Health

‘This Is a Dangerous Virus’

Published

12 months ago

January 27, 2025

When bird flu first struck dairy cattle a year ago, it seemed possible that it might affect a few isolated herds and disappear as quickly as it had appeared. Instead, the virus has infected more than 900 herds and dozens of people, killing one, and the outbreak shows no signs of abating.

A pandemic is not inevitable even now, more than a dozen experts said in interviews. But a series of developments over the past few weeks indicates that the possibility is no longer remote.

Toothless guidelines, inadequate testing and long delays in releasing data — echoes of the missteps during the Covid-19 pandemic — have squandered opportunities for containing the outbreak, the experts said.

In one example emblematic of the disarray, a few dairy herds in Idaho that were infected in the spring displayed mild symptoms for a second time in the late fall, The New York Times has learned. In mid-January, the Department of Agriculture said that no new infections in Idaho herds had been identified since October. But state officials publicly discussed milder cases in November.

That a second bout of infections would produce milder symptoms in cattle is unsurprising, experts said, and could be welcome news to farmers. But reinfections suggest that the virus, called H5N1, could circulate on farms indefinitely, creating opportunities for it to evolve into a more dangerous form — a “high-risk” scenario, said Louise Moncla, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Pennsylvania.

“You could easily end up with endemically circulating H5 in dairy herds without symptoms, obscuring rapid or easy detection,” Dr. Moncla said.

It’s impossible to predict whether the virus will evolve the ability to spread among people, let alone when, she and others said. But the worry is that if bird flu finds the right combination of genetic mutations, the outbreak could quickly escalate.

“I’m still not pack-my-bags-and-head-to-the-hills worried, but there’s been more signals over the past four to six weeks that this virus has the capacity” to set off a pandemic, said Richard Webby, an influenza expert at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Federal officials, too, have subtly altered their tone in discussing the outbreak, now emphasizing how quickly the situation might change.

For the general public, H5N1 is “a low risk, relative to the other risks they face today,” said Dr. Nirav Shah, principal deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But “100 percent, that could change,” he said. “This is a dangerous virus.”

Health experts emphasize that there are precautions Americans can take: Do not touch sick or dead birds or other animals; get tested if you have flulike symptoms; do not consume raw milk or meat, or feed them to your pets.

If a larger outbreak were to erupt, the federal vaccine stockpile holds a few million doses, although that vaccine might first need updating to match the evolved form of the virus. In either case, officials would have to scramble to produce enough for the population.

The C.D.C. recommends treatment with the antiviral Tamiflu, but studies have shown that the drug does very little to ease illness.

Underlining concerns among many experts is that Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who would lead the federal health department if confirmed, was a vocal critic of Covid vaccines and has said the bird flu vaccines “appear to be dangerous.”

Even if the second Trump administration embraces vaccine development, as the first one did when Covid bore down, it’s unclear how many Americans would roll up their sleeves for the shots. Influenza typically affects children and older adults, and pandemic influenza has sometimes hit young adults the hardest. But the mistrust engendered during Covid-19 may make Americans eschew precautions, at least initially.

An evolving threat

Unlike the coronavirus, which caused havoc with its sudden arrival, influenza viruses typically start off in a specific animal species or in certain geographical regions.

When H5N1 emerged in East Asia nearly three decades ago, it mostly sickened birds. In the years that followed, it infected at least 940 people, nearly all of whom had close, sustained contact with infected birds; roughly half of those people died.

But since January 2022, when the virus was detected in wild aquatic birds in the United States, it has affected more than 136 million commercial, backyard and wild birds, helping to send egg prices soaring. It has also struck dozens of mammalian species, including cats both wild and domesticated, raccoons, bears and sea lions.

For at least a year, H5N1 has been infecting dairy cattle, which were not known to be susceptible to this type of influenza. In some cows, it has had lasting effects, reducing milk production and increasing the odds of spontaneous abortions.

And in 2024, the virus infected 67 Americans, compared with just one in the years before, in 2022. The sources of these infections are not all known; one person may have transmitted the virus to someone in their household.

Many of these developments are classic steps toward a pandemic, said Dr. James Lawler, a director at the University of Nebraska’s Global Center for Health Security. But, he noted, “where those were really supposed to trigger accelerated and amplified actions at the federal, state and local level, we’ve just kind of shrugged when each milestone has passed.”

