i think you did a great job with this piece imo, people should do their own due-diligence and practice common sense…i’m not about to go chug raw milk just because sami does
Please relax raw milk is fine. Pasteurized milk contains a lot of (pasteurized) pus lol. Raw milk is tested for pathogens, refrigerated for 3 days, then tested again before it goes to shelves. Also the grass-fed dairy cows aren’t accidentally eating dead birds that get into the cow feed.
I recommend doing a little research before condemning something you heard one thing about.
FWIW, I got E. coli from raw carrots from Whole Foods this summer. Never had an issue with raw dairy. My illness was exceedingly mild, maybe due to my excellent gut health from raw milk?
I think we have to stoppp this wild obsession with rejecting all things that are "red coded" (or "blue coded" on the other side). Like - why is this one element completely taking over our ability to think for ourselves? I don’t know much about raw dairy beyond its association with RFK Jr., and while I don’t support his leadership, I don't think that means I can't be curious about things he endorses? Pre-2024, if you had told me that raw milk has gut health properties, I would have probably been totally into it? So now completely rejecting something just because a certain “side” embraces it feels very limited and very short-sighted. Anywayyyy I really loved this- and am especially curious about the 'blue light after dark' and I'm going to try shutting down my phone use super early tonight. Sami- safe to assume that the TV is a problem too?
My concern isn't political or related to RFK, and my knowledge of it doesn't come from its association with RFK. My concern is around food safety, science, and illness. Raw milk has not undergone the process of pasteurization, which functions to rid it of harmful bacteria, including listeria and E. coli but also bird flu, which is currently widespread in the United States and can be passed to humans through consumption of raw milk. Sometimes the potential benefits of something are largely outweighed by the potential risks and that's important to acknowledge.
Aubrey- at an individual level, I totally get it. I personally will not be drinking raw milk. Butttt (stay with me) ---when I see a really juicy, thoughtful, interesting post about a variety of topics and then 7 or 8 of like 12 (I'm rounding) comments are all just criticizing raw milk, it does feed the us vs. them narrative. And the flip side is a refusal for people on the "opposite side" to refuse to hear valid argument arguments about things like...NPR, DEI, solar energy, climate change, etc. We cannot keep going at this pace. Xx
Jennifer I really get where you are coming from here, it is a very politically charged time, but I think there is some importance nuance missing. Raw milk and the dangers around it have been known wayyy before the MAHA movement and RFK took the stage. Maybe before it became associated with RFK and became a "political" issue they just weren't as widely known bc it was very niche as far as access (because it's not legal in many places for good reason!) I don't think anyone who commented flagging their concerns for the mention/normalization of raw milk here was doing so just because it doesn't fit their political view or just to criticize the choices of the interviewee or writer.
I speak for myself when I say the concern with this topic (and other) health/wellness trends is that not everyone will do more research or have the knowledge to make a thoughtful decision for themselves like you mentioned-that's a huge privilege. Yes, I'm sure most of the readers here are smart and discerning enough to dive deeper into a topic, make their own choices and pick and choose habits and practices to use in their own lives etc... but what about the person who doesn't have the time but wants similar or results or is desperate and willing to try anything? I know people who have fallen into that boat with many unsafe "wellness" practices for them (and their kids!) including raw milk. I think it's SUPER important to dispel misinformation and flag when habits, products, practices are shared and normalized, especially from someone that is not an expert in the topic, that are known for being unsafe nearly across the board from medical professionals , even if it is just one person's routine/fridge. That's not an us vs them narrative to me, that's science and taking care of one another.
I have been a fan of your Substack for awhile and have enjoyed these Into the Fridge in the past. I am very concerned about featuring voices that promote dangerous practices, specifically raw milk. In the best of times, raw milk is not safe for human consumption. With the spread of bird flu, showcasing raw milk is reckless and irresponsible. I am someone who grew up on a farm and drank raw milk as a child. People do not understand how inevitable milk contamination is. Farmyards, even incredibly well-kept ones, are ripe with bacteria. Bird flu particularly infects cow udders. The raw milk craze is bananas in general (the benefits of raw milk cannot be teased out from the "farm effect" overall and even that effect applies only to children who have been raised on the farm, not adults). During the bird flu epidemic, promoting raw milk is flat out unethical.
