> -----Original Message-----
> From: Paleolithic Eating Support List 
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Robert Kesterson
> Sent: Wednesday, December 13, 2006 6:25 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Yeast, was Cooking Fats
> 
> 
> On Tue, 12 Dec 2006 22:13:55 -0600, Philip <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >
> > Yup, the article confirms what Dr. Eades said:
> >
> > <<... leading some microbiologists to suggest that it arose 
> > inindustrial
> > livestock, which are force-fed grain and pumped with antibiotics.
> >
> > "The strain that caused September's spinach outbreak, which killed 
> > three
> > and sickened about 200, has been found in cattle feces near 
> a California  
> > spinach field and in wild pigs that roamed through it.>>
> >
> > Regardless of what specific food was contaminated by the e. coli, 
> > whether green onions or something else, we know that this 
> virulent strain of e
> > coli has only been found in livestock that are fed grain.
> 
> Not according to the article (unless someone is feeding grain 
> to the wild  
> pigs).

It is a good question--how did the E. coli O157:H7 spread to wild pigs who
are presumably not eating much grain? One possibility is that the pigs have
been raiding grain stores, which actually does commonly occur, according to
reports I've read about the feral/wild pig problem in the U.S. An even
better answer would be that once the virulent strain of E. coli O157:H7
develops, it can infect pretty much any host. This would explain why it is
able to infect humans despite the low pH (2) of the acids in human stomachs.
Unless an animal has an even lower pH than human stomachs we would expect it
to become infected by the bacterium. I don't think Paleo dieting would
prevent infection (though it might lessen the symptoms).

> 
> > Returning to feeding livestock on pasture and hay is the solution.
> 
> Don't you think it might have more to do with the 
> concentrated number of  
> anmals in a small area and the dosing with antibiotics? 

The claim made by a 1998 Cornell study that tested the supposed mechanism by
which grain feeding leads to E. coli O157:H7 infections is that E. coli
O157:H7 adapts to become acid-resistant in the stomachs of grain-fed cattle,
thus making it better able to survive the acidic environment of human
stomachs, and thus be more likely to infect humans. This study did not claim
that concentrating animals into a small area was the key factor. E. coli
O157:H7 is reportedly naturally acid-resistant, but it apparently becomes
more so in grain-fed cattle.

However, there are other study's that contradict the conclusion of the 1998
Cornell study, which are referenced in this article: 

E. coli O157:H7 in hay- or grain-fed cattle 
Dale Hancock and Tom Besser 
College of Veterinary Medicine 
Washington State University 
October 12, 2006 
www.puyallup.wsu.edu/dairy/data/joeharrison/publications/E%20coli%20O157%20i
n%20hay-%20or%20grain-fed%20cattle%20Hancock%20and%20Besser%2011%2006.pdf 

Also, the following article reports that E. coli O157:H7 has been found in a
variety of wild animals. This still leaves the questions of whether the
strain developed in those animals or they picked it up from domestic
livestock and whether the strain in those animals is the highly
acid-resistant variety found in grain-fed cattle. I have not seen any
articles address these questions.

E. coli O157:H7 NOT LIMITED TO GRAIN-FED CATTLE, K-STATE EXPERT SAYS
Source: Dr. David Renter, 785-532-4801, [log in to unmask]
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
http://www.mediarelations.k-state.edu/WEB/News/NewsReleases/ecoli92706.html

<<MANHATTAN -- E. coli O157:H7, which has been linked to the current spinach
outbreak, is not just found in cattle fed on a diet of strictly grains,
according to a veterinarian at Kansas State University.

"Cattle fed on grass, hay and other fibrous forage can have E. coli O157:H7
in their feces as can other animals including deer, sheep, goats, bison,
opossum, raccoons, birds and many others," said Dr. David Renter, assistant
professor of veterinary epidemiology. ...>>

There are studies on both sides of this question and I am not expert enough
right now to determine which side is closer to the truth. Pasture feeding of
livestock is also preferable to grain feeding for other reasons.