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A newborn baby in New Mexico died from a Listeria infection likely related to the mother’s consumption of raw milk during pregnancy, according to state health officials.
The New Mexico Department of Health issued a warning Tuesday urging people to avoid consuming raw dairy products following the death of the newborn. Health officials believe the “most likely” source of infection was the mother drinking unpasteurized milk during pregnancy.
While investigators said they could not determine the exact cause, they said “the tragic death underscores the serious risks that raw dairy poses to pregnant women, young children, elderly New Mexicans and anyone with a weakened immune system.”
Raw milk has seen a surge in popularity amid the Make America Healthy Again movement led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
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Health officials say a New Mexico newborn died from a Listeria infection likely related to the mother’s consumption of raw milk during pregnancy. (iStock)
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a regulation decades ago prohibiting the interstate sale of raw milk, but the beverage is not banned at the federal level, leaving individual states to decide whether it is safe for human consumption.
“Pregnant people should only consume pasteurized dairy products to help prevent illness and death in newborns,” Dr. Chad Smelser, deputy state epidemiologist for the New Mexico Department of Health, said in a statement.
Raw milk has not been pasteurized, a process that heats the milk to kill disease-causing germs.
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Health officials have linked the death of a New Mexico newborn to a Listeria infection linked to raw milk consumption. (iStock)
Consuming foods or beverages made with raw milk can expose people to Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, E. coli, Listeria, Brucella and Salmonella, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Listeria is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illnesses in the U.S., infecting about 1,250 people and causing about 172 deaths each year, according to the CDC.
The CDC notes that certain groups of people, including children under 5 years old, adults over 65 years old, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems, are at higher risk for serious illness.
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New Mexico health officials are warning against consuming raw dairy products after a newborn died from a Listeria infection. (iStock)
“New Mexico dairy producers work hard to provide safe, healthy products and pasteurization is a vital part of that process,” said Jeff M. Witte, New Mexico’s agriculture secretary, in a statement. “Consumers, especially those at higher risk, are encouraged to choose pasteurized serious dairy products to reduce the risk of foodborne illness.”
Last August, an E. coli and Campylobacter outbreak linked to raw milk from a Florida farm sickened 21 people, including six children.