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☆ The Disease Detectives Trying to Keep the World Safe From Bird Flu
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Stephanie Nolen | Thomas Cristofoletti | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The condition of a 9-year-old boy she had been caring for had deteriorated sharply, and he had been intubated, one doctor reported. Dr. Luch told her colleagues her theory. They warned her that if she set off the bird flu warning system, many senior government officials might get involved. Anxious but increasingly certain, Dr. Luch phoned the local public health department, located just across the street. At 8 p.m., Cambodia’s National Public Health Laboratory confirmed Dr. Luch’s suspicion: He had died of highly pathogenic avian influenza.

Persons: Sreyleak Luch, ”, Luch, Virun, Virun’s Organizations: Public Health Laboratory Locations: Kratie, Cambodia, Phnom Penh

☆ Lessons of Past Pandemics Take on New Urgency as Bird Flu Looms - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( John M. Barry | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In 1918, an influenza virus jumped from birds to humans and killed an estimated 50 million to 100 million people in a world with less than a quarter of today’s population. For years it has been devastating bird populations worldwide and more recently has begun infecting mammals, including cattle, a transmission never seen before. In another first, the virus almost certainly jumped recently from a cow to at least one human — fortunately, a mild case. As they do, they must be cautious about the lessons they might think Covid-19 left behind. Two assumptions based on our Covid experience would be especially dangerous and could cause tremendous damage, even if policymakers realized their mistake and adjusted quickly.

☆ Opinion | ‘There Are Layers of Mistrust and Fear’
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Jyoti Thottam | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The editorial board and our colleagues in Times Opinion met on Monday with Dr. Mandy Cohen, who became the director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last year. Dr. Cohen was the top public health official in North Carolina during the Covid pandemic, winning praise for working with Gov. to be prepared for the next big public health challenge “in a disease-agnostic way,” rather than focusing on a specific threat, like avian flu, dengue or an as yet unknown pathogen. ?” The first is to be ready to respond no matter the health threat — that might be something like avian flu or it might be something like drowning. We are really planning as one team in a disease-agnostic way.

Persons: Mandy Cohen, Cohen, Roy Cooper Organizations: Centers for Disease Control, Gov Locations: North Carolina, C.D.C

☆ Tiny backpacks reveal newfound species of the world’s largest hummingbird
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Now, new research has revealed that there are two distinct species of giant hummingbird in South America — the northern giant hummingbird that lives year-round in the Andes, and the migratory southern giant hummingbird — and they have been evolving separately for millions of years. A southern giant hummingbird is seen flying from its breeding grounds in central Chile. “We wanted to finally solve this mystery.”Designing backpacks for hummingbirdsGiant hummingbirds differ from hundreds of other hummingbird species in many other ways. A southern giant hummingbird is fitted with a tiny backpack-like geolocator tracking device in central Chile. “The two forms of giant hummingbird look almost identical — for centuries, ornithologists and birders never noticed that they were different.

Persons: Charles Darwin, Darwin, Chris Witt, ”, Jessie Williamson, “, ” Williamson, Emil Bautista, Williamson, Christopher Witt, birders, ” Witt, chaskis, “ I’m Organizations: CNN, HMS, National Academy of Sciences, National Science Foundation, Cornell, of Ornithology, Swifts, Centro, Biology, Museum of Southwestern, University of New Locations: New York City, Buenos Aires, South America, Chile, Ithaca , New York, Peru, Biodiversidad, Lima, Peruvian, Chilean, University of New Mexico, Inca

☆ H5N1 Already Killed Millions of Birds. Humans Share the Blame. - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-10 | by ( Alex Tey | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

We don’t yet know if H5N1 bird flu will spill over from animals to infect a large number of humans. It’s my belief that humans have an obligation to the nonhuman life we share this planet with to mitigate the harm we’ve enabled this virus to cause. But even if you don’t share that conviction, it is still in our best interest to keep this virus from spreading. Wild birds are routinely exposed to mild viruses, but are seldom killed by them. Humans, however, have introduced factors that favor disease: A warming climate can weaken avian immune systems, and infections spread more easily when birds come into more frequent contact while sharing what little habitat remains.

