Marilyn

Lived in Brussels for a year through the food scares - coke, beef, chicken, dairy etc. Ate, drank and surrived. We are going to Paris in 2 weeks - how is the mad cow situation? Was in Paris last month and didnot eat beef but will be there longer this time and I am not fond of chicken or fish. Any feedback? Thanks

StCirq

There have been endless discussions on this topic for some time now. It seems the consensus is: better safe than sorry. Statistically, you are far more likely to get hit by the TGV or die in a ballooning accident than you are to come down with mad cow disease, but of course, if you get the wrong piece of beef, you're history. France has SO many other things to eat, it's hardly that big a sacrifice. In my village in the Dordogne, people have been very wary of eating beef, except from local producers whose practices they are thoroughly familiar with.

Rex

I don't think that this was a "consensus". I sensed that the majority believe that the risk is so infinitesimally low that it is not a reason to modify your dining plans. <BR> <BR>

Quicksilver

Marilyn, <BR> <BR>For obvious reasons, I'd be really uncomfortable recommending to you what you should do, but I'm doing some research on this question this morning, so I can list some resources that may help you decide: <BR> <BR>Center for Disease Control: "Questions and Answers on BSE and CJD" <BR>http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/cjd/bse_cjd_qa.htm <BR> <BR>Centre for Disease Control, Travellers' Health: "Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy ("Mad Cow Disease") and New Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (nvCJD) <BR>http://www.cdc.gov/travel/madcow.htm <BR> <BR>World Health Organization Fact Sheet: Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy <BR>http://www.who.int/inf-fs/en/fact113.html <BR> <BR> <BR>Overall, I would say people's choices fall in three main categories: <BR> <BR>Extreme 1: Just eat beef anyway, the chances are really slim. <BR> <BR>Extreme 2: Don't eat any beef. The chances may be slim but the consequences are too dire to risk it. <BR> <BR>Middle Position: Only eat good cuts of beef, like steaks and so on. Avoid sausages etc., which might be more likely to contain the types of tissue in which the disease has been found. (from the CDC: "bioassays have identified the presence of the BSE agent in the brain, spinal cord, retina, dorsal root ganglia (nervous tissue located near the backbone), distal ileum, and bone marrow of cattle...") <BR> <BR>I urge you to choose between the positions above based on your own research and your own philosophy of life. I hope the resources I've listed will be some help. <BR> <BR>Wishing you safe travels, <BR> <BR> - Quicksilver -

carnivore

Why not? 93 Europeans, out of a population of slightly less that 500,000,000 have died from Creutzfeldt-jakob disease which they may have contracted by eating beef contaminated with bovine spongiform encephalopathy. On the other hand, they may have contracted it for reasons unknown. Who knows? Why care?

Sherry

We recently had dinner with friends in Paris (they live there). They will not eat the beef and said for us to not take a chance. We asked them if they EVER have beef. They said they will at home but they purchase the meat from a special supplier. Like someone else said. With all wonderful food to choose in France, not eating beef isn't really a hardship.

Cathy

Marilyn, <BR>The French and Germans did not take action on BSE when it first appeared in Britain a few years ago - believing that it was only confined to Britain. However in the last few months this belief has been proven to have been very mistaken and so they are far behind the countries which did take action. Incidents of BSE are increasing in both France and Germany. <BR> <BR>Personally I would not eat French or German or Swiss meat - through my work I am involved in the food industry and have responsiblity for food purchasing and I would not purchase any meat products from mainland Europe until I see the authorities taking their heads out of the sand. Sorry to be so alarmist - I agree with the other posters that the chances of getting CJD are silm however I draw the line at eating sub standard products as a result of national pride refusing to admitt that there is a problem until it is too late. As other posters said there are lots of other food types to eat, Have a great holiday, <BR> <BR> <BR>Cathy

kay

My friend is a scientist at an Ivy League U. working on finding the cause and cure for mad cow disease. He is working tirelessly, because he says that this disease is eventually going to be more deadly and widespread than AIDS. He says it is like the Bubonic Plague. Very frightening. People who really know the truth about this disease (not the propaganda that England and France put out) is very concerned.

