Drinking raw milk is actually dangerous or not?

Some food ingredients are better consumed raw and fresh, but is the same for cow's milk? In fact, drinking raw cow's milk is still a debate today.

There are claims that raw cow's milk contains more nutrients than pasteurized milk. In fact, the process of milking cows is not completely safe from contamination by bacteria and feces.

So, can cow's milk be drunk raw?

The difference between drinking raw and pasteurized cow's milk

Raw cow's milk refers to milk that has just been milked and has not been processed, aka pure. Basically, cow's milk that has not been milked is sterile from bacteria or feces.

However, the milking process causes cow's milk to be contaminated with bacteria from cow skin and feces, milking utensils, milking hands, and milk storage areas.

Whole milk is high in nutrients and water and has a neutral acidity. These two conditions make raw cow's milk an ideal place for bacteria to breed.

The harmful bacteria found in raw cow's milk include them Salmonella, E. coli, Campylobacter, S. aureus, Yersinia enterocolitica, and Listeria monocytogenes.

These bacteria will only die when milk is heated to a certain temperature. The most common methods used to kill bacteria in raw milk are pasteurization and ultra-heat treatment (UHT).

The dangers of drinking raw milk

The bacteria found in raw milk can cause various health problems. The most common problem is food poisoning. The main symptoms are nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever, and dehydration.

Most people with food poisoning recover quickly. However, very severe food poisoning can result in uremic hemolytic syndrome which damages the kidneys, inflammatory diseases, and even death.

Drinking raw milk is more of a risk to children, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems.

In addition, raw cow's milk also contains Listeria bacteria which can harm pregnancy. These bacteria can cause disease in the fetus, miscarriage, and death of newborns.

Pregnant women are usually prone to health problems and complications due to bacterial infections. That is why pregnant women are not advised to drink raw cow's milk.

Myths about cow's milk that need to be understood

The pasteurization process is useful for killing bacteria contained in raw milk. However, many also think that this process actually destroys the nutritional content of milk and causes lactose intolerance.

Citing the US Food & Drug Association website, here are the misconceptions you need to understand about cow's milk:

1. Pasteurization triggers allergic reactions and lactose intolerance

Pasteurized milk is considered a cause of allergic reactions and lactose intolerance. This is a wrong assumption.

Allergic reactions and lactose intolerance occur because the digestive system is sensitive to milk protein, not the result of pasteurization.

2. The heating process destroys the nutritional content of milk

Drinking raw cow's milk is better because it is said that the pasteurization process can damage the protein, fat, and other nutrients in cow's milk. In fact, this is also a misconception.

The heat from pasteurization only kills harmful bacteria and breaks down the enzymes that cause putrefaction. The nutritional content of milk was not significantly affected.