Health
CDC, WebMD give update on current bird flu outbreak: ‘Be alert, not alarmed’
As bird flu continues to spread among cattle in the U.S., WebMD and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) joined forces on Thursday to present a live-streamed briefing on the status of the outbreak.
The presentation, called “WebMD and CDC Presents, 2024 Bird Flu: What You Need to Know,” was moderated by Neha Pathak, M.D., chief physician editor for WebMD in Atlanta, Georgia.
The first reports of sick dairy cows came to the USDA in early March, according to Eric Deeble, deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Congressional Relations at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Washington, D.C.
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Testing revealed that the cows had contracted H5N1, more commonly known as avian influenza, or bird flu.
“Any new disease of cattle is a great concern to us,” Deeble said during the briefing.
As bird flu continues to spread among cattle in the U.S., WebMD and the CDC issued an update on Thursday. (Getty Images)
“The H5N1 in cattle is a relatively mild disease. They generally recover after supportive care” within two to three weeks, he said.
“Their milk volume returns to normal, and they appear healthy and continue to feed as they did before they became sick.”
“Any new disease of cattle is a great concern to us.”
So far, the USDA has detected H5N1 in 49 dairy herds in nine states, Deeble stated.
“To put that into perspective, that’s around 1% of dairy farms in the affected states and about 1/10th of 1% nationally,” he said.
On April 29, a federal order from the USDA took effect, limiting the movement of lactating dairy cattle in an effort to monitor and compile H5N1 test results.
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“Under this order, dairy farmers are required to test their cows before moving them across state lines so that we know those cows are H5N1-free and don’t pose a risk to any new herd,” Deeble said.
The order also requires that any test results that detect the presence of H5N1 are reported to USDA labs.
No current food risk, experts say
Deeble assured those tuning in on Thursday that there is no risk with consuming milk and meat.
“I can say without reservation that our commercial milk and meat supplies are safe,” he said. “At no time were animals that are sick from H5N1 or any other animal disease permitted to enter into our food supply.”
He added, “USDA has never detected H5N1 in meat sold at retail.”
The first reports of sick dairy cows came to the USDA in early March, health officials said. (iStock)
Tests have confirmed that cooking meat to an internal temperature of 155 or above is sufficient to eliminate all traces of the virus, Deeble noted.
For milk, the pasteurization process ensures it is safe to drink, he said.
“Our milk is cleared to a high temperature for a brief period of time, inactivating H5N1, as well as other bacteria and viruses that could make someone sick,” he said.
Risk of transmission to humans
The overall risk to the public from bird flu is low, according to Dr. Nirav D. Shah, M.D., principal deputy director of the CDC in Atlanta.
“That is in part because it’s rare for people to get infected with bird flu viruses — but it has happened,” he said during the briefing.
“If and when it does happen, it’s most often through direct unprotected contact with infected animals — for example, not wearing gloves, face masks or eye protection.”
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In April, the CDC reported one human case of bird flu in a dairy worker in Texas, Shah said.
“This person’s only symptom was eye redness, or conjunctivitis,” he said. “After testing positive, this person was provided [with] an antiviral medicine and thankfully made a full recovery. There have been no new or additional human cases since this individual in Texas.”
Other symptoms to watch for include cough, fever, muscle aches and fatigue, according to Shah.
Experts said there is no risk associated with drinking milk purchased commercially. (iStock)
Although the overall risk to humans is low, the CDC is taking “aggressive steps” to make sure Americans stay well and informed, Shah said.
“Right now, one of our top areas of focus is around farm worker safety and protection — specifically making sure that workers have access to personal protective equipment … like gloves, goggles or face masks, which can help reduce their risk of exposure if they happen to be working around affected cows.”
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The CDC is also working with local health departments to ensure that sick farmers are tested for bird flu and to monitor their status.
