America faces reality of mad cow disease
There’s no need for outright panic, but there is cause for serious concern since an American cow has been discovered with mad cow disease in Washington state.
CNN has reported there is a 24-year-old American woman who is living with mad cow disease. The woman, identified by her parents as only Charlene for privacy issues, is a Florida resident who relies on her parents to feed her.
Researchers with the Centers for Disease Control are confident Charlene contracted the disease during the 13 years she lived in England. Nonetheless it is still a bit unsettling the debilitating and fatal disease has found its way to this country.
How the cow and person infected with mad cow disease will impact folks in Middle Tennessee has yet to be seen. But it does give people who eat beef products reason to stop and think about at least the possibility of contracting this disease, however rare that possibility may be.
From a technical aspect, mad cow disease is one of 10 known diseases called transmissible spongiform encephalophathies that leave holes in the brains of animals or people. Each of the 10 TSE forms are different, caused by mysterious proteins called prions.
Last year, the National Institute of Health reportedly spent $29.4 million in prion research last year. In Europe, where mad cow disease devastated the beef industry in the 1990s, almost 10 times that amount is spent, according to the Associated Press.
What this country can’t afford is to have mad cow disease spread here. This is a fact fully realized by U.S. agriculture officials who have decided to kill 450 calves in a Washington state herd with ties to the cow diagnosed with mad cow disease.
Under a best-case scenario, there won’t be any further reports of mad cow disease in the United States. Under a worse-case scenario there could be an outbreak where dozens of people are infected. Reality likely lies somewhere in between.
Thus far, there are 143 people in England who have contracted mad cow disease. Six of them are still alive.
While this makes the chances of contracting the disease slim, in relation to the entire U.S. population, it’s enough to make people call for tighter beef restrictions – especially considering the nature of the disease.
According to the CDC, Charlene first sought medical help for memory loss and depression in November 2001. Just a month later, she reported difficulty walking and dressing, and involuntary muscle movements.
In less than a year, Charlene was bedridden. Now she can no longer communicate.
To make matters worse, scientists confirmed the first case of mad cow disease through a blood transfusion last month. And when hamburger from one infected cow could reach eight states, it’s clear federal officials need to adopt a comprehensive plan of cattle surveillance. This plan would follow a cow from birth to the slaughter and track its whereabouts every step of the way.
As to whether this will slow the spread of mad cow disease, we can only hope. There’s no reason to hit the panic button and overreact, but there is no denying mad cow disease is here and the possibility of Americans contracting it by eating beef does exist.