Newborn dies after mother drinks raw milk during pregnancy - Ars Technica

Deadly dairy Newborn dies after mother drinks raw milk during pregnancy Raw milk is promoted by anti-vaccine Health Secretary Kennedy. 245 Credit: Getty | adamkaz Credit: Getty | adamkaz Text settings Story text Size Small Standard Large Width * Standard Wide Links Standard Orange * Subscribers only   Learn more Minimize to nav A newborn baby has died in New Mexico from a Listeria infection that state health officials say was likely contracted from raw (unpasteurized) milk that the baby’s mother drank during pregnancy. In a news release Tuesday, officials warned people not to consume any raw dairy, highlighting that it can be teeming with a variety of pathogens. Those germs are especially dangerous to pregnant women, as well as young children, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems. “Raw milk can contain numerous disease-causing germs, including Listeria, which is bacteria that can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, preterm birth, or fatal infection in newborns, even if the mother is only mildly ill,” the New Mexico Department of Health said in the press release. The health department noted that it could not definitively link the baby’s death to the raw milk the mother drank. But raw milk is notorious for transmitting Listeria monocytogenes bacterium. The Food and Drug Administration has a “Food Safety for Moms-to-Be” webpage about Listeria, in which it poses the question and answer: “How could I get listeriosis? You can get listeriosis by eating raw, unpasteurized milk and unpasteurized milk products… .” Listeria is a particular danger during pregnancy. When exposed, pregnant people are 10 times more likely to develop a Listeria infection than other healthy adults because altered immune responses during pregnancy make it harder to fight off infections. Further, Listeria is one of a few pathogens that are able to cross the placental barrier and infect a developing fetus. The American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists warns patients that if babies survive getting infected during pregnancy, they may be born with “serious infections of the blood or brain.” “Listeriosis can cause lifelong health problems for your baby, including intellectual disability, paralysis, seizures, blindness, or problems with the brain, kidneys, or heart,” ACOG warns. “Listeriosis can also cause death in newborns.” While a Listeria infection during pregnancy is one specific risk of raw milk, health officials warn that raw milk can cause serious, potentially life-threatening infections in anyone. Without pasteurization—a process of briefly heating milk to a temperature high enough to kill germs—milk and dairy products can also contain Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, E. coli, Brucella, and Salmonella, among other pathogens. Still, the unsanitary dairy has grown in popularity among devotees of the wellness industry, including those in the Make America Healthy Again movement. Anti-vaccine Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has personally endorsed drinking raw milk and, prior to taking up the position, claimed he would end the FDA’s “war on public health,” including its “aggressive suppression” of raw milk.