Americans are being warned to stay away from eggs with runny yolks amid rising cases of bird flu in the United States.
Speaking to DailyMail.com, a former FDA expert urged people to cook eggs thoroughly to kill any remaining fragments of the virus.
Farms in several states are battling outbreaks of the H5N1 strain among poultry and, for the first time, cattle.
Earlier this week, health officials in Texas confirmed that a dairy farmer contracted the virus, making him the second American to contract the disease.
Dr. Detwiler notes that when chickens become infected, the virus can be present in their saliva, nasal secretions, and feces. “Consequently, the virus can contaminate the birds’ environment, including the eggs they lay,” he said.
Dr Darin Detwiler, a food safety expert at Northeastern University and former advisor to the FDA and USDA, told DailyMail.com: ‘The transmission of avian flu to humans through consumption of properly cooked poultry products, including eggs, is very low. The risk arises with undercooked eggs or poultry.
“Using pasteurized eggs or ensuring they are fully cooked could provide an additional layer of safety, reducing the risk of potential exposure to the virus.”
Bird flu is often transmitted from waterfowl such as ducks and geese to chickens. Dr. Detwiler notes that when chickens become infected, the virus can be present in their saliva, nasal secretions, and feces.
“Consequently, the virus can contaminate the birds’ environment, including the eggs they lay,” he said.
It is similar to common foodborne illnesses such as salmonella and E coli, which infect humans through animal products that are not fully cooked.
Therefore, Dr. Detwiler recommends clients be careful with eggs that have runny yolks, such as fried, poached, hard-boiled, and over-easy eggs.
“In the case of bird flu, eggs must be cooked until both the white and yolk are firm, ensuring that the egg reaches a temperature that can kill any virus present,” he said.
“For dishes containing eggs, it is recommended to cook to an internal temperature of 160 F (71 C) as a precautionary measure to ensure safety, as this is an effective step in killing bacteria and viruses, including the flu virus avian”.
“If eggs are not cooked thoroughly (for example, if they are liquid or soft-boiled), the virus may not be completely eliminated, which could lead to infection if the eggs were contaminated.”
The above shows how bird flu is approaching human contagion in the US.
The graph above shows human cases of avian influenza reported globally by year. The colors represent different countries, with light blue being Egypt and orange being Cambodia.
The largest US egg producer, Cal-Maine, revealed this week that it would need to cull 2 million birds after the virus was detected in its flock.
Michigan officials are also now urging people to take enhanced measures to protect their flocks.
Dr Detwiler warned this could lead to rising egg prices and a lack of availability in stores. “Avian flu outbreaks in poultry can have significant economic impacts on the food industry, leading to the culling of infected birds and disruptions to poultry product supply chains,” he said.
“As always, these costs are passed on to consumers.”
So far, 12 farms in six states have reported H5N1 infections in their cows, including five in Texas, as well as farms in New Mexico, Michigan, Ohio, Idaho and Kansas. Cow testing is also being done in Iowa.
Infected cattle are described as “lethargic”, eating less feed and producing less milk. But they are not dying from their infections.
But it’s unclear how the cows became infected, whether through exposure to infected droppings, bird carcasses or another route.
It is also unclear whether the virus is spreading between animals or if they are being infected from a single source, such as their food. Most cases nationwide have been linked to farms in Texas.
In the human case, there are also many unknowns, including how the patient became infected.
It could have been from direct contact with cows or from touching a surface contaminated with the virus and then touching their faces.
Although many mammals are being infected, experts say there is one species they are focusing on in particular: pigs.
These animals have the same receptors in their lungs as humans, meaning an outbreak among them could predict a similar episode in humans.
However, no infections are currently recorded in pigs.
According to the CDC, some humans infected with bird flu may not experience symptoms.
Those who do have reported flu-like symptoms, such as fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headaches and fatigue.
Dr. Detwiler noted that other serious complications include respiratory failure, encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS, which causes fluid to build up in the lung alveoli), and multiple organ failure.
The World Health Organization estimates the mortality rate from H5N1 at 52 percent, based on the 462 deaths recorded since 2003 among the 887 people diagnosed with the virus.