Dangers of Raw, Unpasteurized Milk in Children

I read a newspaper article last month regarding raw, unpasteurized milk and its potential benefits, but that it also can contain the bird flu virus. As a pediatrician, I wish to warn parents regarding unpasteurized products, whether milk, cheeses, or juices. Raw milk can come from cows, goats, sheep, or buffalo. Pasteurizing extends the freshness and shelf-life of milk. There are reasons why children and pregnant women should not consume these potentially deadly items.

Outdoor photo of a pitcher of raw milk taken directly from animals on a farm.

Louis Pasteur invented pasteurization in 1862. Interestingly, he first applied this process to wine and beer before milk. Before 1940, when pasteurization began commercially, milk was consumed raw. In 1987, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) prohibited the sale of raw milk across state borders. It does not prohibit intrastate sales. That is left up to each state. Pasteurized items include milk, eggs, canned foods, juices, beer, and wine.

Milk being drawn from pasteurization tanks which sterilize the product.

The FDA, CDC (Centers for Disease Control), and the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics concur in their recommendations not to consume raw milk due to the health risks.

First, the possible benefits touted for drinking unpasteurized milk. 

Milk that has not been heated to high temperatures, as done during pasteurization, claims to have more nutrients with better bioavailability. Raw milk also contains enzymes (some of which are anti-inflammatory) and probiotics that can be destroyed by heating. 

In 2019, the Raw Milk Institute wrote a letter to medical professionals stating the safety and benefits of raw milk. They claim that the raw milk produced for raw consumption is different and safer than the raw milk produced for pasteurization. Keep in mind that milk in the animal is sterile; it is in the processing and handling that contamination occurs. 

Raw milk specifically for consumption is produced under sanitary conditions, unlike milk sent for pasteurization. This type of raw milk is defined under the Grade A Pasteurized Milk Ordinance. 

Raw milk producers claim that raw milk’s advantages over pasteurized milk include:

• A nutrient profile superior to pasteurized milk since the enzymes and fats aren’t denatured by heating

• It is more easily digested

• Provides a healthy dose of probiotics

• Decreased rates of allergies, eczema, and asthma

• Improved bioavailability of vitamins and minerals

These claims are not research-based, so may or may not be true. Raw milk is not regulated, so you don’t know the conditions under which it is produced. With all the outbreaks of food-borne illnesses that have occurred in regulated factories, I’m skeptical. 

Reasons why children and pregnant women, the elderly and the immunocompromised shouldn’t consume raw, unpasteurized dairy products and other food items:

• They don’t have a mature immune system (children) or are essentially immune-suppressed (pregnant women), thus more susceptible to infection. A pregnant woman who becomes infected can pass this to her unborn child.

• Unpasteurized products, by their very nature, contain more bacteria and viruses since these are killed by the heating that occurs by pasteurizing. 

• These microorganisms include:

Listeria

Bovine tuberculosis

Bird or avian flu

Salmonella

Shigella

Streptococcus

E. coli

Campylobacter

Brucella

Typhoid

And others.

Photo of a petri dish with many bacterial colonies taken from contaminated raw milk.

Several countries and states have banned the sale of raw milk for human consumption.

Studies consistently show that far more outbreaks occur from unpasteurized milk than pasteurized, even though far fewer people consume raw milk than pasteurized. 

Personally, I consume only fruits, nuts, and vegetables raw. I prefer anything from an animal heated until sterilized.