Infections in dairy herds, which first emerged in Texas, appeared to be declining last summer. But in late August, California announced its first case. The state’s figures soon rose sharply, prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a public health emergency in December.

“That was sort of a flag to me, like, ‘OK, this hasn’t gone away,’” said Dr. Manisha Juthani, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Public Health. “Over the last couple of months, it has felt like the tempo has increased,” she said.

Several other recent events have raised the level of alarm among experts. In early December, scientists reported that in a lab setting, a single mutation helped the virus infect human cells more efficiently.

And late last year two people, a 13-year-old Canadian girl and a Louisiana resident older than 65, became seriously ill; previously, most people infected with H5N1 had not experienced severe symptoms. The Louisiana patient, who had health conditions and cared for sick and dying birds, died in early January.

The girl was placed on life support because of organ failure, but eventually recovered. Scientists still do not know how she became infected; her only risk factor was obesity.

Both patients had contracted a new version of the virus that is distinct from the one in dairy cattle and is now widespread in birds. In both individuals, the virus gained mutations during the course of infection that might allow it to better infect people.

“We are clearly now getting novel viruses forming in the wild bird reservoir,” Dr. Moncla said. “It’s become challenging to keep a handle on all of the various threats.”

Some experts see it as particularly worrisome that the virus seems to be in food sources like raw milk and raw pet food. Domesticated cats have died in numerous states, prompting the recall of at least one brand of pet food and new federal guidelines on pet food quality.

“The raw-pet-food thing to me is, I think, quite alarming,” said Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Pasteurization kills live virus, as does cooking meat at high temperatures. Still, neither procedure is perfect, Dr. Marrazzo noted: “There’s no way that you can police production and sterilization in a way that’s going to make sure 100 percent of the time that food supply is going to be safe.”

A flawed response

In the year since the outbreak began, federal officials have announced other measures to prevent or prepare for a pandemic. But each is deeply flawed, experts said.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture was slow to begin testing H5N1 vaccines for cows, leaving interested companies in limbo. Dr. Marrazzo said that the department had released genetic information from virus samples but had not said where or when they were collected — details that would help scientists track the virus’s evolution.

It is also unclear how many herds are reinfected or have been battling monthslong infections. In Idaho, some herds infected in the spring seemed to recover but showed milder symptoms again in November.

“From the data we have to date, we do not see evidence of new infections or reinfections in previously affected herds, but rather a lack of clearance of the original infection,” a spokesman for the U.S.D.A. said in an emailed response. But outside experts said that the trajectory of symptoms suggested a second round of illness.

The U.S.D.A.’s program to test bulk milk began in December — nearly a year after the outbreak began — and still does not include Idaho. Engaging private companies may help the program move faster.

Ginkgo Bioworks, a company that worked with federal agencies during the Covid pandemic, already assesses roughly half the nation’s commercial milk supply for bacteria, antibiotics and other substances.

Adding H5N1 to the list would be straightforward, so “why wouldn’t we just add assays into this infrastructure that we already have?” said Matt McKnight, a manager at the company’s biosecurity division.

Earlier this month, the Biden administration announced $306 million in new funding, about one-third of it for surveillance, testing and outreach to farmworkers.

But farmworkers in some places like the Texas Panhandle are still unaware of what bird flu is, how it spreads and why it should matter to them, said Bethany Alcauter, director of research and public health programs at the National Center for Farmworker Health.

As a result, she said, many workers still do not use protective gear, including in milk parlors where the virus is thought to spread.

Human testing has been voluntary, and infections have been missed. Few farmworkers have opted to be tested, out of fear of immigration officials or their own employers.

“If you don’t look for it, you won’t find it, right?,” said Dr. Deborah Birx, who served as White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator under President Trump. “This is not about lockdowns or restricting activity. It’s about protecting the individual American by empowering them with the information.”

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Health

Forcing an early wake-up time could harm your health, sleep doctors warn

Published

2 hours ago

January 15, 2026

Press Room

Forcing an early wake-up time could harm your health, sleep doctors warn

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With a new year underway, it might seem like a good idea to embrace a stricter morning routine of waking up early and getting a jump-start on the day — but a 6 a.m. alarm isn’t for everyone, experts say.

