Current Health Risks for Travelers to Europe

BSE or Mad Cow Disease       FDM or Foot and Mouth Disease             More Europe Travel Health Links

BSE (or Mad Cow Disease) Risk to Travelers  Found on bottom of Page at: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/cjd/bse_cjd.htm   CDC-- A Health Organization for Disease. in Atlanta GA

"The current risk of acquiring nvCJD from eating beef (muscle meat) and beef products produced from cattle in Europe cannot be precisely determined, and this risk in specific countries might not reflect the fact that cattle products from one country might be distributed and consumed in others.

Nevertheless, in the United Kingdom, this current risk appears to be extremely small, perhaps about 1 case per 10 billion servings.

In the other countries of Europe, this current risk, if it exists at all, would not likely be any higher than that in the United Kingdom, except possibly in Portugal. In the 12-month period ending June 15, 2000, Portugal had about half the reported incidence of BSE cases per 1 million adult cattle as that reported in the United Kingdom; however, Portugal has less experience with implementing BSE-related public health control measures.

Preventive Measures for BSE & nvCJD

To reduce the possible current risk of acquiring nvCJD from food, travelers to Europe may wish to consider either

(1) avoiding beef and beef products altogether or

(2) selecting beef or beef products, such as solid pieces of muscle meat (versus beef products such as burgers and sausages), that might have a reduced opportunity for contamination with tissues that might harbor the BSE agent.

Milk and milk products from cows are not believed to pose any risk for transmitting the BSE agent.   See Preventive Measures for FMD  Foot and Mouth Disease

More BSE Links:

http://www.cdc.gov/travel/madcow.htm

FDM or Foot and Mouth Disease "FMD is not considered a human disease because humans rarely contract FMD; it causes few or mild symptoms in humans when it does occur, and it does not affect the human food chain. However, FMD may affect price, supply, and availability of certain animal foods. Travelers can unknowingly transmit the FMD virus to susceptible animals if they come into contact with infected livestock, soil, or objects that have been contaminated with the FMD virus. The FMD virus can easily be carried on articles of clothing and footwear.

Travel to the United Kingdom, Europe, and other affected countries is not being prohibited due to the outbreak; however, to contain the disease, travel within affected countries has been somewhat restricted, especially if planning walking or hiking trips in the countryside."   http://www.cdc.gov/travel/other/fmd-europe-mar2001.htm

Preventive Measures for FDM

Following are recommendations for travelers visiting the United Kingdom, Europe, and countries affected with FMD, as well as information to help prevent FMD from spreading to other areas of Europe and from being imported into the United States:

Prior to travel

1. You may wish to consult with your travel agent or tour operator to plan an itinerary that will minimize any inconvenience to you by avoiding areas of the country where outbreaks are occurring.
2. For day-to-day updates on the outbreak, you can visit the website for the U.K. Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF).

While visiting

• Adhere to any guidelines and measures the country you are visiting has taken to contain the disease.
• In the United Kingdom, access to rural areas has been restricted and many roads and footpaths in the vicinity of farms where the virus has been detected have been closed. Parks and zoos have also been closed as have many rural tourist sites, including Hampton Court Home Park, Stonehenge, and the National Trust Tenanted Farms.

What to eat while visiting

• Poultry do not get FMD; therefore, poultry and poultry products are considered safe to eat, as are fish, fruit, and vegetables.
• Cooked meats (including cooked pork) are generally safe for consumption because the FMD virus is killed by heat.

FMD Helpline and contacts

MAFF have set up a Helpline for callers wanting general advice on the recent outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease:

Telephone: 0845 0504141 (local rate)

or go to:http://www.maff.gov.uk/aboutmaf/contacts/contac.htm#aho for more numbers & info.

However, another disease of cattle that could potentially be transmitted to humans, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE [mad cow disease]), has been identified in the United Kingdom and several other European countries. For information on BSE, see the Travelers' Health Information on BSE

More Health Links:

     USDA Restrictions on Products from Countries with Foot-and-Mouth Disease

     UK & "Mad Cow" Disease and BSE  Risk to Travelers & Prentive Measures

     UK Daily Update re Foot & Mouth Disease  Tips for Travelers

     Current US Gov. information FDM + traveler questions and answers

     Planning for JET LAG

     Readers Report on Jet-Lag

     Staying Healthy as you travel: Index to TERC articles & links

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