My son's organs failed after I gave him trendy milk loved by RFK Jr

Mary McGonigle-Martin always stayed up on the latest wellness trends, so when she heard about the purported benefits of raw milk, she started stocking her family fridge with it.

Weeks went by without a hitch, but then her seven-year-old son Chris fell violently sick with diarrhea and vomiting, followed by terrifying seizures.

Doctors discovered he had suffered life-threatening brain inflammation and a collapsed lung, meanwhile his kidney, heart and pancreas had all begun to shut down. 

Testing revealed the boy was infected with E.coli bacteria. It was presumed to be from raw milk, which is not put through the standard pasteurization process to remove germs.

Chris was diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome, which causes small blood clots to form throughout the body, wreaking havoc on organs, and sending him close to death. 

McGonigle-Martin told the CDC at the time of the terrifying ordeal in 2006: 'Truly, I thought he was going to die at the moment.' 

After spending a week in a coma and three years in-and-out of hospital, Chris recovered. But almost 20 years on, raw milk is more popular than ever due to a booming demand for organic produce.

At least 4.4 percent of Americans (nearly 11 million people) try raw milk each year and one of its most famous advocates, Robert F Kennedy Jr., has been nominated by President-elect Donald Trump to be secretary of Health and Human Services. 

Pasteurization was a significant breakthrough in public health when the process was discovered by French microbiologist Louis Pasteur.

It dramatically reduced the risk of foodborne illness by effectively killing harmful bacteria in milk and other food products, 

But in recent decades, proponents have claimed that pasteurization removes nutrients that help with allergies, asthma, and digestion issues.

However, according to the FDA, this process - which involves heating the milk to kill bacteria - has no significant effect on the nutritional value, nor does it get rid of 'probiotic microorganisms' that support gut health. 

Many of the same health claims were made back when McGonigle-Martin became convinced to try raw milk.

'I was lulled into a false sense of safety,' she said.

At the time, the only warnings she could find were that it may cause mild stomach ache symptoms as the body adjusted to the switch.

But she added: 'The risk from drinking raw milk isn't a tummy ache for a few days or diarrhea and vomiting that goes away. The risk is that the pathogen could kill you.' 

In Chris' case, when he arrived at hospital and his condition deteriorated, doctors put him on dialysis, so a machine could filter his blood for him, making up for his damaged kidneys. 

Chris was on dialysis for 18 days and in a medically induced coma on a ventilator for nine days. 

Though these measures saved his life, his mom said it took three years for her son's health to fully recover.

Now, she's become an outspoken advocate for foodborne illnesses, serving on the board of the nonprofit Stop Foodborne Illness. 

She's speaking out once more as raw milk begins to makes headlines again. 

This week, bird flu was detected in raw milk from a raw food creamery in California, sparking concerns. 

And in a post on X in October, RFK JR reaffirmed his support for raw milk - which he has suggested may be a way to Make America Healthy Again - his campaign against vaccines and processed foods and a push for alternative medicine.  

A range of harmful bacteria can be introduced into dairy, either from the milk itself or improper sanitation on the farm. These include bacteria like Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, Listeria, Brucella, Salmonella and E.coli, which caused Chris' illness. 

Once in the digestive system, certain strains of E.coli can infiltrate the bloodstream in the intestines, damaging tiny blood vessels and leading to a massive amount of tiny blood clots that back up organs, according to the National Kidney Foundation. 

This is called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). 

Once old blood cells and clots clog kidneys, the kidneys stop being able to filter waste from the body, which means toxic build up floods the blood stream. This can cause damage to other organs. 

To treat HUS, doctors give patients IV fluids, blood transfusions and nutrients to try and strengthen the body so it can fight back against the infection. 

Most recently, California-based Raw Farm LLC was found to have dairy products containing bird flu last week. 

The farm is one of the largest retailers of dairy in the state, and the company issued a voluntary recall of all their products suspected of containing the virus. 

The outbreak was caused by the H5N1 virus.

Officials have been on the alert for the bird flu strain after the virus suddenly spilled over to cows in 2022, which they said raised the risk it could spread to people.

More than 100million poultry have been infected to date, as well as 10,000 wild birds and 500 dairy herds across 15 states.

Fifty-three people in the US have been infected, mostly farm workers who have close contact with cows or poultry.

Jennifer Nuzzo, the director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University said: 'This isn't surprising, given how quickly H5N1 seems to be spreading among farms in California, and given the fact that these outbreaks on farms are being discovered in large part due to bulk testing on raw milk from farms.'

Many of these dairy-borne illnesses were eradicated when pasteurization became common after it was introduced in 1864, according to the American Dairy Association. 

In states like Louisiana, Michigan and New Jersey, raw milk sales are prohibited. In others, like California, Pennsylvania and South Carolina, the product is allowed in general retail settings.