“Morning birds” fall asleep and reach deep sleep earlier, often waking up more alert, while “night owls” naturally sleep later and rely more on late-night and early-morning REM. Waking too early can leave night owls groggy and less mentally restored.

“We need to move beyond the ‘early bird gets the worm’ sayings and consider the biological cost of fighting one’s internal clock,” Dr. Aaron Pinkhasov, chair of the Department of Psychiatry at NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine, told Fox News Digital.

INSUFFICIENT SLEEP LINKED TO MAJOR HIDDEN HEALTH RISK, STUDY REVEALS

The science of sleep

People sleep in repeated 90- to 110-minute cycles that alternate between deep NREM sleep and REM sleep, according to Pinkhasov.

Early in the night, deep sleep dominates, supporting physical repair, immunity and memory. Later cycles include more REM sleep, which supports learning, emotional regulation and brain function. Brief awakenings between cycles are normal.

Woman stopping an alarm clock (iStock)

Whether someone naturally rises early or late depends on the body’s “chronotype,” that is, whether they’re a morning bird or a night owl, he said.

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The chronotype is a “genetic blueprint” that determines when the body is naturally more alert or ready to rest, according to Pinkhasov.

“About 40% to 50% of our sleep-wake preference is inherited, meaning our internal clock is hardwired,” he noted.

DID HOLIDAY STRESS WREAK HAVOC ON YOUR GUT? DOCTORS SAY 6 SIMPLE TIPS CAN HELP

Waking earlier than one’s body’s clock often means sacrificing REM sleep. Forcing this discrepancy between the internal clock and the alarm clock can lead to “wired but tired” fatigue, mood instability and long-term metabolic risks, Pinkhasov warned.

“About 40% to 50% of our sleep-wake preference is inherited, meaning our internal clock is hardwired,” one expert said. (iStock)

“Unfortunately, because a lot of people have early work, family or social commitments, night owls have a higher prevalence of anxiety, depression, eating disorders, obesity, obstructive sleep apnea and [type 2 diabetes],” Dr. Nissa Keyashian, a California board-certified psychiatrist and author of “Practicing Stillness,” told Fox News Digital.

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Ultimately, health and productivity are highest when prioritizing consistency and sleep quality over an early-morning goal, experts say.

“The main benefit of switching to an earlier schedule is social alignment. It makes it easier to navigate a world built around a 9-to-5 lifestyle. However, the drawbacks can be significant if the shift is forced,” Pinkhasov said.

While waking at set times may improve social alignments, it can harm those who don’t naturally fit the mold. (iStock)

Smart shifts

There are some ways to “rewire” internal clocks or at least lessen the negative effects. Experts agree that having a regular bedtime and wake-up time — even on the weekends — can help.

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Pinkhasov recommends a wind-down nighttime routine that includes minimizing electronics, meditating, using essential oils, taking a warm shower or bath or drinking warm, herbal tea.

Pushing up your wake-up time by just 15 minutes a day is the most helpful, according to Keyashian.

Briefly waking up between REM cycles is normal, and adjusting to those cycles may help people wake up easier. (iStock)

The expert also recommends exposure to bright light in the morning, which can be helpful for mood, energy and concentration. People who experience dips in mood during the winter months can also benefit from using a therapeutic light box.

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“If you believe this might be you, I recommend speaking with a psychiatrist,” she advised. “I also recommend minimizing caffeine. Some people also notice difficulty falling asleep with exercise late in the day, so be mindful of this as well.”

Khloe Quill is a lifestyle production assistant with Fox News Digital. She and the lifestyle team cover a range of story topics including food and drink, travel, and health.

Health

Space experiments reveal new way to fight drug-resistant superbugs, scientists say

Published

14 hours ago

January 14, 2026

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Space experiments reveal new way to fight drug-resistant superbugs, scientists say

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Research conducted partly aboard the International Space Station (ISS) suggests that “microgravity” could help scientists fight drug-resistant superbugs, according to a report from SWNS.

Microgravity is the condition in which people or objects appear to be weightless, NASA states.

Experiments by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison show that viruses and bacteria behave differently in near-weightless conditions. In space, they develop genetic changes not typically seen on Earth.

