Does anyone here think that Mad Cow is worse than what the media/govt. is already mentioning?

Nocturnal

Lifer
Jan 8, 2002
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As in, there are tons of more infected cattle and not to mention signs of CJD can take up to 10-30 years before it shows up in humans. What do you think?

discuss
 

ReiAyanami

Diamond Member
Sep 24, 2002
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we won't know till then.

it was rather stupid of ranchers to kill and feed us a cow so sick it couldn't even walk or stand (imagine eating a rotting pig)

but how exactly does the virus survive if it is cooked at 400+ degrees? or does McD use lower temps to save on their energy bill

for all we know it could already be going on and alzheimers really comes from cows, then it would be the end of the cattle industry and atkins. time to eat mercury laced fish!!
 

CaptnKirk

Lifer
Jul 25, 2002
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PRION DISEASES

Well there you go again. It's not a VIRUS, it's a rouge protein that is not killed by cooking.
There are several of these 'Rouge Protien' diseases caused by what is referred to as a 'PRION'.

Exact method of transmission is unclear, but the most likely means is that of consumption of
material that itself is infected by the protein, which inturn attacks the DNA material within the
makeup of the next host animal. It takes some extended time before the ilness manifests itself
and is recognizable as a possible problem with that animal. These animals may be processed
and have their parts (some infected - not detected) enter our food chain without being suspected
carriers of an abnormality.

Only a few weeks ago (November) Congress was trying to pass laws against using sick animals
in packing houses and processing plants, and the Secretary of Agriculture had been warned of
a growing problem by the scientist that had in fact identified the 'Mad Cow' Prion. It was turned
away as not being a threat, as the Cattlemens Association and their lobby has forwarded several
million dollars into the campaign coffers of those who control the leadership of the Republican Party.

Oh, by the way - theres a guy who has a cattle ranch in Texas that helps out this Cattlemens
Association. Perhaps you've heard of him ? He's called George W. Bush.
 

tnitsuj

Diamond Member
May 22, 2003
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Originally posted by: ReiAyanami
we won't know till then.

it was rather stupid of ranchers to kill and feed us a cow so sick it couldn't even walk or stand (imagine eating a rotting pig)

but how exactly does the virus survive if it is cooked at 400+ degrees? or does McD use lower temps to save on their energy bill

for all we know it could already be going on and alzheimers really comes from cows, then it would be the end of the cattle industry and atkins. time to eat mercury laced fish!!

The ranchers have fought for the ability to put so called "downer" cattle into the food supply as late as a few weeks ago. Up until this scare they have been successfull. It is now a huge loss to ranchers who must now eat the loss of sick cattle, and find a way to dispose of over 100k sick cattle every year (a very conservatice estimate). This is not a small task.

If anything the "mad cow" threat is probably less than what it is being hyped to be, but to restore public confidence measures must be taken. Perception is everything.
 

sandorski

No Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
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It may very well be much bigger than we know. Even the blame of feeding cattle parts to cattle seems kinda suspect to me as the cause. I mean, if you get the protein from eating another cow, where did that cow get it, from another cow? One would think the Protein had some natural occurance outside of cow cannibalism.

Wild North American Deer have a similar disease, infact many have suggested that the current(last year) Mad Cow case in Canada may have been a crossover from the Deer population(not confirmed). I'm no expert on Deer, but I'm pretty sure they don't engage in cannibalism, so I would think their disease is transferred by other means. Perhaps Mad Cow can be too, perhaps our knowledge of it is more limited than we think.
 

Drift3r

Guest
Jun 3, 2003
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Originally posted by: sandorski
It may very well be much bigger than we know. Even the blame of feeding cattle parts to cattle seems kinda suspect to me as the cause. I mean, if you get the protein from eating another cow, where did that cow get it, from another cow? One would think the Protein had some natural occurance outside of cow cannibalism.

Wild North American Deer have a similar disease, infact many have suggested that the current(last year) Mad Cow case in Canada may have been a crossover from the Deer population(not confirmed). I'm no expert on Deer, but I'm pretty sure they don't engage in cannibalism, so I would think their disease is transferred by other means. Perhaps Mad Cow can be too, perhaps our knowledge of it is more limited than we think.


Actually this is more related closely related too cannibalism amongst species like cows and humans. Humans can suffer from the same disease if they consume human meat often enough, especially parts of the brain and nerves system. As for deer well it could be the other way around and just be a sign of deer catching diseases from cattle. Or a as this article illustratres a form of sheep scrapie ( a.ka. -> chronic wasting disease ) which is also another disease that destorys the brains of animals etc.. '


http://www.sciencenews.org/20021130/bob9.asp
 

Drift3r

Guest
Jun 3, 2003
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Originally posted by: ReiAyanami
we won't know till then.

it was rather stupid of ranchers to kill and feed us a cow so sick it couldn't even walk or stand (imagine eating a rotting pig)

but how exactly does the virus survive if it is cooked at 400+ degrees? or does McD use lower temps to save on their energy bill

for all we know it could already be going on and alzheimers really comes from cows, then it would be the end of the cattle industry and atkins. time to eat mercury laced fish!!


Cooking meat does not destory the protien that causes this disease.
 

abaez

Diamond Member
Jan 28, 2000
7,158
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Cows were not meant to eat meat period. They should be fed grass but of course it won't happen. Meat industry has been vile for years, you can see it by the way they insist over and over that there is no problem with this and that the food supply hasn't been contaminated while deflecting the blame to a Canadian cow. How about some action? Has anyone wondered where that supposed 10,000 pounds of recalled beef went? 99% it probably has been eaten already. It's funny to see the industry groveling at Japan's feet, Japan tests every single cow they slaughter for mad cow disease and hopefully before they rescind the ban that will happen here too.
 