kay

...ARE very concerned. <BR> <BR>

xxx

I was trained at a prestigious University in medical research, and my mentor told me that these statements are essential to getting promoted in academia. Always tell people: <BR> <BR>Last week, I was very, very busy and the work I was doing was very, very important. <BR> <BR>This week, I am very, very busy and the work I am doing is very, very important. <BR> <BR>Next week, I will be very, very busy and the work I will be doing will be very, very important. <BR> <BR>Maybe your friend at the Ivy League U had the same mentor. <BR> <BR>

clairobscur

Cathy : <BR> <BR>I don't know for Germany, but France did take action as soon as the british authorities admitted the BSE was a threat for human health (and therefore began themselves to take action). But of course, it's always simpler to blame some other country at random than trying to know what actually happened.It's so tiring to search for accurate informations.

Cathy

Clair, <BR> <BR>What I meant by taking action was that the British authorities had a cull of all cattle over the age of 30 months unlike any other European country and it is only now that most EU members are following the British example. <BR> <BR>I am not saying that the British did it because they wanted to lead the pack, they had no other choice as it was the worst hit country but the rest of the EU which appeared not to be as badly hit only banned British beef instead of examining their own beef. The Germans declared that they didn't have BSE in their national herd until recent events proved otherwise. <BR> <BR>All the EU countries stuck their heads in the sand and failed to take the drastic action of a national cull when BSE first appeared a few years ago, instead they stated it was a British problem and so we will ban British beef failing to acknowledge the fact that BSE was prevalent in their own national herds too and that includes all EU countries including France, Germany, Italy etc and European non-EU countries too for example the Swiss. I am not taking out out any one country, they are all equally to blame, some are just larger and have a bigger role to play in the EU than others. <BR> <BR> <BR>Cathy <BR> <BR>

Kelly

xxx, <BR> <BR>First of all, you sound like a real loser. Did you study at the prestigious University called Apex Tech? My friend has worked on several diseases, but he's never revealed so much about his work until now. He feels that the people of th US and other countries are being too laissez faire on this, so I just thought I would add that to this discussion. <BR> <BR>I can't believe you wasted your time writing that post. Don't you have patients to tend to? lol. <BR> <BR>I cannot believe I am wasting my time. <BR> <BR>May mad cow eat away at your tiny brain.

yyy

Wow Kelly/Kay <BR> <BR>What a nice person you are! - (please understand this is a SARCASTIC remark - but I guess with your intelligence you will already realise that)

dorene

What's the beef? How did we get off the subject?? I've already read the stats at the ctr for disease control, etc. websites, but how serious is mad cow disease in Italy?

Marilyn

I appreciate all of you taking the time to educate me so I can make an informed decision. At this point I think I will pass on the beef - but if I get hungry enough????? Thanks

clairobscur

"British authorities had a cull of all <BR>cattle over the age of 30 months" <BR> <BR>Yes, that's true.At least if I understand correctly "cull". If it means that selling meat from cattle older than 30 months was forbiden, I inded heard of no other european country where it has been applied, though a lot of other actions has been undertaken. But your first message (no actions taken) wasn't that specific. <BR> <BR>However, since the number of BSE-infected cattle found in France was 1/1000 or so of the number observed in the UK, and in Germany 1/100 or so of the number in France, it makes some sense that the measures taken have been different (drastic in the UK, average in France, limited in Germany). <BR> <BR>And it makes sense too that Germany <BR>declared they had no BSE-infected cattle as long as they hadn't found any (They discovered the first case very recently). What should they have said? We found no diseased cattle, but let's say we're infected too out of solidarity with the british government? <BR> <BR>I checked one of the sites given by another poster which list the number of local cases found from 87 to 2000 : <BR> <BR>UK : 180 501 (2000 : 1101) <BR>France : 241 (2000 : 161) <BR>Germany : 7 (2000 : 7) <BR> <BR>Is it really surprising, reading these figures, that the actions taken have been differents? Or that other EU countries choose to ban british beef? <BR>