Hi Maggie, I appreciate you reading and taking the time to write this! I completely understand - I don’t personally drink / agree with raw milk consumption myself. That being said, my goal with this series has always been to include a variety of health practices because my belief is that when we listen to differing opinions, we can understand more perspectives.
I think of my readers as smart, curious, and discerning people who have agency in the choices they make regarding their own well being. My goal isn’t to suggest anyone drink raw milk, nor do I think it’s my guest’s. I hope you can see where I’m coming from, and it means a lot that you shared your side too - it was very helpful for me!
Openness to different perspectives and intellectual humility are great values. However, all perspectives do not have equal weight. We can hear all sides, but all are not inherently credible. I don’t think there is bad intent here, but you do have a responsibility when you platform perspectives that can lead to harmful outcomes. Drinking raw milk can cause serious foodborne illnesses. This isn’t a matter of opinion, but a well documented public health issue backed by extensive evidence of outbreaks and hospitalizations. When you platform dangerous health advice under the guise of “showing all sides,” you’re laundering misinformation through false neutrality and participating in the spread of harmful information even if you don’t explicitly endorse it. I think you’ve created some great content on your Substack, and I’ve enjoyed seeing your voice develop. You’ve built trust with your readers, and I hope you reconsider your approach to these features. Platforming misinformation lends your credibility to these ideas and breaks down that trust.
Thank you Katie! And thank you everyone for the discussion. I should mention and should’ve mentioned in my responses I’m not objective about RM (as it’s in my diet) but though I like it I don’t recommend people start it 0 to 100. It requires a couple months titration minimum so one can be super in the clear. It is an interesting fold: Even though it is fully legal in California, Europe, etc, consumers must do their research and vouchsafe its own safety. (My farm is chill; I’ve switched to A2 since flu hit.) anyways it’s what works for me—a very detailed post on RM and safety and so on can be found on my SS Super Health.
The logic of slowly introducing raw milk does not make sense to me as a safety recommendation. It does not matter how you introduce or increase raw dairy when it comes to exposure to pathogens. If you get a batch with a pathogen like bird flu (or salmonella or E. coli) drinking an ounce versus 5 ounces doesn’t make any difference. Your body does not build up an immunity or tolerance to these pathogens by titration.
Meaning no offense here, but it you can’t understand the difference between an industrial oil being chemically extracted using a hexane solvent and some sesame seeds being crushed into a delicious paste, maybe you’re not in the position of intellectual superiority you seem to think you are
Lol, was just asking. Any leftover hexane would be negligible in the final soap product. I understand not eating them, but avoiding them in shampoo seems overkill for someone who has tattoos.
Raw dairy when bird flu is going around is crazy
Yeah, immediate pass for me. The wellness to MAHA pipeline is so slippery.
Red light chicken lamps too 😭😭😭
I’m pretty bummed to see the multiple positive mentions of raw milk. Feels kind of irresponsible to be honest
Totally get where you’re coming from - I was hoping to share a variety of opinions (not ones that I necessarily condone)
i think you did a great job with this piece imo, people should do their own due-diligence and practice common sense…i’m not about to go chug raw milk just because sami does
Appreciate you
By sharing, you are condoning.
you choose who to feature on here. you chose to feature someone who promotes raw dairy consumption. simple as
Please relax raw milk is fine. Pasteurized milk contains a lot of (pasteurized) pus lol. Raw milk is tested for pathogens, refrigerated for 3 days, then tested again before it goes to shelves. Also the grass-fed dairy cows aren’t accidentally eating dead birds that get into the cow feed.
I recommend doing a little research before condemning something you heard one thing about.