DEADLY ‘SUPERBUG’ IS SPREADING ACROSS US AS DRUG RESISTANCE GROWS, RESEARCHERS WARN

Lead study author Dr. Phil Huss, a researcher at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, noted that interactions between viruses that infect bacteria — known as phages — and their hosts play an “integral” role in how microbial ecosystems function, per the SWSN report.

Viruses that infect bacteria were still able to infect E. coli in space. However, the way those infections unfolded was different from what is typically observed on Earth.

E. coli is a group of bacteria that can live in the gut and are harmless most of the time, according to Cleveland Clinic. (iStock)

Bacteria and phages are often described as being locked in an evolutionary arms race, Huss said, with each side constantly adapting to outmaneuver the other.

“Microgravity is not just a slower or noisier version of Earth — it is a distinct physical and evolutionary environment,” researcher Srivatsan Raman, Ph.D., professor of biochemistry at the university, told Fox News Digital.

“Even in a very simple phage-bacteria system, microgravity altered infection dynamics and pushed both organisms down different evolutionary paths,” he added.

CONTAMINATED MEAT BLAMED FOR RISE IN COMMON URINARY INFECTIONS, EXPERTS WARN

While these interactions between bacteria and phages have been well-studied on Earth, few studies have examined them in space, where they can lead to different outcomes.

For the study, Huss and his colleagues compared two sets of E. coli samples infected with a phage known as T7. One set was incubated on Earth, while the other was grown aboard the ISS.

The ISS is a microgravity environment — where people and objects appear weightless. (NASA / SWNS)

The team found that after an initial slowdown, the T7 phage successfully infected E. coli in space. Genetic analysis later revealed clear differences in how both the bacteria and the virus mutated in space compared with how they behaved on Earth, per the report.

Huss said the phages grown aboard the space station developed mutations that could improve their ability to infect bacteria or attach to bacterial cells. At the same time, the E. coli grown in space developed mutations that could help them resist infection and survive better in near-weightless conditions.

GROWING ANTIBIOTIC CRISIS COULD TURN BACTERIAL INFECTIONS DEADLY, EXPERTS WARN

Raman said some of the findings were unexpected. In particular, he noted, microgravity led to mutations in parts of the phage genome that are not well-understood and are rarely seen in Earth-based experiments.

The E. coli grown in space developed mutations that could help them resist infection and survive better in near-weightless conditions. (iStock)

Researchers then used a technique called deep mutational scanning — a method that tracks how genetic changes affect function — to examine changes in the T7 receptor-binding protein, which plays a key role in infection.

Additional experiments on Earth linked those changes to increased effectiveness against E. coli strains that are normally resistant to T7.

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“Equally surprising was that phages shaped by microgravity could be more effective against terrestrial bacterial pathogens when brought back to Earth,” Raman told Fox News Digital.

“That result suggests microgravity can reveal combinations of mutations that are difficult to access through standard laboratory evolution, but [are] still highly relevant for real-world applications.”

“Microgravity is not just a slower or noisier version of Earth — it is a distinct physical and evolutionary environment.”

Huss said the findings could help address antibiotic-resistant infections, including urinary tract infections, which have been increasing in recent years.

“By studying those space-driven adaptations, we identified new biological insights that allowed us to engineer phages with far superior activity against drug-resistant pathogens back on Earth,” Huss told SWNS.

Study limitations

“Experiments on the ISS are constrained by small sample sizes, fixed hardware and scheduling constraints,” Raman noted. “Samples also experience freezing and long storage times, which can complicate interpretation.”

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He added that the research has broader implications.

“Studying microbes in space isn’t just about space biology,” Raman said. “These experiments can uncover new aspects of viral infection and microbial evolution that feed directly back into terrestrial problems, including antimicrobial resistance and phage therapy.”

Space should be treated as a discovery environment rather than a routine testing platform, one researcher said. (iStock)

He added that space should be treated as a discovery environment rather than a routine testing platform. The most effective approach, according to Raman, is to identify useful patterns and mutations in space and then study them carefully in Earth-based systems.

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Scientists also noted that the findings highlight how microbial ecosystems, like those associated with humans, could change during long space missions.