“In addition to that, scientists in our laboratories here at CDC are looking closely at the bird flu viruses to see if there are any changes in their DNA that might tell us if these viruses are able to spread more easily to people, between people, and, importantly, whether they might be causing more serious illness,” Shah added.
Although the overall risk to humans is low, the CDC is taking “aggressive steps” to make sure Americans stay well and informed, a doctor said. (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo)
Although the risk to the public “remains low” currently, the doctor offered guidance for certain groups that may be at a higher risk.
“If you happen to work around animals, whether it’s chickens, whether it’s cattle, or whether it’s pigs, and you develop signs and symptoms that might otherwise be the flu, it’s important to make sure you call a health care provider and have a conversation with them.”
Not another COVID, experts say
The current situation with bird flu is different from the early days of COVID-19, Shah said during the briefing.
“We are in a much different place because of over two decades of investment in planning and preparing for things like influenza,” he said.
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“As a result of that extensive planning and preparedness, there are medicines in place.”
If those medications are given early, they can reduce the severity and duration of illness, as was the case with the farmer in Texas, Shah noted.
“This is just one of many ways in which … influenza and bird flu differs from what many of us remember from four years ago,” he added.
Vaccines and prevention
The traditional influenza vaccine doesn’t provide much protection against avian flu, the experts noted.
“Even though they are … basically the same virus, they differ just enough to where the flu shot — which we hope everyone gets — doesn’t do a great job at protecting you,” said Shah.
“It might do a little bit of work, but it’s not enough to take you to the bank.”
“We’re not at a spot where vaccination is recommended for anyone,” a doctor said in the briefing on Thursday. (Julian Stratenschulte/dpa)
David Boucher, PhD, director of Infectious Diseases Preparedness and Response at ASPR in Washington, D.C., spoke during the Thursday briefing about the potential need for a bird flu vaccine.
“We’re not at a spot where vaccination is recommended for anyone,” he said.
Through the National Influenza Vaccine Program, the ASPR works with health partners to identify influenza viruses that are “just a little bit different from the things that we’ve seen in the past,” Boucher said.
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For a novel virus, the team develops “building blocks” of a vaccine, he noted.
“The good news here is that this system has worked the way we hoped it would, and we have an initial supply of the building blocks we would need if we needed vaccines for the [H5N1] virus,” he said.
To monitor potential spread, the CDC is on the lookout for an increase in emergency department visits or laboratory tests that might signal a “cluster of cases,” a doctor said. (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration)
In that scenario, Boucher said, the ASPR could partner with manufacturers of seasonal influenza vaccines for “large-scale” production.
Boucher also emphasized the importance of personal protective equipment (PPE) — such as gloves, goggles, face shields and N95 masks — for agricultural workers who may be close to infected animals.
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To monitor potential spread, the CDC is on the lookout for an increase in emergency department visits or laboratory tests that might signal a “cluster of cases,” Shah said.
“We’re also more recently looking at wastewater to see if there are changes there,” he said.
People can stay up to date on the latest bird flu developments from the CDC, the USDA, the FDA and other trusted sources of information, Shah added.
“We should be alert, not alarmed.”
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Adults who consider themselves “night owls” tend to score lower in cardiovascular health assessments and face a higher risk of heart attack or stroke.
That’s according to a new study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, which examined how a person’s chronotype — their natural tendency to be active in the morning or evening — is linked to overall heart health.
The researchers looked at 14 years of UK Biobank data for around 300,000 adults averaging 57 years old, according to a press release for the study.
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Around 8% of the participants described themselves as “definitely evening people,” which means they stayed up very late. Another 24% said they were “definitely morning people,” as they tended to wake up earlier and go to bed earlier.
The largest “intermediate” group, which included 67% of participants, said they were unsure or in neither group.
Adults who consider themselves “night owls” tend to score lower in cardiovascular health assessments and face a higher risk of heart attack or stroke. (iStock)
Each person’s heart health was determined using the American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8 score.
