'Playing Russian roulette with your health': Officials warn that social media trend of consuming raw milk will not protect you from bird flu

People shouldn't drink raw milk in an attempt to gain immunity from bird flu, health experts have warned. 

These warnings follow news that a bird flu subtype called H5N1 was found in cattle herds across the U.S. and reports that the virus has been detected in unpasteurized, or raw, milk samples collected from sick cows.

Since March 25, shortly after news of the cow infections first came to light, weekly sales of raw milk have increased by as much as 21% compared with previous years, the market research firm NielsenIQ revealed to PBS. Anecdotally, farmers have reported that consumers are seeking raw milk to potentially gain immunity from H5N1.

However, experts have warned that this apparent uptick in raw milk consumption could harm individuals' Health in multiple ways and also increases the possibility that the bird flu virus could spill over to humans.  

"Deliberately consuming raw milk in the hope of becoming immune to avian iNFLuenza is playing Russian roulette with your Health," Mike Payne, a researcher at the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security at the University of California, Davis, told the LA Times. "Deliberately trying to infect yourself with a known pathogen flies in the face of all medical knowledge and common sense."

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H5N1 is a subtype of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), a type of flu that causes severe disease and death in birds. The virus typically causes outbreaks in poultry and can be carried by wild birds that don't necessarily get sick. However, a recent outbreak has been spreading among mammals. In the past few years, the virus has infected at least 48 mammal species, including foxes, skunks, raccoons, seals and polar bears.