they thought was the right thing for their health and the health of their family.

Btw: in this episode we mentioned a couple of previous episodes. Click here if you want to revisit our discussion about the gut microbiome and probiotics (ep. 14) or on the following episode numbers if you want to check out our 2-part vaccination conversation (ep. 38 and 39).