Raw milk is increasing in popularity in the natural health community in current years. hile there are indeed some concerns about the potential for raw milk to cause illness, for many, the obvious health benefits make raw milk an easy choice. 

The vast majority of milk we drink is pasteurized – heat-treated to kill off harmful pathogens. Raw milk, on the other hand, goes straight from udder to bottle. Fans call it milk as nature intended: nutrient-rich and full of probiotics, the good kind of bacteria. Some fans go further, calling it a superfood that aids digestion, boosts the immune system and treats asthma, eczema and allergies.

Some websites claim that raw milk is good for health. According some websites raw milk is rich in beneficial bacteria.   These bacteria are critical to your health; indeed, beneficial bacteria are so critical to human health that you cannot live without them.   Raw milk is also rich in natural food enzymes: lactase, lipase and phosphatase number among many of these natural enzymes. In addition to these beneficial enzymes, raw milk from organic, grass-fed cows is rich in fat-soluble nutrients like vitamins A, E and K. Water-soluble B vitamins are also found in raw milk.

But According to FDA raw milk can harbor dangerous microorganisms that can pose serious health risks to you and your family. According to an analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), between 1993 and 2006 more than 1500 people in the United States became sick from drinking raw milk or eating cheese made from raw milk. In addition, CDC reported that unpasteurized milk is 150 times more likely to cause foodborne illness and results in 13 times more hospitalizations than illnesses involving pasteurized dairy products.

Raw milk is milk from cows, sheep, or goats that has not been pasteurized to kill harmful bacteria. This raw, unpasteurized milk can carry dangerous bacteria such as Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria, which are responsible for causing numerous foodborne illnesses.

These harmful bacteria can seriously affect the health of anyone who drinks raw milk, or eats foods made from raw milk. However, the bacteria in raw milk can be especially dangerous to people with weakened immune systems, older adults, pregnant women, and children. In fact, the CDC analysis found that foodborne illness from raw milk especially affected children and teenagers.

Source: NourishedKitchen.com, FDA