“Life’s Essential 8 is a comprehensive assessment that includes activity levels, diet, blood pressure, cholesterol, use of nicotine, sleep patterns, weight management and blood sugar,” shared Dr. Bradley Serwer, an interventional cardiologist and chief medical officer at VitalSolution, an Ingenovis Health company.
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The researchers also looked at incidence of heart attack or stroke over the follow-up period.
They determined that people who were more active in the evening (“night owls”) had a 79% higher risk of poor cardiovascular health compared to the intermediate group, and a 16% higher risk of heart attack or stroke, the release stated.
The researchers looked at 14 years of UK Biobank data for around 300,000 adults averaging 57 years old. (iStock)
People who identified as being more active in the morning had slightly better heart health scores. The link was more pronounced in women than men.
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“‘Evening people’ often experience circadian misalignment, meaning their internal body clock may not match the natural day-to-night light cycle or their typical daily schedules,” said lead study author Sina Kianersi, Ph.D., a research fellow in the division of sleep and circadian disorders at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, both in Boston, in the release.
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“Evening people may be more likely to have behaviors that can affect cardiovascular health, such as poorer diet quality, smoking, and inadequate or irregular sleep.”
Each person’s heart health was determined using the American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8 score. (American Heart Association)
Serwer, who was not involved in the study, noted that lifestyle habits played a significant role in these findings.
“Cardiovascular disease has multiple contributing causes,” the Maryland-based cardiologist told Fox News Digital. “Sleep is just one variable — and the importance of high-quality, restorative sleep should not be undervalued.”
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The findings could help doctors tailor lifestyle and medical interventions to help prevent cardiovascular events, the researchers noted.
The findings could help doctors tailor lifestyle and medical interventions to help prevent cardiovascular events, the researchers noted. (iStock)
The study did have some limitations, chiefly that it does not prove that staying up late causes heart problems, but only establishes an association.
Also, the study relied on people reporting their own schedules, habits and health, which could be skewed.
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Finally, the people included in the UK Biobank are primarily White and tend to have better health than the general population, the researchers noted, which means the results may not be widely generalized.
Serwer added, “While quality sleep is important, further studies are required to show exactly what sort of impact sleep alone has on cardiovascular health.”
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One woman’s uncomfortable reaction to alcohol led to a grave discovery.
Hollie Thursby, 28, a mother of two from the U.K., told Kennedy News and Media that after giving birth to her second son, Jack, she began experiencing unusual symptoms.
At a checkup for her son, who was a couple of months old, Thursby mentioned that she was experiencing “unbearably itchy skin,” which is known to be a post-partum symptom. The doctor suggested it was due to changing hormones.
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Thursby added that she occasionally drank a couple glasses of wine. Although she kept the drinking to a minimum, she described having “a lot of pain” down the side of her neck.
“Really quite painful and uncomfortable,” she said, according to the report.
A U.K. mom reported experiencing pain in her neck after drinking a glass or two of wine, which turned out to be one of the first signs that she had cancer. (Kennedy News and Media)
The mother also reported feeling extremely exhausted, which she assumed was due to caring for her children throughout the day.
“I also felt like when I got to bed that someone was sitting on my chest,” she shared.
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In July 2025, Thursby discovered a lump on the side of her neck that she described as “really quite big,” but wasn’t painful, Kennedy News and Media reported.
“It was hard, it didn’t move, but it was there,” she said. “When I turned my neck to the side, you could see it.”
Thursby reportedly began chemotherapy for Stage 2 Hodgkins lymphoma. (Kennedy News and Media)
Thursby’s symptoms turned out to be a form of blood cancer — Stage 2 Hodgkins lymphoma, which means it is in two or more lymph nodes, according to Cancer Research U.K.
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Common symptoms include swelling of the lymph nodes, heavy sweating, weight loss, itching, persistent cough or shortness of breath, high temperatures, and pain in the stomach or lymph nodes after drinking alcohol.
