London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Battersea 1907

Report on the health of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea for the year 1907

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113
"the human body of the bacillus of bovine tuberculosis. And
"there also can be no doubt that in the majority at least of
"cases the bacillus is introduced through cows' milk. Cows'
"milk containing bovine tubercle bacilli is clearly a cause of
"tuberculosis, and of fatal tuberculosis, in man."
"Of the sixty cases of human tuberculosis investigated by
"us, fourteen of the viruses belonged to Group I., that is to
"say, contained the bovine bacillus. If, instead of taking all
"these sixty cases, we confine ourselves to cases of tuberculosis
"in which the bacilli were apparently introduced into the body
"by way of the alimentary canal, the proportion of Group I.
"becomes very much larger. Of the total sixty cases investi"gated
by us, twenty-eight possessed clinical histories indic"ating
that in these the bacillus was introduced into the body
"by way of the alimentary canal. Of these thirteen belonged
"to Group I. Of the nine cases in which cervical glands were
"studied by us, three, and of the nineteen cases in which the
"lesions of abdominal tuberculosis were studied by us, ten,
"belong to Group I.
"These facts indicate that a very large proportion of
"tuberculosis contracted by ingestion is due to tubercle bacilli
"of bovine source.
"A very considerable amount of disease and loss of life,
"especially among the young, must be attributed to the con"sumption
of cows' milk containing tubercle bacilli. The
"presence of tubercle bacilli in cows' milk can be detected,
"though with some difficulty, if the proper means be adopted,
"and such milk ought never to be used as food. There is far
"less difficulty in recognising clinically that a cow is distinctly
"suffering from tuberculosis, in which case she may be yielding
"tuberculous milk. The milk coming from such a cow ought
"not to form part of human food, and, indeed, ought not to be
"used as food at all.
"Our results clearly point to the necessity of measures
"more stringent than those at present enforced, being taken to
"prevent the sale or the consumption of such milk."