Raw milk may prevent allergy and asthma, but is it safe?
Traditionally drunk by farming communities, raw milk is gaining in popularity. Raw milk has been linked to lower rates of allergy and asthma. That being said, it can also harbor deadly bacteria. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warn against consuming raw milk because it can contain bacteria that have the potential to cause serious illness and death. Pasteurization, which is the process of heating milk to kill bacteria, is the only way to ensure that milk is safe to drink. Yet scientific studies link raw milk consumption - especially in early life - to lower levels of allergy and asthma . Is this evidence convincing enough to risk drinking potentially unsafe raw milk? Raw milk during childhood Georg Loss, from the University of Basel in Switzerland, and his colleagues from across Europe conducted a study in European children aged between 6 and 12. They showed that allergy and asthma rates are lo...