Organizations: World Health

American dairy cows have been contracting avian flu, and inactive traces of the virus have been found in milk supplies across the country. The spread to humans has been very limited, but the Times Opinion columnist Zeynep Tufekci argues that hoping for good luck is not a strategy for responding to potential pandemics and that government agencies need to do a better job of coordinating, testing and reporting their findings quickly. (A full transcript of this audio essay will be available within 24 hours of publication in the audio player above.)

Persons: Zeynep Tufekci

☆ Catch up on the day’s news: Trump fined for violating gag order, marijuana getting reclassified, college protests intensify
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Daniel Wine | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

It’s expected to become a Schedule III controlled substance, a classification shared by prescription drugs such as ketamine and Tylenol with codeine. Here’s what else you might have missed during your busy day:5 thingsKeith Davidson, who represented Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, is questioned. Jane Rosenberg1️⃣ Trump on trial: Donald Trump removed the online posts that a judge ruled violated his gag order in the New York criminal hush money case. The former president also was fined $9,000, and a former attorney who represented Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal testified. 5 Things PM is produced by CNN’s Tricia Escobedo, Meghan Pryce and Kimberly Richardson.

Persons: ane R, Ed, bil, Lis, r., Gupta, Loo, Cheng S Organizations: acc, ld, CNN

☆ Bird flu could jump to humans any day. A former surgeon general says it feels like 2020 again.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

In recent months the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus has been spreading through US cattle herds for the first time ever. The cow-to-cow transmission is the latest escalation in a global outbreak that began when the virus reemerged in Europe in 2020. Bill Powers with his flock of white turkeys, kept under shelter to prevent exposure to bird flu, in Townsend, Delaware. Nathan Howard/Getty ImagesDr. Jerome Adams, a former surgeon general and the director of health equity at Purdue University, is getting deja vu. AdvertisementOnly testing the sickSo far, the USDA has only been testing cattle herds when an animal appears sick.

Persons: —, Jeremy Farrar, Nathan Frandino, Farrar, Bill Powers, Nathan Howard, Jerome Adams, they've, Adams, Donald Trump, hasn't, Terry Chea, they're, Zeynep Tufekci, Jean Carroll, Alexi J . Rosenfeld, President Trump, Trump, Biden Organizations: Service, Business, World Health Organization, Washington Post, Food and Drug Administration, New York Times, FDA, Johann, Reuters, US Centers for Disease Control, Purdue University, CDC, US Department of Agriculture, White, USDA Locations: Europe, South America, Fresno , California, Texas, Townsend , Delaware, COVID, Sonoma County , California

☆ Bird flu particles were found in pasteurized milk. A former surgeon general says he isn't changing what he eats.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

So far, though, many public health experts don't think this rings alarm bells about the safety of the food supply. Nathan Frandino/ReutersThe FDA oversees the nation's milk supply, and the US Department of Agriculture oversees dairy cows. Both say they believe the commercial milk supply is safe, due to the pasteurization process and the practice of disposing of milk from sick cows. Some states allow the sale of unpasteurized, aka "raw," milk or cheese, which the CDC recommends avoiding. "To date, we have seen nothing that would change our assessment that the commercial milk supply is safe.

Persons: —, Dr, Jerome Adams, Trump, Pasteurization, Nathan Frandino, Carlos Barria, Adams, Samuel Alcaine, Cook, who's, I'm Organizations: Service, Drug Administration, Business, Purdue University, Johann, FDA, US Department of Agriculture, Washington Post, The New York Times, Mountain Creamery, Cornell University, CDC, Workers Locations: Fresno , California, Middletown , Maryland

☆ Bird flu resurgence drives up egg prices, spurring some to stock up
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | In Ying-Shan-Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesBird flu fears are driving up egg prices again. After having subsided for most of 2023, a recent resurgence of avian influenza in poultry facilities across the U.S., Japan and other nations have caused prices of eggs to jump again. The virus, commonly referred to as bird flu, is extremely contagious and lethal among birds, has been detected in dairy herds in recent days. In the U.S., more than 14 million egg-laying chickens died in November and December as a result of avian flu. We have had record high beef, pork and chicken retail prices so eggs can be a substitute, meaning that egg prices would increase.

