Mad Cow Disease: The Great British Beef Scandal

Last night's BBC documentary is a great expose and inditement of capitalist greed, Thatcher-era deregulation, and government policy. I'd urge you all to watch. The programme can be viewed here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0006p49

"The story of Britain’s biggest ever food scandal. Mad cow disease has killed almost 200 people. It is an epidemic that was created through greed and political miscalculation."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-48947232

"Scientists say more cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) are still to emerge more than three decades after the "mad cow disease" scandal.

Richard Knight, a senior neurologist based in Edinburgh, said there were still people "silently infected".

Since 1996, 177 people have died from vCJD, while over four million cows were destroyed to prevent the spread of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE)."

 

It is fortunate that due to the government policies at the time, as applied to myself, that I was mostly too poor to be able to eat any significant amount of beef, even in burger form, over that period. On the rare occasions where this was not the case the constantly being forced to move every few weeks meant I had limited cookware and ability to physically cook stuff. If it didn't fit in a couple of bags I didn't own it.

So I probably don't have silent vCJD.

Yippee for poverty.

 

There was an inquiry. It probably is still online.

 

https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20060802142310/http://www.bseinquiry.gov.uk/

 

At the end of the film it states that because of the vCJD risk "Nobody who lived in the UK between 1980 and 1996 is allowed to donate blood in any other country." I did not know this.

 

@InitialConditions yes, it was very annoying when I was living abroad. All the British expats were barred from blood donation drives. There was actually a big sign up, politely requesting we don't ask to donate even if we're vegetarians or vegans.

I always wondered if they'd accept donor organs from British people, but never found out.

 

I didn't know either. That's true for France: "Séjours au Royaume-Uni entre 1980 et 1996 d’une durée cumulée supérieure à un an. Cette mesure a pour but d’écarter tout risque de transmission de la « maladie de la vache folle »." (Stays in the United Kingdom between 1980 and 1996 with a cumulative duration greater than one year. This measure is intended to eliminate any risk of transmission of "mad cow disease")

 

https://www.oprus2001.co.uk/purdey.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Purdey
Mark Purdey's web site, which I think was being maintained by his brother. seems to have disappeared from the internet.

 

Are any ME scientists looking at levels of toxic chemicals in pwME?

 

OMF has a study on some metals. I don't know if it will expand but Davis is looking at selenium and uranium using hair samples.

If that plays a role it would be very hard to find it without specifically looking for it. Everyone is exposed to toxic chemicals differently over the course of their lives and finding patterns among a population would be extremely difficult. The only way to eliminate this possibility is looking directly at patients, no one would randomly stumble on this. It's a long shot but as we eliminate the obvious we are left with the odd.

 

Thanks @ rvallee.
Yes, OMF is looking at metals. I've had that done with chelation drugs. Lots of lead and mercury showed up, as well as other metals. I don't knowif hair samples are accurate, or more accurate now. I had that done a couple decades ago, and it didn't match the chelation results. Of course chelation drugs activley pull metals out of the body.

I found chelation very tiring/draining - these drugs pull out good metals/minerals too. And they are drugs - I don't know, but these drugs may cause problem reactions for some. To be used with caution, and medical supervision.

I was also thinking about chemicals like pesticides. Like you say everyone's exposure to various things is different. I've come across articles that say we have a toxic soup inside us. I'm going to have a look for an article I recall, and post here later, when I am more able.

Thanks for your reply.

 

The problem with pesticides is that the acceptable levels are based on individual pesticides. From sowing to crop there are a multitude of chemicals used- the combination and its effects seems to be under researched.
For example potatoes locally can be sprayed with different chemicals up to 32 times over the season....

 

You are so right @Amw66. All these chemicals together may cause a different picture, but they're not considered that way. Very compartmentalized, or blinkered thinking. Willfully so...? I would think so.

 

I think Dr Myhill looks for heavy metals and organophosphates if the history indicates they may be relevant.

https://drmyhill.co.uk/wiki/Chemical_poisons_and_toxins

https://drmyhill.co.uk/wiki/Do_A_Good_Chemical_Clean-Up:_chemicals_make_you_fat_and_fatigued!

 

A good reason to stick to organic.

 

Just because something is organic doesn't mean it's not harmful.

Tigers are organic.

As are crocodiles and Government Ministers.

We used to have organic pesticides - the EU banned them (at least partially coz they were very stupid pesticides and couldn't tell the difference between one type of insect which we like and others which we don't. That's evolution for you. Or so the story goes)

 

I usually see examples like cyanide but those are way better.

 

The subject of donating blood came up on a neighbourly site I joined for my area a few weeks ago and there were a lot of Kiwis who posted that they could not donate blood because they had lived in the UK during those years.

 

He was a neighbour wrongly diagnosed with ME.

Double double, toil and trouble, round about the cauldron go. In the crushed brains and spinal cord throw, thalamus, spleen, and tonsils also, then cool it with tainted Blood, Well done, for we shall gain a greater Profit to share with the farmers, and our meat trade.' A factual and harrowing account of Mark Buckland's, a young man's, progressive decline by variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD), the human form of BSE; namely Mad Cow's disease'. This book documents the shocking failures by a conservative Government when it came to food safety standards, a cannibalistic feed that defied nature and led to a misfolded protein causing an infectious brain disease, and failures by the NHS and Department of Health regarding the NHS Blood Transfusion Service. This is also a tale of a father's grief, family and friends who pull together in a tragic time to support a special, loving and caring man, who has his life spat out by the Witches within Westminster

 

Other things organic that are not so good for you: poisonous snake venom, poisonous plants and insects, quick sand, earthquakes, lightning, forest fires...