Legit Reviews

A cow in Alabama has tested positive for mad cow disease, the Agriculture Department said Monday, confirming the third U.S. case of the brain-wasting ailment.

The animal was a beef cow but hadn’t entered the food supply for people or animals, said the department’s chief veterinarian, John Clifford.

Looks like 2006 will be a rough year for mad cow disease in the United States as this is the third case already!

Source: MSNBC News

Wonder when bird-flu will get here.

i don't really care about bse (the fancy-schmancy acronym for mad cow... bovine spongiform encephalitis)... it's a prion disease that's specific to livestock. it stays in the brain. unless you're eating an infected cow brain, it's not that big a deal. the doesn't spread into the meat.

the only reason bse is newsworthy is because it kills cows, so farmers have to stop it before it takes the lives of more of their cattle. i don't really understand why they are showing packages of steaks and whatnot on the news... probably to stir up ignorant hysteria (i.e. "muslims," bird flu, atkins, etc.).

EDIT: correction, there's a new form of bse that CAN be transfered to humans through beef. in humans, it's called nvcjd, creutzfeldt-jakob disease.

now thats not cool.. i'll have to switch to buffalo or something now..

all this time i thought mad cow dissease got into the meat when parts of the bone/thyroid/spinal tissue were ground up into the ground beef.

i saw a neat show on tv about this in humans that dates back a long time ago due to cannibalism. how entire tribes fell due to this dabilitating illness..

-mogwai wrote:.bovine spongiform encephalitis)... it's a prion disease that's specific to livestock. it stays in the brain.
doesn't spread into the meat.


EDIT: correction, there's a new form of bse that CAN be transfered to humans through beef. in humans, it's called nvcjd, creutzfeldt-jakob disease.

spongiform encephalitis= sponge brain
The prions spread throughout the brain, and are believed to be present in the spinal cord.
This is a serious health threat, with a long time between infection and symtoms/onset, so if it is ignored, by the time a large outbreak is seen huge numbers may be infected (similar to HIV/AIDS).
It is the result of modern, high intensity farming practice
particularly the use of animal byproducta and waste in feed for other animals.
it is not believed to be a threat in cattle under 2 years of age (where MOST beef comes from) but older breeding stock and milk cows are used for beef by-products (ground meat/sauage, pet food, etc.)
the current inspect program will prevent human disease, IF EVERYONE in the beef industry follows all the rules.
Unfortunately a number of companies/farmers have volated
the feed and reporting requirements, so the next ten years or so while the potiential infected cattle work their way out of the system is the highest risk time (it's been almost 10 years since the feed regulations went in to effect.)
overall the human risk is very low
bird flu is likely a much higher risk, will almost certainly mutate to easily cross in to humans in the next few years, causing an epidemic, possible panidemic. All the current efforts are designed to delay that as long as possible to allow time for anti-viral stockpiling, and vacine work to be done.
It is spreading MUCH faster than predicted via wild bird migrations and will probably be present worldwide within a year.
unlike nvcjd and aids it is a fast onset disease/illness and local outbreaks of human disease can be contain by quarantine (if we have the political will power to do so)

In the long run everyone will be exposed, part of the population will become (very) ill, some percentage will die, but we will become somewhat more resistant (not really imune as flu viris mutate fairly easily, and it will become a low level threat once again, for another 80-90 years.

bird flu is a much higher risk than mad cow, but i'm really not worried about it at all.... not now, at least.

the only fear i have involving bird flu is if terrorists figured out a way to spread it to about 30 or so people at once without their knowledge.

speaking of bird flu...

Israel finds H5N1 in birds

Israel detected its first cases of H5N1 bird flu, saying the virus had killed thousands of turkeys and chicken on two farms. One person is suspected of being infected.

Article Link

And more about the bird flu:
http://www.hhs.gov/panflu20060313.pdf

Date line: Alabama, Old Mc Donalds E-I-E-I-oh farm. Stereo system plays 24/7 to keep the cows soothed. Mr Mc Donald is unware of the fact some of the middle aged hired hands have swithched out the current music selection for Lynyrd Skynyrds Sweet Home Alabama. The effect is immediate, Old Besty goes mad! Opps, Sorry people. Wrong Mad cow disease.

The diease in question would not be if it were not for the fact of companies willing to use every part of animals killed in the slaughter houses. The real problem lies within the brain and certain proteins there. When fed to the same species, the proteins attacks the brain and slowley destroys the brain tissue. In cultures where cannibalism is practiced, the effects of the diease could also be seen there over a period of time. Some are suggesting not using the brain/spinal area for feed at all. Others want to use it just for dog food/cat food where it wont enter the food chain. I say it should just be used for plant fertilizer. Or, one could serve it up to the CEOs whom suggest its not a problem.

From what I understand, mad cow disease will originate from feeding an animal its own meat- somehow many farmers overlook the harms in doing this, but apparently this contributes to what will form a prion, which is the cause of mad cow disease.

Edit- pretty much what was said above, I didn't see that last post for some reason.

Bird flu, however, is much trickier to avoid since birds interact with one another and any humans in close contact with them are at risk, and then the real risk comes from transmittance of the disease from human to human if it mutates. It hasn't mutated yet, ie humans with bird flu are not contagious to other people, that is unless the virus mutates.

looks like they found another mad cow in frasier valley