Is raw milk OK to drink? Here’s what doctors say in the region
If you’ve been on social media recently, you’re probably aware of the ever-popular trend of drinking raw milk in South and North Carolina.
That’s milk straight from the cow and unpasteurized. While many people rave about the benefits and nutrition they say they’ve gained, doctors and governmental officials caution it’s use.
You can buy it just about everywhere, but the sticking point is you can only drink it in a few states and around here, it depends on what side of the state line you fall into.
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“I married into a dairy farm,” said Carolyn Adkins.
Adkins runs Tucker Adkins Dairy, and South Carolina is only one of eleven states she says that allows people to drink raw milk.
“Raw milk is the way God made it,” Adkins stated.
With the attention from social media, the interest in raw milk has spiked. And so too have sales at her farm.
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“We’re in a society now that if man doesn’t touch it, it’s not good enough for you,” Adkins continued.
But not everybody is on board with that line of thinking.
“Lots of risks, lots of dangers,” said Dr. Natashia Pyfrom.
Pyfrom is a doctor with Atrium Health in North Carolina and says drinking milk from the tap may seem healthier, but it comes with a load of potential problems.
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“A person is 800 times more likely to develop an illness from unpasteurized milk which is the raw milk,” Pyfrom explained.
The CDC backs up those numbers, saying raw milk can lead to salmonella, e-coli and a host of other bacteria you don’t want. Outbreaks have caused thousands of illnesses and hundreds of hospitalizations.
“It just feels a little healthier as well,” said. Anton Olsen.
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Olsen is a dedicated customer at a raw milk farm in York, S.C. He makes the trip on his moped from his home in Gaston County, about two and a half hours away just to grab a couple of gallons.
A trip he says is worth it.
“To me it seems to have a much better taste. It also helps in recovery from workouts,” Olsen told us.
The reason Olsen has to make the trip is because it’s illegal to buy raw milk for human consumptions in North Carolina. However, that’s not the case just across the border.
But doctors say with that freedom comes risks and people have to make wise choices when it comes to raw milk.
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