FWIW, I got E. coli from raw carrots from Whole Foods this summer. Never had an issue with raw dairy. My illness was exceedingly mild, maybe due to my excellent gut health from raw milk?
It’s incredibly dangerous to be sharing drinking raw dairy when it could kill someone bc of the bird flu rn…..just a thought.
I think we have to stoppp this wild obsession with rejecting all things that are "red coded" (or "blue coded" on the other side). Like - why is this one element completely taking over our ability to think for ourselves? I don’t know much about raw dairy beyond its association with RFK Jr., and while I don’t support his leadership, I don't think that means I can't be curious about things he endorses? Pre-2024, if you had told me that raw milk has gut health properties, I would have probably been totally into it? So now completely rejecting something just because a certain “side” embraces it feels very limited and very short-sighted. Anywayyyy I really loved this- and am especially curious about the 'blue light after dark' and I'm going to try shutting down my phone use super early tonight. Sami- safe to assume that the TV is a problem too?
My concern isn't political or related to RFK, and my knowledge of it doesn't come from its association with RFK. My concern is around food safety, science, and illness. Raw milk has not undergone the process of pasteurization, which functions to rid it of harmful bacteria, including listeria and E. coli but also bird flu, which is currently widespread in the United States and can be passed to humans through consumption of raw milk. Sometimes the potential benefits of something are largely outweighed by the potential risks and that's important to acknowledge.
Aubrey- at an individual level, I totally get it. I personally will not be drinking raw milk. Butttt (stay with me) ---when I see a really juicy, thoughtful, interesting post about a variety of topics and then 7 or 8 of like 12 (I'm rounding) comments are all just criticizing raw milk, it does feed the us vs. them narrative. And the flip side is a refusal for people on the "opposite side" to refuse to hear valid argument arguments about things like...NPR, DEI, solar energy, climate change, etc. We cannot keep going at this pace. Xx
Jennifer I really get where you are coming from here, it is a very politically charged time, but I think there is some importance nuance missing. Raw milk and the dangers around it have been known wayyy before the MAHA movement and RFK took the stage. Maybe before it became associated with RFK and became a "political" issue they just weren't as widely known bc it was very niche as far as access (because it's not legal in many places for good reason!) I don't think anyone who commented flagging their concerns for the mention/normalization of raw milk here was doing so just because it doesn't fit their political view or just to criticize the choices of the interviewee or writer.
I speak for myself when I say the concern with this topic (and other) health/wellness trends is that not everyone will do more research or have the knowledge to make a thoughtful decision for themselves like you mentioned-that's a huge privilege. Yes, I'm sure most of the readers here are smart and discerning enough to dive deeper into a topic, make their own choices and pick and choose habits and practices to use in their own lives etc... but what about the person who doesn't have the time but wants similar or results or is desperate and willing to try anything? I know people who have fallen into that boat with many unsafe "wellness" practices for them (and their kids!) including raw milk. I think it's SUPER important to dispel misinformation and flag when habits, products, practices are shared and normalized, especially from someone that is not an expert in the topic, that are known for being unsafe nearly across the board from medical professionals , even if it is just one person's routine/fridge. That's not an us vs them narrative to me, that's science and taking care of one another.
**this is not a dig at the writer-(Hi Katie!)
Very well put! Yes we are not digging at Katie.
I’ve only ever gotten E. coli from raw veggies. Should we warn against those, too?
Actually, as we learned during Covid, the best way to get people to change their minds is to scold them relentlessly. If it ain’t broke…
I have been a fan of your Substack for awhile and have enjoyed these Into the Fridge in the past. I am very concerned about featuring voices that promote dangerous practices, specifically raw milk. In the best of times, raw milk is not safe for human consumption. With the spread of bird flu, showcasing raw milk is reckless and irresponsible. I am someone who grew up on a farm and drank raw milk as a child. People do not understand how inevitable milk contamination is. Farmyards, even incredibly well-kept ones, are ripe with bacteria. Bird flu particularly infects cow udders. The raw milk craze is bananas in general (the benefits of raw milk cannot be teased out from the "farm effect" overall and even that effect applies only to children who have been raised on the farm, not adults). During the bird flu epidemic, promoting raw milk is flat out unethical.