Persons: David Anderson, M University Julian Stratenschulte Organizations: Getty, of Agricultural Economics, Texas, M University, U.S . Department of Agriculture Locations: U.S, Japan

☆ We Are Blowing the Fight to Contain Bird Flu - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Zeynep Tufekci | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza among U.S. dairy cows, first reported on March 25, has now spread to at least 33 herds in eight states. Federal authorities say the milk supply is safe, but this latest development raises troubling questions about how widespread the outbreak really is. Rick Bright, an expert on the H5N1 virus who served on President Biden’s coronavirus advisory board, told me this is the crucial moment. That’s when I told him what I’d heard from Sid Miller, the Texas commissioner for agriculture. The commissioner speculated that back then, as much as 40 percent of the herds in the Texas panhandle may have been infected.

Persons: Rick Bright, Biden’s, ”, it’s, I’d, Sid Miller, Bright, I’m, what’s Locations: Texas

☆ Lasers, Inflatable Dancers and the Fight to Fend Off Avian Flu
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Linda Qiu | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Loren Brey, a poultry grower in Minnesota, walked onto the farm where his egg-laying turkeys nest in November to discover a handful of hens, dead from the highly pathogenic avian flu. Within a week, he lost nearly half of his entire flock. So when Mr. Brey’s turkeys began producing eggs again in the spring, he gave a seemingly unconventional prevention method a go: lasers installed atop his barns, firing beams of green light to fend off wild ducks, owls and other possible carriers of the deadly virus. As migratory birds fly north for the spring, poultry farmers and backyard keepers across the country are bracing for yet another outbreak of avian flu. The practices underline the scramble by smaller farms and even some larger-scale operations to ward off the virus, as well as the fatigue, and begrudging acceptance, of the illness after years of sanitation protocols, lockdowns and debates over vaccination.

Persons: Loren Brey Locations: Minnesota

☆ Opinion: The next pandemic threat demands action now
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-17 | by ( Opinion Jaime M. Yassif | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Well, so far US officials are saying they believe there is minimal risk to the public from the latest iteration of bird flu. According to the Global Health Security Index, there are significant gaps in countries’ pandemic preparedness capabilities. Given the impact of Covid, it is deeply disappointing that national governments are not investing the necessary resources to build life-saving pandemic preparedness capacity. Making matters worse, Congress has made major cuts to pandemic preparedness funding, as part of the ongoing appropriations process. Playing the long game also means supporting the World Bank Pandemic Fund, which is designed to invest in long-term pandemic preparedness capacity of low- and middle-income countries.

Persons: Jaime M, Yassif, ”, —, we’ve, US Department of Agriculture —, It’s, Biden, Covid Organizations: Global Biological Policy, Nuclear Threat Initiative, CNN, Yassif Nuclear, US Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, US Department of Health, Human Services, CDC, US Department of Agriculture, Global Health, Brown, Pandemic Center, Gates Foundation, NTI, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, Global Health Security, Bank, Fund, pandemics Locations: Texas , Kansas, Texas, Colorado, Covid, United States

☆ Avian flu: What to know about the bird flu outbreak in the US, according to a doctor
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-11 | by ( Katia Hetter | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Dr. Leana Wen: Bird flu, also called avian flu or avian influenza, refers to infections caused by the avian influenza Type A viruses. Avian influenza A viruses are divided into two categories: low pathogenicity avian influenza (LPAI) A viruses and high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A viruses. The H5N1 avian flu virus has been causing outbreaks among poultry in the US, with 48 states and over 85 million poultry now affected. The seasonal flu vaccine does not protect people against infection from the avian flu. CNN: Can my pet bird get bird flu?

Persons: Leana Wen, Wen Organizations: CNN, US Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, George Washington University, CDC Locations: Texas, United States, Colorado

☆ Cramer says hot CPI data may not reflect the reality of inflation, citing recent trends in key categories
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Julie Coleman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

CNBC's Jim Cramer questioned whether the hotter-than-expected consumer price index data accurately represents the state of inflation, saying Wall Street's wave of Wednesday selling could have been a mistake. "These headline CPI numbers do not reflect reality as I see it." The Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI is a key inflation metric — a broad measure of the cost of goods and services across the economy. Cramer first pointed to the 0.9% month-over-month increase in the price of meat, poultry, fish and eggs, with the latter alone climbing 4.6%. "I'm not talking about the absolute numbers, I'm talking about the trendlines, because the trendlines suggest that selling in response to this report may have been and could be a mistake."

