December 2005

December 29, 2005
Boca Raton News
John Johnston
“Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it,” said philosopher George Santayana.
Boca Raton Pediatrician Dr. Adam Cutler agrees, saying that if any local parents choose to go outside of established health protocols “then they’re taking risks into their own hands.”
Health care officials, and even some local people who were alive in early part of the 20th century will of course remember when it was the norm to obtain, store and then consume whole milk without it ever becoming any warmer than what it was before leaving the cow.
Louis Pasteur discovered in the 1860’s that microorganisms in wine, beer and milk caused illness; in turn, he discovered that heating those fluids to about 132 degrees Fahrenheit would kill those organisms.Continue Reading Boca doc says alternative milk view means

Following an E. coli outbreak in the state of Washington, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) is joining with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to warn the public against drinking raw milk.
Topeka, KS – infoZine – Raw milk is not treated or pasteurized to remove disease-causing bacteria and may cause life-threatening illness. There is also a potential risk of getting rabies from drinking raw milk.
Eight cases of illness have been reported in Washington state to date associated with raw milk containing E. coli O157:H7 bacteria. Several of these cases were in children. Two of the children remain hospitalized. Health authorities have identified locally (Washington) sold raw milk as a source of the outbreak, and have ordered an unlicensed dairy to shut down.Continue Reading FDA and KDHE Warn Consumers About Raw Milk

December 21, 2005
Andy Patrick
AgInfo.netZ
One of the more significant selling points of the segment of agriculture that is dubbed organic, self-sustaining, even alternative, to the consumer is that it claims to offer a more healthy product than goods produced through conventional growing and processing means. But a recent incident in Southwest Washington and one county in Oregon may serve as a warning to consumers that just because a product labels itself as more healthy than its conventional counterpart doesn’t necessarily make it gospel truth.
If one were to go to www.localharvest.org, a site that promotes small, sustainable, and organic based agriculture operations across America, and look up “Dee Creek Farm”, the following description of the Woodland Washington based operation provided as of January of this year reads like this … “Our goal is to build an ecologically responsible and self-sustaining farm, using natural methods and humane practices. We are pleased to offer our quality products and services to those who desire an “alternative for a more healthy lifestyle.”Continue Reading When alternative is not healthy

December 21, 2005
Paul G. Donohue, M.D.
DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My right knee and the fingers on my right hand suddenly swelled and became painful. My family doctor didn’t know what I had and sent me to an arthritis specialist. He asked if I had been sick in the past month. I had. I had diarrhea for about one week. After a series of tests, he said I had reactive arthritis. Reactive to what? Can you throw some light on this? — P.Z.
ANSWER: Reactive arthritis is joint swelling with severe joint pain that is a ”reaction” to a previous infection. The infection is often an intestinal infection usually producing diarrhea. Or it might be an infection of the urethra, the bladder’s emptying tube. It causes painful urination. Germs involved in this infection include the common diarrhea-producing germs — salmonella, Shigella and Campylobacter. The urethral infection is most often due to the chlamydia germ.
Anywhere from one week to a month after the initial infection, joint symptoms set in. The knee, ankle, foot, toes, wrist and fingers are the usual targets. The fingers take on the appearance of stuffed sausages.Continue Reading Reactive arthritis due to previous infection

Outbreak – Despite bacterial illnesses blamed on the lack of pasteurization, raw milk has an unwavering following
Sunday, December 18, 2005
DON COLBURN
The Oregonian
The arguments get so passionate, it’s hard to remember that both sides are talking about the same iconic glass of milk.
Pasteurization of milk — a quick blast of heat to kill potentially deadly bacteria — has been one of the no-brainers of public health for nearly a century. Health officials say it makes milk safe and delays spoilage without markedly reducing the drink’s nutritional value.
A small but vocal minority of raw milk fans aren’t buying.
“I consider raw milk medicine for me and my family,” says Juanita Stiles, 66, of Vancouver. “I believe in fresh, raw anything over changed, dead, chemically contaminated and synthetic foods.” She also opposes vaccinations against childhood diseases and avoids medical doctors.Continue Reading Unheated milk hotly debated

Author: Vanessa Fultz, Democrat Reporter
Publication Date: 2005-12-09
Local farmers are going to Representative Dwight Stansel to try to amend regulations for selling raw cow’s milk. Stansel is holding a public meeting on the issue Dec. 12 at 10:30 a.m. at Live Oak City Hall.
Owner of Full Circle Farms Dennis Stoltzfoos said dairy inspectors from each state held a national conference call about eight months ago expressing concerns about the selling of raw milk, and since then many inspectors have taken action against small farmers.
The Department of Agriculture holds to USDA and FDA regulations, saying the consumption of raw milk can transmit bacteria that can be dangerous or even fatal. The Department claims the consumption of raw milk can result in listeria, E. coli, salmonella and campylobacter pathogens, resulting in the risks of gastrointestinal illnesses.Continue Reading Local farmers to meet about raw milk regulations

By NATHAN CRABBE
Gainesville Sun staff writer
December 03. 2005
LIVE OAK – Aase Duerkes said she couldn’t get out of bed some mornings before she started drinking raw milk.
The 59-year-old Leesburg resident credits a diet of unpasteurized milk and other unprocessed foods for curing the fibromyalgia that caused her entire left side to ache. She makes a nearly three-hour trek here to buy such products, undaunted by the state’s declaration that raw milk should only be given to pets.
“I feel tons better,” she said.
She’s part of a growing movement that says pasteurization and other processing saps milk of taste and nutrition. But state regulators say unpasteurized milk threatens the health of consumers and have taken action against Live Oak farmer Dennis Stoltzfoos for touting its health benefits while selling it.
“People can be and have been sickened by raw milk,” said Terry McElroy, spokesman for the Florida Department of Agriculture of Consumer Services. “It harbors a significant volume of dangerous bacteria.”Continue Reading State finds claims of raw milk’s benefits hard to swallow