生肉ペットフードに有害バクテリアが大量混入、人間にも被害の危険性

【パリＡＦＰ＝時事】犬や猫の餌用に人気が高まっている生肉ペットフードには、さまざまな薬剤への耐性を持つバクテリアがあふれており、動物や人間に深刻なリスクをもたらしているとする研究結果が16日発表された。（写真は資料写真）
　英国王立協会のオンライン科学誌「ロイヤルソサエティー・オープンサイエンス」での報告によると、スイスで購入され試験された生肉ペットフードのサンプルのうち４分の３は、胃腸感染症の原因として知られるバクテリアの数が推奨される限度値を超えていた。また半数以上に、殺菌剤の影響を受けないバクテリアが含まれていた。
　生肉ペットフードの売り上げは、犬用の製品を中心に近年大幅に増えている。犬の体力や免疫力を高めると言われているが、こうした主張を裏付ける研究は十分にされていない。
　スイス・チューリヒ大学の研究者、マグダレーナ・ノイシュインダービネン氏は「生食をもとにした餌には、世界保健機関（ＷＨＯ）から人間の医学にとって非常に重要と分類されているものなど、さまざまな抗生物質に耐性のあるバクテリアが含まれている可能性がある」と指摘した。
　「これらの病原体は、ペットに餌をやるときだけでなく、住宅の床などの汚染や、犬や犬のふんとの密接な接触によって、人間に感染することを示す証拠が増えている」という。
　欧州連合域内で飼育されている犬と猫の数は合わせて推計１４億匹で、北米でも同様かそれ以上とされる。日本の「ペットフード協会」によると、日本国内で飼育されている犬と猫の数は、昨年１０月時点で計１８５５万匹を超えている。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2019/10/17-08:44）

Increasingly popular raw meat meals for dogs and cats may be full of multi-drug resistant bacteria, posing a serious risk to animals and humans, scientists reported Wednesday.
Three-quarters of samples purchased and tested in Switzerland exceeded recommended limits of bacteria known to cause gastro-intestinal infections, and more than half had bugs impervious to drugs designed to kill them, they reported in Royal Society Open Science.
It is really worrying that we found EBSL-producing bacteria in over 60 percent of samples, said first author Magdalena Nuesch-Inderbinen, a researcher at the University of Zurich, referring to an enzyme that renders some antibiotics ineffective.
They include several types of E. coli which can cause infections in humans and animals.
Sales of raw pet food -- sometimes called biologically appropriate raw food, or BARF -- have soared in recent years, especially for dogs. Paleo-like diets are said to boost canine vitality and immunity, even if there is scant research to back up such claims.
Indeed, veterinary medical associations in the United States and Canada have raised concerns about raw meat pet food, with reports showing it to be a source of Salmonella and infectious yersiniosis in dogs.
And that, Nuesch-Inderbinen told AFP, is a problem for humans.
Raw meat-based diets may be contaminated with bacteria that are resistant to multiple antibiotics, including those categorised by the World Health Organization (WHO) as critically important for human medicine, she wrote by email.
- Pet lover beware -
There is growing evidence that these pathogens pose a risk of infectious disease to humans not only during handling of feed, but also through the contamination of household surfaces and through close contact to the dogs and their feces.
There are an estimated 140 million dogs and cats in the European Union, and at least as many in North America.
More generally, antibiotic resistance has became a major health crisis across the globe.
The situation with multi-drug resistant bacteria has spiralled out of control in recent years, said co-author Roger Stephan, a professor at the University of Zurich's Institue for Food Safety and Hygiene.
The indiscriminate and sometimes inappropriate use of antibiotics have allowed surviving bugs to mutate into superbugs that outpace the development of new medicines.
Because of the overuse of antibiotics in the livestock production, animals raised for consumption have become a major reservoir for antimicrobial resistance.
Like conventional pet food, most raw meat-based diets are based on the by-products of animals slaughtered for human consumption, the study notes.
To find out exactly how contaminated raw pet foods really are, the researchers tested 51 samples from different suppliers in Switzerland, purchased in stores and on the Internet.
We advise all dog and cat owners who want to feed their pets a 'BARF' diet to handle the food carefully and maintain strict hygiene standards, said Nuesch-Inderbinen.
Pet owners should be aware of the risk that their pet may be carrying multi-drug resistant bacteria and can spread them.