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H5N1 bird flu is currently infecting U.S. dairy cows, and the virus is showing up in milk New experiments in mice fed unpasteurized "raw" milk tainted with H5N1 show that consumption quickly made the rodents very ill Refrigerating raw milk did little to lower levels of the virus, while pasteurization brought levels down dramatically FRIDAY, May 24, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Confirming the dangers of drinking raw cow's milk when the H5N1 avian flu virus is circulating in U.

S. dairy herds, researchers found that mice fed the milk quickly got ill. "Our data indicate that HPAI A[H5N1] virus in untreated milk can infect susceptible animals that consume it," concluded a team led by virologist , of the University of Wisconsin–Madison.



His team published the findings Friday in the . In late March, researchers first detected traces of H5N1 bird flu in nasal swabs and milk obtained from U.S.

dairy cows. Since then, the outbreak has been detected in many dairy herds across multiple states. So far, H5N1 does not seem to transmit easily between animals and humans: There have been only two known human cases of H5N1 infection linked to the U.

S. dairy cow outbreak. Both have occurred in dairy workers who have had extended, close contact with the animals.

Experts also believe the general milk supply to be safe, since the heating involved in pasteurization kills the virus. However, drinking unpasteurized "raw" milk -- a craze among a small subset of consumers -- may, in fact, run the risk of .

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