January 15, 2025

Written ByEmily Landon, MD

Topics

• News
• https://www.uchicagomedicine.org/forefront/news/bird-flu
• Health and Wellness
• Prevention and Screening
• Patient Care

Call Us At 1-888-824-0200

Public health officials are closely monitoring the latest bird flu outbreak that has sickened or killed millions of birds, chicken and cattle in the U.S.

The virus, also known as avian influenza or H5N1, has spread to dozens of humans, mostly farm and dairy workers. As of Jan. 14, 2025, it has resulted in one human death.

Unless you’re around livestock or sick birds, you don’t need to be overly worried, said Emily Landon, MD, an infectious diseases expert at the University of Chicago Medicine.

While she called it a “watch and wait” situation, Landon doesn’t foresee this bird flu outbreak becoming a global health emergency. Unlike the early days of COVID-19, health officials know how to prevent the spread of influenza and can produce influenza vaccines more easily.

“At this time, the best thing to do is be vigilant,” Landon said.

In its current form, the bird flu virus doesn’t spread from human to human. But if the virus mutates, it could become highly transmissible and spread rapidly through the population, Landon said.

Influenza viruses mutate frequently (which is why the flu vaccine changes from year to year) and the more mammals that have bird flu, the higher the chances are of a significant mutation occurring.

The number of bird flu cases in humans cited by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is low, but the actual count is likely higher, Landon said. Because symptoms in humans have been relatively minor so far — such as pink eye or cold symptoms — a bird flu diagnosis might be missed by doctors and not counted in the totals.

Landon offered several easy and important ways to stay safe.

How to protect yourself from bird flu

The CDC currently considers bird flu a low public health risk, but it still recommends people take these steps to protect themselves and their pets:

1. Only consume pasteurized dairy products.
   
   “The highest risk to most people would be through contaminated dairy products,” Landon said.That’s because dairy cows can pass on the virus through their milk. Pasteurization effectively inactivates bacteria and viruses, including bird flu, so avoid raw milk, unpasteurized cheese or any item made with unpasteurized milk (check the label or ask the vendor).
2. Refrigerate — and cook — your eggs, meat and poultry. 
   
   Eggs, meat and chicken need to be cooked to specific temperatures in order to be safely consumed. See the CDC guidelines on how to safely handle and cook eggs, poultry and meat.
   
3. Get your human influenza vaccine.
   
   If you can avoid getting infected with the human influenza virus, you reduce the need for healthcare workers to spend time screening you for bird flu symptoms. UChicago Medicine offers flu shots for adults and children through March 31; click here for a listing of our vaccination clinic locations and hours.
   
4. Protect and vaccinate your pets.
   
   Dogs and cats are unlikely to get bird flu, but the CDC warns against giving them raw milk, unpasteurized dairy products or raw pet food. Keep them away from sick or dead birds when they’re outside. Some pets also should get an influenza vaccine; talk to your veterinarian.
   
5.  Avoid contact with wild, sick or dead birds and livestock.
   
   Contact local wildlife officials if you find a sick bird or animal, and avoid contact with their saliva, feces, mucus or even the space the animals occupied. The virus can be airborne, and you don’t want it getting in your eyes, nose or mouth.
   
6.  Wash your hands thoroughly and often.
   
   The No. 1 thing you can do to fend off all viruses is frequent hand washing. If your hands are in contact with things that birds might touch outdoors, such as a backyard bird feeder, be especially diligent about hand hygiene.
   
7. Follow public health recommendations.
   People who work with livestock are at the greatest risk of bird flu. To stop the disease’s spread, it’s critical that they participate in testing programs and wear masks and gloves when advised. “For those workers, do your best to cooperate with and trust your public health officials,” Landon said.Everyone else should support efforts to prevent infections by paying attention to public health recommendations, she said.

Answers to common questions about bird flu

What is bird flu?

It’s a virus, also known as avian influenza or the H5N1 virus, that periodically appears around the world. It primarily infects domestic poultry and wild birds. However, mammals can also catch H5N1, including pigs, cattle and humans. The most recent outbreak affecting dairy cattle in the U.S. has resulted in more human cases than previous outbreaks in poultry.

What are the symptoms of bird flu?

Pink eye (conjunctivitis), fever, cough, aching muscles and sore throat are common symptoms of bird flu. The mortality rate for human cases in the U.S. has been low; most people recover quickly and do not require hospitalization, Landon said, but some people do get very ill and can even die. Antiviral medicines can reduce the risk. If you feel sick after having contact with livestock, or after consuming raw dairy products, be sure to tell your doctor.

How does bird flu spread?

Bird flu spreads rapidly among infected poultry and can spread between mammals. While humans can catch bird flu from infected animals, it doesn’t spread well between humans. This could change over time as the virus mutates and evolves. The higher the number of infections overall, the faster the virus changes and adapts. This is why controlling the spread of bird flu is important even though the virus is currently unlikely to cause widespread disease in people.

Is there a bird flu vaccine?

There are older, existing human vaccines for avian influenza, but these are not widely available because human disease and death has been rare so far and older vaccines are more time consuming and difficult to make. Companies that make modern vaccines are developing an updated bird flu vaccine, which could soon be available to at-risk people such as farm workers or hunters.