Persons: CNBC's Jim Cramer, Dow Jones, Cramer Organizations: Labor Statistics CPI, Cal, Maine Foods, U.S Locations: Texas

☆ What putting up a bird feeder can lead to
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Aj Willingham | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Blame the bird feeders — all three of them (plus a bird bath and a hummingbird feeder, of course). It’s hard to describe what happens, but it comes upon you like a cascade of feathered dopamine: You get a bird feeder. Then, the birds start to come to your bird feeder! While you can certainly outfit your bird community with top-of-the-line accoutrement, it’s not that expensive — and just as satisfying — to just have a single feeder. Even the most humble sparrow or house wren has its own little personality, its own little dramas and peculiarities.

Persons: can’t, I’ve, Cardinal, I’m, It’s, birdsong, you’re, it’s Organizations: CNN, Bravo

☆ What you need to know about eating meat, dairy, and eggs during the bird flu outbreak, according to a food safety expert
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-06 | by ( Julia Pugachevsky | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Embrace firm egg yolksTo be extra safe, fully cook your meat and eggs, said Alcaine. Just as you would to prevent salmonella or E.coli infections, you should cook meat and eggs at hot-enough temperatures to prevent illness. AdvertisementAdditionally, Alcaine said you'll want to be wary of cross-contamination, such as keeping the utensils used to handle raw meat and eggs away from cooked food. However, some states allow the sale of raw milk and unpasteurized cheese, which have been growing in popularity over recent years. AdvertisementIn general, drinking raw milk can lead to side effects like vomiting and diarrhea, and just to be safe, the CDC also suggests abstaining in light of this recent outbreak.

Persons: —, Samuel Alcaine, Alcaine, Cook, you'll, Sumiko Mekaru Organizations: Service, USDA, Business, Maine Foods, Cornell University, CDC, New York Times, PHC, ABC News Locations: Texas, Cal

☆ Are Milk and Eggs Safe as Bird Flu Spreads?
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Dani Blum | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A strain of avian influenza that has killed millions of birds in recent years has now been detected in dairy cows in several states, prompting concerns about the safety of the U.S. dairy supply. Scientists know that bird flu can spread to humans when they come into contact with infected animals, including dead ones, without wearing protective gear, which seems to have been the case with a person recently infected in Texas. So far, there isn’t any evidence to suggest that humans can contract bird flu by consuming food that has been pasteurized or cooked, said Benjamin Chapman, a professor and food safety specialist at North Carolina State University. “That’s not to say it couldn’t happen,” he said. “It’s just that we have a pretty robust history of it not happening.

Persons: “, Benjamin Chapman, “ That’s, ”, “ It’s Organizations: Federal, North Carolina State University Locations: Texas

☆ Is Bird Flu Coming to People Next? Are We Ready?
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Apoorva Mandavilli | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Bird flu outbreaks among dairy cows in multiple states, and at least one infection in farmworker in Texas, have incited fears that the virus may be the next infectious threat to people. The influenza virus, called H5N1, is highly pathogenic, meaning it has the ability to cause severe disease and death. The only symptom in the patient in Texas was conjunctivitis, or pink eye, which was also reported in people infected during other bird flu outbreaks. and other agencies in the United States and elsewhere have tracked H5N1 for years to monitor its evolution. Federal agencies have stockpiled vaccines and drugs to be used in a possible bird flu outbreak.

Persons: “, ”, Demetre Daskalakis Organizations: National Center, Centers for Disease Control Locations: farmworker, Texas, United States

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Intel, Tesla, Dave & Buster's, Paramount and more
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Intel — Shares fell more than 4% after the company disclosed a growing operating loss in its semiconductor manufacturing business. Tesla — The electric vehicle maker slipped roughly 1% after Guggenheim and Deutsche Bank slashed their price targets on the stock. The target cuts follow Tesla reporting much weaker-than-expected first-quarter delivery numbers . Dave & Buster's — Shares jumped 5% after the restaurant and entertainment chain increased its share repurchase authorization by $100 million, bringing the total available share repurchase authorization to $200 million. Ally Financial — Shares slipped 2% following a downgrade to underweight from neutral at Morgan Stanley.

