Despite the amount of content that can be found on the Internet attributing many properties to it, it is advisable to be careful: milk that passes from the cow to the untreated glass is not a sterile food, it can be contaminated by pathogenic microorganisms.
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It may seem to us that raw milk is a more natural product and, mistakenly, we may think that it is even healthier. If we believe what we often hear on social networks, we may even think that raw milk can do everything from strengthening the immune system to preventing allergies. Some beliefs that could explain why in Spain the consumption of raw milk has increased in recent years.
However, the scientific evidence that supports such claims is scarce and does not support that raw milk is a healthier option than what we can find already processed in the supermarket, quite the contrary. What exactly is raw milk? Can we take it just like that, without further ado?
What is raw milk?
Raw milk is simply milk that has not undergone the pasteurization process. In other words, when milk goes directly from the cow, sheep or goat to the consumer and has not been heated above 40 °C or subjected to any treatment that has the same effect, it is considered raw. Its particularities, such as its taste, smell or texture, should not be underestimated. But milk is pasteurized, that is, heat treated, for a good reason: to eliminate harmful bacteria and extend its shelf life.
The Spanish Agency for Food and Nutritional Safety (AESAN), as stated on its website, “recommends the consumption of raw milk without boiling it first, due to the risk of the presence of pathogenic microorganisms.” The US health authorities express the same line, considering raw milk as “one of the foods most at risk” due to the possible presence of bacteria that can have potentially harmful consequences.
This is also recognised by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which states that, even if hygiene practices in farms are adequate and the cold chain is maintained, we are talking about practices that, although necessary, are not in themselves risks.
And, because of its unique composition, raw milk can contain bacteria such as Salmonella, E. coli, Tweezers, Coxielle And Listeriagerms that can remain on the cows’ udders or in the soil around them, or on the hands of people who handle them, which can contaminate the milk. Therefore, from a microbiological and food safety point of view, drinking raw milk is not safe.
Without pasteurization, a treatment that is one of the great public health achievements of the 20th century and whose process consists of heating milk to no less than 72ºC for at least 15 seconds to kill these germs, milk can make us sick. In Spain, ultrapasteurization is also used. More than one of you surely knows the acronym UHT (from the English Ultra high temperature) a process that subjects the milk to an ultra-high temperature and allows it to stay fresh for longer, so there is no need to refrigerate it if we do not open it.
Most dairy products made from unpasteurized milk are also not safe, such as soft cheeses, yogurts or ice cream, because pathogens present in raw milk can survive the processes involved in producing these types of products.
The sale of raw milk in Spain, although it was banned in 2006, is allowed on a small scale for human consumption, but provided that the requirements required by European legislation are met, such as the obligation to indicate on the label that it must undergo heat treatment before consumption and that it must be stored between 1-4ºC, as well as compliance with certain microbiological criteria, that it is sold packaged, certain mandatory mentions on the label, in addition to certain limitations on its use as a raw material. for what we have explained above.
Raw milk vs pasteurized milk
This may be one of the reasons why some people on the Internet justify the consumption of raw milk: that it contains more nutrients because some of them, sensitive to heat, can be reduced or disappear with pasteurization. However, this is not entirely true. This is confirmed by studies like this one collected in PubMed, according to which the effect of pasteurization on the nutritional value of milk is minimal, with the exception of vitamin B2, because milk is relatively poor in heat-sensitive vitamins.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also denies this, saying that “scientists have no evidence to support the nutritional benefits of raw milk.”
Other studies comparing the benefits of raw milk to pasteurized milk have found little evidence that the former is superior to the latter, and that the perceived benefits are outweighed by its health risks. Research such as that cited also does not show that raw milk improves lactose intolerance or that it contains more vitamins.
How to Avoid the Risks of Drinking Raw Milk (Besides Boiling It)
If we decide to buy raw milk, we must treat it safely and always follow a series of essential steps before putting it in the glass. The first is to bring the raw milk home as soon as possible and boil it to destroy any bacteria that may be present: boiling is the best way to kill many bacteria that can make us sick.
To do this, we can use a wide-bottomed container and stir from time to time, before it boils. Once boiling, it is very important to turn off the heat as soon as possible and cool it to put it in the refrigerator, where we will keep it at about 4ºC, well covered so that it does not become contaminated or absorb the odors of other foods.
It is essential that we respect the expiry date indicated on the packaging and that we always consume it within three days of purchase. As the Catalan Food Safety Agency (ACSA) warns, pregnant women, children, the elderly and people with weakened immunity are more likely to suffer from food infections, so they must be especially careful to strictly comply with these measures.