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“Understanding and anticipating those changes will be essential as space travel becomes longer, more routine and more biologically complex,” Raman said.

The findings were published in the journal PLOS Biology.

Khloe Quill is a lifestyle production assistant with Fox News Digital. She and the lifestyle team cover a range of story topics including food and drink, travel, and health.

Health

Blood test flags digestive disease risk years before symptoms appear

Published

1 day ago

January 14, 2026

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Blood test flags digestive disease risk years before symptoms appear

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A simple blood test may detect Crohn’s disease years before symptoms appear, according to a new study reported by SWNS.

Canadian researchers say the discovery could enable earlier diagnosis and potential prevention of the chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

The test measures the immune system’s response to flagellin, a protein found in gut bacteria. Researchers found that this response is elevated in some people years before Crohn’s develops.

DOCTOR WARNS OF 2 SIMPLE FOOD MISTAKES THAT INCREASE CHRONIC DISEASE RISK

The findings, published in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, highlight the “interplay” between gut bacteria and immune system responses as a key step in the disease’s development, per the SWNS report.

Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory condition of the gastrointestinal tract that causes persistent digestive symptoms, pain and fatigue, significantly affecting quality of life. Its incidence among children has doubled since 1995, according to official figures.

Crohn’s disease is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that causes swelling and irritation of the tissues, called inflammation, in the digestive tract. (iStock)

The presence of flagellin antibodies long before symptoms appear suggests that the immune reaction may help trigger the disease, according to research leader Dr. Ken Croitoru, clinician-scientist and professor of medicine and immunology at the University of Toronto.

A better understanding of this early process could lead to improved prediction, prevention and treatment, the expert said.

“We haven’t cured anybody yet, and we need to do better.”

“With all the advanced biologic therapy we have today, patients’ responses are partial at best,” Croitoru told SWNS. “We haven’t cured anybody yet, and we need to do better.”

MISUNDERSTOOD ILLNESS LEAVES MILLIONS EXHAUSTED, WITH MOST CASES UNDIAGNOSED

“We wanted to know: Do people who are at risk, who are healthy now, have these antibodies against flagellin?” he said. “We looked, we measured, and yes indeed, at least some of them did.”

This new research is part of the Genetic, Environmental and Microbial (GEM) Project, which has followed more than 5,000 healthy first-degree relatives of people with Crohn’s disease worldwide since 2008. The project collects genetic, biological and environmental data to better understand how the disease develops.

The presence of flagellin antibodies long before symptoms appear suggests that the immune reaction may help trigger the disease, according to the lead researcher. (iStock)

The study followed 381 first-degree relatives of Crohn’s patients, 77 of whom later developed the disease. Of those, more than 30% had elevated antibody responses.

The responses were strongest in siblings, underscoring the role of shared environmental exposure, researchers said.

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So far, 130 of the study participants have developed Crohn’s, giving researchers a rare opportunity to study its earliest stages. The average time from blood sample collection to diagnosis was nearly 2-½ years.

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Previous GEM research showed that an inflammatory immune response targeting gut bacteria can appear long before the disease develops.

The study followed 381 first-degree relatives of Crohn’s patients, 77 of whom later developed the disease. (iStock)

In healthy people, gut bacteria coexist peacefully and play an essential role in digestive health — but in Crohn’s patients, the immune system appears to mount an abnormal response against the microbes, experts say.

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The Canadian team also confirmed that this pre-disease immune response was associated with intestinal inflammation and gut barrier dysfunction, both hallmarks of Crohn’s disease.

The study did have some limitations, including that it did not include experiments to show exactly how the immune response might lead to Crohn’s disease. (iStock)

Research team member Dr. Sun-Ho Lee, a gastroenterologist, commented that this new study supports the idea of designing a flagellin-directed vaccine for certain high-risk individuals to prevent the disease, according to SWNS.

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The study did have some limitations, including that it did not include experiments to show exactly how the immune response might lead to Crohn’s disease.

As a result, the researchers could not determine the biological steps linking the immune reaction to the onset of the illness. “Further validation and mechanistic studies are underway,” they noted.

Khloe Quill is a lifestyle production assistant with Fox News Digital. She and the lifestyle team cover a range of story topics including food and drink, travel, and health.