TheBDB

Diamond Member
Jan 26, 2002
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Nope, actually I think the media is exaggerating the importance of it.
 

IGBT

Lifer
Jul 16, 2001
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Consider that downer and otherwise sick cattle have been mixed in with the meat supply as a standard operating practice in the beef industry..it's no supprise that something like mad cow or other problems surface. Who know's what health consequences you beef eaters have/will experience in the name of maximizing profit and feeding a population in the hundreds of millions..compromises in safety and sanitary conditions have and will be made to get the beef product to market. And it's no secret..we all know the lowest quality meat ends up in the fast food industry to maximize profit....bon apetit...
 
Feb 3, 2001
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Is anyone here a cattle expert or a cattle farmer/rancher guy? I'm just curious. Addressing the *specific* question in the title, I'm not sure that any of our opinions on the issue matter *at all*, since few, if any of us have enough empirical data to form a qualified opinion.

Jason
 

tcsenter

Lifer
Sep 7, 2001
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Well there you go again. It's not a VIRUS, it's a rouge protein that is not killed by cooking.
There are several of these 'Rouge Protien' diseases caused by what is referred to as a 'PRION'.
This is not conclusive. It is the most credible theory so far.

It is not believed the prion protein 'infiltrates' the cell or 'attacks' the cell's DNA, but rather interacts with another PrP found in the membrane of nerve cells and causes the protein to become like it, exploiting a mechanism similar to Enzyme-Substrate or Enzyme-Coenzyme 'interactions'. Being a natural protein, the prion has no genetic information of its own and never synthesizes any.
 

ReiAyanami

Diamond Member
Sep 24, 2002
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because you can trust corporations to take care of you ;)

This brought to you by Nabisco/RJ Renolds. New Altria Oreos: Double Fat Atkins w/ Beef Flavor
 

tcsenter

Lifer
Sep 7, 2001
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Originally posted by: cliftonite
Why do they feed cattle meat?
I suppose for the same reason biologists insisted for decades that chimps were strictly vegetarian...until a famed biologist witnessed a group of chimps work in predator pack-like fashion to capture a monkey, rip it to shreds, and eat it, even though there was no shortage of food.
 

Jmman

Diamond Member
Dec 17, 1999
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Protein folks. They want to fatten up that cow.....:) And no, I am not worried about mad cow disease. As a matter of fact, I am going to make myself a french dip sandwich with some rare Angus roast beef right now.....:)
 

magomago

Lifer
Sep 28, 2002
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I think the media hypes up anything to instill fear like Y2k Bug and the African Bees. That, and I'm not worried anyways because I haven't eaten beef for a few years now; once we get mad chicken disease though then I'll make an uncessary fuss ;)
 

CaptnKirk

Lifer
Jul 25, 2002
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Interesting discussion on NPR the other afternoon on this subject,
and speculative analysis on methods of transmission of Prions.
They have been monitoring the consumption of 'Beef By-Products'
rendered into Bonemeal and then used in gardening applications as
the calcium and phospherous elements were a plant supplement,
and the additional use in feed to chicken to enhance their growth.

They mentioned that again the end item checken when processed
provided a 'Chicken By-Product' that was an additive to cattle feed.
So we recreate the canibal cycle again, with a species once removed.

"This is not conclusive. It is the most credible theory so far."

Isn't that just splitting hairs over the reluctant accepance of a fact ?
Here you go, I'll use your 'quote' to take you to an informational link.
My favorite part - which is in Paragraph 5, Line 1 is this one:
"It is estimated that 1 in 10,000 people are infected with CJD at the time of death.
These figures are likely to be underestimates since prion diseases may be
misdiagnosed as other neurological disorders."

1 in 10,000 is an underestimate ? In a population of the scope of the US
we're talking about a body count of 30,000 people at any given time.
Aren't some of the effects simular in consequence to Alzheimers ?

Prions & Metal
Rather interesting side-note here, as recent study is once again showing a link
between Alzheimers to metals - there seems to be a simular Prion mechanism.
We just really know much about what 'Rouge Protiens' are, or do.

Welcome to the food chain.
 

BaliBabyDoc

Lifer
Jan 20, 2001
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CJD - sporadic, spontaneous cases

variant CJD - sporadic cases evolving from eating BSE infected cattle

kuru - South Pacific variant due to cannibals eating human brains

The prion theory is certainly new science but best evidence is almost entirely supportive . . . Prusiner (despite being a major rectum) deserved his Nobel.

As far as issues with food supply go . . . eat more chicken.
 

joepa99

Member
Nov 27, 2002
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You're more likely to die from salmonella, botulism, and e. coli than BSE (mad cow), so I'm not really worried about it. If I worried about everything in this world that has the possibility of killing me, I wouldn't have time for anything else.
 

CADsortaGUY

Lifer
Oct 19, 2001
25,162
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www.ShawCAD.com
Originally posted by: joepa99
You're more likely to die from salmonella, botulism, and e. coli than BSE (mad cow), so I'm not really worried about it. If I worried about everything in this world that has the possibility of killing me, I wouldn't have time for anything else.

EXACTLY.

Some people need to get a different hobby than worrying about what might have a ~0.000001% chance of killing them.

CkG
 

Gand1

Golden Member
Nov 17, 1999
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Hell, the report of the 20 odd countries that banned our beef is only going to lower beef prices for us! :)

Take that PETA!!

I also belong to a faction a PETA (People Eating Tasty Animals) that is! :)

 

alchemize

Lifer
Mar 24, 2000
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1) Don't eat mincemeat or any other brain/nervous system stuff (ick who eats that stuff anyhow :))
2) Don't eat ground beef, since it can get in there (not very likely, but it can). Eat ground turkey breast instead!

If you are really concerned, but still want to eat beef (even brains), then eat organic beef.