Raw milk fad ignores science

The recent trend to consume raw milk is a dangerous movement that would be laughed at by our predecessors of 100 years ago. People who are jumping on the "all natural" bandwagon need a bit of scientific education before embracing this not-so-new trend.

Those of us living in the year 2010 never had to endure The Black Plague, typhoid, measle outbreaks or any one of countless ailments that have haunted the human race for the past 6,000 years. Why? Science. All natural living, or as I prefer to call it, foolish living leaves one open to myriad preventable diseases and ailments.

Sadly, it is the parents of very small children who tend to embrace this type of life that just speeds the human body toward an early death. The reason milk was pasteurized in the first place was because it showed to dramatically drop infant mortality rates by more than half. Listeria and Salmonella bacteria can be found in raw milk among other harmful bacteria you wouldn't want to put into your child's body (see foodsafety.ksu.edu/articles/384/RawMilkOutbreakTable.pdf).

There are very good reasons why milk began to be pasteurized in this country in the 1890s and people need to start rereading a few history books to learn why, sadly, history isn't valued very much in our country and now the results of that devaluation is starting to rear its ugly head.

Julie Moskal

Glen Ellyn