Hi Maggie, I appreciate you reading and taking the time to write this! I completely understand - I don’t personally drink / agree with raw milk consumption myself. That being said, my goal with this series has always been to include a variety of health practices because my belief is that when we listen to differing opinions, we can understand more perspectives.
I think of my readers as smart, curious, and discerning people who have agency in the choices they make regarding their own well being. My goal isn’t to suggest anyone drink raw milk, nor do I think it’s my guest’s. I hope you can see where I’m coming from, and it means a lot that you shared your side too - it was very helpful for me!
Openness to different perspectives and intellectual humility are great values. However, all perspectives do not have equal weight. We can hear all sides, but all are not inherently credible. I don’t think there is bad intent here, but you do have a responsibility when you platform perspectives that can lead to harmful outcomes. Drinking raw milk can cause serious foodborne illnesses. This isn’t a matter of opinion, but a well documented public health issue backed by extensive evidence of outbreaks and hospitalizations. When you platform dangerous health advice under the guise of “showing all sides,” you’re laundering misinformation through false neutrality and participating in the spread of harmful information even if you don’t explicitly endorse it. I think you’ve created some great content on your Substack, and I’ve enjoyed seeing your voice develop. You’ve built trust with your readers, and I hope you reconsider your approach to these features. Platforming misinformation lends your credibility to these ideas and breaks down that trust.
I <3 snake super health
Really disappointed to see raw dairy highlighted :/ the complete opposite of wellness!
Not the raw dairy-yikes!
unhinged raw dairy aside... did this man just say he keeps BLACKSTRAP MOLASSES around for a snack?? is he a horse??
Thank you for noticing
zhug, underrated. and kiwis are my stomach's friend for life. i knew i was onto something
The middle of y’all’s Venn diagrams is crazy
Thank you Katie! And thank you everyone for the discussion. I should mention and should’ve mentioned in my responses I’m not objective about RM (as it’s in my diet) but though I like it I don’t recommend people start it 0 to 100. It requires a couple months titration minimum so one can be super in the clear. It is an interesting fold: Even though it is fully legal in California, Europe, etc, consumers must do their research and vouchsafe its own safety. (My farm is chill; I’ve switched to A2 since flu hit.) anyways it’s what works for me—a very detailed post on RM and safety and so on can be found on my SS Super Health.
The logic of slowly introducing raw milk does not make sense to me as a safety recommendation. It does not matter how you introduce or increase raw dairy when it comes to exposure to pathogens. If you get a batch with a pathogen like bird flu (or salmonella or E. coli) drinking an ounce versus 5 ounces doesn’t make any difference. Your body does not build up an immunity or tolerance to these pathogens by titration.
What's the deal with seed oils that you'll avoid them in shampoo but eat tahini spread, which is just sesame seeds?
Meaning no offense here, but it you can’t understand the difference between an industrial oil being chemically extracted using a hexane solvent and some sesame seeds being crushed into a delicious paste, maybe you’re not in the position of intellectual superiority you seem to think you are
Lol, was just asking. Any leftover hexane would be negligible in the final soap product. I understand not eating them, but avoiding them in shampoo seems overkill for someone who has tattoos.
Linoleic acid is harmful when applied topically as well. It increases photosensitivity and oxidizes on the skin.
The pearl clutching (and virtue signaling???) about raw milk is sending me.
hanging from the beams is so relatable. i'll fit in a workout anywhere lol
It can be so simple
this was epic
A rollercoaster
Sahadi’s best spice store hands down
it’s time for me to make a trip
blurb changed from "sami reiss on raw dairy and finding purpose" to "sami reiss on hard boiled eggs and finding purpose"...please be serious
I see Sami enjoys the fine chew of Falim.