Mad Cow Disease
 

What is the latest advice about eating beef in GB? OK? Not OK?

"Mad cow" disease is a "slow virus" (prion) disease. <BR> <BR>If you are age 30 or more and eat beef in GB for the next 50 years or so, you have a 50% chance of dying in the decade after that.

Fact not widely ignored by the general public: One cannot get Mad Cow from the meat of a diseased animal (e.g. steak). <BR>You have to consume the infected tissue which is primarily bone and brain tissue. The people infected at certain processed meat which contained, gulp yuk yuk, brain tissue. Bottom line: Eat all the beef you want but not English Cold Cuts.

The human version of Mad Cow disease, CJD, used to be considered "slow" in that you wouldn't show signs of it for 30+ years or so after eating infected meat, but what is being found now is a new variant form of CJD (vCJD)and it is being found in young people. With the new variant form, the time from onset of symptoms to death is something like 2 years. I'm curious to know where "xxx" gets his/her information regarding the chances of dying? This whole issue is definately becoming more serious, internationally. I don't think anyone can advise eating beef in Europe right now is okay, or not okay. It is ultimately a decision you need to make for yourself after becoming educated on the issue. Take a look at www.mad-cow.org. Unless I raised the cow myself, I wouldn't eat beef today under these uncertainties.

It seems that all of Europe is suspect regarding the safety of its meat. Though the previous post says the prions are in bone and brain tissue only and thus you can't get infected if you eat steak, anyone who has ever seen a slaughterhouse knows that processing a cow is a messy job and contamination could obviously happen. I have even read that when a cow is slaughtered by a certain type of process, basically blowing it's brains out, that process can essentially blow brain tissue into the lung area of a cow and thus cause contamination. Let us all hope that scientists can find a way to test live cattle for prions or a way to easily kill the prions.

Apparently the sarcasm went over your head. If you are age 30 or over, and eat beef for for 50 years, you will be age 80 or older. And you will have a 50% chance of dying in the decade after you reach that age. <BR> <BR>Duh. <BR>