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“Pain when you drink alcohol is actually a known side effect of Hodgkin lymphoma,” she said, per the report. “It’s something about the acidity in the wine and not when you drink other alcohol.”
While alcohol-related pain in Hodgkins lymphoma patients has been “an accepted scientific consensus” since the 1950s, cases are rare, Healthline confirmed.
Hollie Thursby, 28, and her two sons are pictured above. The mother reported feeling extremely exhausted, which she assumed was due to caring for her children throughout the day. (Kennedy News and Media)
Thursby reportedly began chemotherapy in November, noting that the hardest part is not being able to care for her kids after losing her own mother to a blood disorder called myelodysplasia.
“I grew up without a mum, and it was horrendous. I can’t do that to the boys,” she told Kennedy News and Media. “We’re all devastated, but we all know now, and we’ve got a treatment plan, which is what we need.”
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“I’m just doing everything I can to get better for them. I keep telling myself this is only temporary, I just need to keep going.”
Anyone experiencing pain or other concerning symptoms after consuming alcohol should consult a doctor for guidance.
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Red light therapy has been shown to reduce brain inflammation, protecting people who experience head trauma from long-term health consequences, a University of Utah study has shown.
Brain damage from repeated impact over the years is known to cause cognitive symptoms, ranging from memory issues to full-blown dementia, particularly affecting soldiers and athletes.
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a progressive, degenerative brain disease linked to repeated head impacts rather than a single injury, according to Mayo Clinic.
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More than 100 former NFL football players have been posthumously diagnosed with CTE, according to the new study, which was published in the Journal of Neurotrauma.
Other research has shown that military personnel in active combat suffer from similar issues, as do first responders and veterans.
The treatment was administered three times a week for 20 minutes using specialized headsets and intranasal devices designed to penetrate the skull. (iStock)
In the new study, the researchers recruited 26 current football players to understand more about the impact of red-light therapy on brain injuries.
The participants received either red light therapy delivered by a light-emitting headset and a device that clips into the nose, or a placebo treatment with an identical device that doesn’t produce light. Players self-administered the therapy three times a week, 20 minutes each time, for 16 weeks.
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“My first reaction was, ‘There’s no way this can be real,’” said first author Hannah Lindsey, Ph.D., in the university press release. “That’s how striking it was.”
Specific wavelengths of light are believed to enter the brain and reduce molecules that trigger inflammation, potentially halting the path toward dementia and other cognitive conditions. (iStock)
Players using the placebo treatment experienced increased brain inflammation over the course of the season. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans taken at the end of the season showed significantly more signs of inflammation than at the beginning of the season, the study found.
For players who used red-light therapy during the season, their brain inflammation didn’t increase at all.
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Previous studies have shown that red light, if powerful enough, can penetrate the skull and reach the brain, where it may reduce inflammation-related molecules.
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“When we first started this project, I was extremely skeptical,” said Elisabeth Wilde, Ph.D., the senior author on the study. “But we’ve seen consistent results across multiple of our studies, so it’s starting to be quite compelling.”
Study limitations
The study was conducted using a small sample size, which led to different levels of inflammation in the treatment and control groups, the researchers acknowledged.
While the placebo group showed increased brain inflammation during the football season, those receiving red light therapy showed no increase in inflammatory markers. (iStock)
Future large randomized clinical trials will be “crucial to back up the results” in larger populations, they noted.
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“We’ve been trying to figure out how to make sports safer, so that our kids, friends and family can participate in sports safely for the long term while they’re involved in activities that give them happiness and joy,” Carrie Esopenko, Ph.D., second author of the study, said in the release.
“And this really feels like part of the hope for protecting the brain that we’ve been searching for.”
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The team plans to recruit 300 people with persistent symptoms from TBI or concussion for a randomized controlled trial in 2026, with a focus on first responders, veterans and active-duty service members.
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