A child has died after drinking unpasteurised milk in Melbourne’s south, leading Victorian health authorities to issue a warning about the dangers of drinking the product.
Unpasteurised milk, or raw cow’s milk, is illegal to sell for human consumption in Australia, but the product consumed by the child was classed as cosmetic so was allowed on the shelves.
A three-year-old recently died on the Mornington Peninsula after drinking a cosmetic product labelled “bath milk”.
The product was packaged and labelled in a similar way to normal milk.
Four other children recently became ill after drinking the product.
The Victorian Health Department said unpasteurised milk can cause potentially fatal gastrointestinal illness which affects the kidneys and bloodstream and could cause a parasitic infection that presents as gastroenteritis.
“Unpasteurised milk is labelled and sold for cosmetic use only, but the packaging is often very similar to other milk products,” Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Dr Rosemary Lester said.
“Since the 1940s it has been compulsory to pasteurise cow’s milk in Australia.
“Milk is heated for a very short period of time effectively destroying any disease-causing bacteria which may be present in raw milk.
“Everyone is vulnerable to illness caused by the pathogens present in raw milk, but the risks are even greater for young children and for the elderly, those with underlying health problems, immuno-compromised or pregnant.”
“No matter what precautions are taken by dairy farmers during milking, there can be no guarantee that the milk will be free from harmful bacteria, making pasteurisation essential.”
Police said the three-year-old’s death was being handled by the coroner.
This post originally appeared on ABC News and has been republished with permission.
Top Comments
We have since found out that the poor little child in question, was a young cancer patient whos medications may also be associated with HUS, including some chemotherapy and immunosuppression drugs:
Now, I think it's time that we banned cigarettes.
Thousands of people die every year, in Australia alone, from smoking.
It even says on the packet "Smoking Kills".
Yet smokers are still allowed to make their choice.
Even though they smoke around their children.
I have seen people smoking in their cars, with children in the backseat, and who knows how many of these smokers, smoke around their children in their homes.
Non smokers are also "smoked"; I am fed up of smokers walking past me and my son, or my having to walk past smokers, without having to cross to the other side of the street.
There are 2.5million alcohol related deaths, annually worldwide.
Australia's daily alcohol toll is 15 deaths, and 430 hospitalizations.
http://theconversation.com/...
\Will there be bittering agents added to alcohol?
Will there be another Prohibition?
The first one didn't exactly work, it just sent everything "underground".
And why hasn't potting mix been banned, after all the deaths?
http://www.smh.com.au/news/...
Did we ban small goods after people died, including a four year old child?
People die in car accidents, so do we ban cars?
Let's put this all into perspective.
Life is full of risks.
The democratic right to choose, is being taken away from those who prefer raw milk.
Just like cigarette packets, label with the appropriate warnings.
It is always devastating when a child dies, even when children get sick.
It is very sad, very unlucky and very unfortunate, that this little toddler died from hemolytic uremic syndrome (please see below link on causes).
But there are other possibilities as to why these children from the Mornington Peninsula became sick?
http://www.mayoclinic.org/d...
Had they eaten meat or been swimming for example?
E coli is also very contagious, and we know how easily kids can get gastro from other kids at daycare or school.
In a court of law, any reasonable doubt would ensure a not guilty verdict, yet raw milk has been convicted; it has been made into a useful and easy target.
So, they all drank raw milk (I'm sure they all drank water), lots of people drink raw milk, but none of the producer's raw milk has been found to be contaminated.
The ''murder weapon'' (analogy) has not been found.
How many other kids had gastro? (ie non raw milk drinkers)
I and my family have been drinking raw milk for years.
Just like when you cook vegetables, vital minerals and enzymes are lost in the heating process, as are the probiotics.
It is also the most delicious milk I have ever tasted.
That is why we drink raw milk. I also make kefir from raw milk.
Humans have drunk raw milk for centuries and many cultures still do.
There are millions of people around the globe that drink raw milk, including in the UK and the US.
How many people have categorically died from consuming raw milk, where there could have been no other possibilities?
Raw milk was first pasteurised because of bovine TB, which has since been eradicated.
What will be done about those of us that also consume raw eggs and raw organic liver?
What will be done to stop us, as there are similar risks to raw milk, I guess.
Why would any of you, who consume pasteurised milk, care less about whether raw milk consumers, drink raw milk; it doesn't affect you? You should be more concerned with the amount of sugar that kids are being fed and the processed, nutritionally deficient food that is screwing up their digestive and immune systems. But that is your choice and I'm not here to raise your kids.
Let me choose what's best for me and my family. Do you like us telling you not to feed your kids processed sugary, foods and nitrate laced meats? You do what you think is best for your family and leave me to do what I think is best for mine.
They need to rethink their decision and allow people who prefer unpasteurised milk, to make their own minds up, as to what they consume, just like all the people who get to choose their cigarettes, alcohol, blue steak, etc.
It's a knee jerk reaction, much like the shark cull of WA.
Here's a thought, why don't we feed raw meat to our kids, it's natural, it's what our ancestors ate. Oh wait, we cook it to kill the bacteria, that could make us sick. And to all you farm kids maybe the doss of gastro you had as a kid wasn't the raw meat your mum was feeding you it was the milk.8