Persons: Tesla, Buster's, Wells, Morgan Stanley, Richard Shane, Hakyung Kim, Brian Evans, Lisa Han, Jesse Pound Organizations: Intel —, Intel, Guggenheim, Deutsche Bank, Paramount, The New York Times, Cal, Maine Foods

☆ Egg prices are rising again. An outbreak of bird flu could make things worse
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington CNN —Egg prices have now been steadily rising for months, and your omelette could become even more expensive as poultry farms around the country deal with an outbreak of bird flu. While egg prices are down from a record $4.82 in January 2023 — after a widespread bird flu outbreak ravaged farms in the prior year — they’re now at the highest level since April 2023. Cal-Maine did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment on what the bird flu outbreak means for its egg prices. Bird flu has been detected at other farms across the country. Michigan’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development announced Tuesday that it found evidence of bird flu at a commercial poultry facility in Ionia County.

Persons: — they’re, Sid Miller, they’ve, “ Organizations: Washington CNN, Maine Foods, Cal, Michigan’s Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Companies, “ Cal Locations: Cal, Texas, Maine, Sunny, Ionia County, Texas , Kansas, Minnesota

☆ Is Giving Farmers Millions to Kill Millions of Chickens the Way to Curb Bird Flu?
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Andrew Jacobs | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The highly lethal form of avian influenza circulating the globe since 2021 has killed tens of millions of birds, forced poultry farmers in the United States to slaughter entire flocks and prompted a brief but alarming spike in the price of eggs. The outbreak, it turns out, is proving to be especially costly for American taxpayers. Officials say the compensation program is aimed at encouraging farms to report outbreaks quickly. That’s because the government pays for birds killed through culling, not those that die from the disease. Early reporting, the agency says, helps to limit the virus’s spread to nearby farms.

Organizations: Department, Agriculture Locations: United States, Texas

☆ Opinion | When I Became a Birder, Almost Everything Else Fell Into Place
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-30 | by ( Ed Yong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Last September, I drove to a protected wetland near my home in Oakland, Calif., walked to the end of a pier and started looking at birds. On that pier, for the first time, I had gone somewhere solely to watch birds. In some birding circles, people say that anyone who looks at birds is a birder — a kind, inclusive sentiment that also overlooks the forces that create and shape subcultures. I keep abreast of eBird’s rare bird alerts and have spent many days — some glorious, others frustrating — looking for said rare birds. I went out with experienced birders to learn how they move through a landscape and what cues they attend to.

Persons: I’ve, birders Organizations: Journalism Locations: Oakland, Calif, Sibley, United States, pish, owling

☆ Chick-fil-A will stop using its ‘no antibiotics ever’ label on chicken
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( David Goldman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Citing diminishing chicken supply, Chick-fil-A will back off its pledge never to serve chicken that was fed antibiotics, and instead it will embrace a looser industry standard: “no antibiotics important to human medicine.” Chick-fil-A first announced that it would abandon antibiotics in 2014. The change comes after Tyson, America’s biggest poultry company, last summer ended its eight-year-pledge to keep antibiotics out of its chicken. That particular disease is not treatable with antibiotics, but other diseases that can kill chickens do respond to antibiotics. In addition to chickens’ health, antibiotics are particularly important to promote poultry growth — particularly for items like large broiler chickens. It noted in that 2007 publication that “an appropriate balance should be struck between animal health needs and human health considerations – human health being, however, paramount compared to animal health.”

Persons: New York CNN —, ”, Tyson, Perdue Organizations: New, New York CNN, USDA, World Health Organization, WHO Locations: New York

☆ Bird Flu Spreads to Dairy Cows
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Emily Anthes | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A highly fatal form of avian influenza, or bird flu, has been confirmed in U.S. cattle in Texas and Kansas, the Department of Agriculture announced on Monday. It is the first time that cows infected with the virus have been identified. The cows appear to have been infected by wild birds, and dead birds were reported on some farms, the agency said. The results were announced after multiple federal and state agencies began investigating reports of sick cows in Texas, Kansas and New Mexico. In several cases, the virus was detected in unpasteurized samples of milk collected from sick cows.

Organizations: Department of Agriculture Locations: U.S, Texas and Kansas, Texas , Kansas, New Mexico

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