Can people get avian flu from eating chicken or eggs?
Most human cases have occurred in rural areas with small backyard flocks – when people directly handled or slaughtered infected birds, touched objects smeared with bodily fluids from infected birds, or swam in contaminated water. In its current form, H5N1 has rarely spread from one person to another. No one is known to have been infected by eating undercooked poultry. But if the virus is present in a bird that ends up in the food system, thorough cooking will kill it. The USDA recommends that poultry be cooked to an internal temperature of 165° F (determined with a meat thermometer) and uncooked poultry should be kept separate from other foods and serving dishes. Proper handling and cooking of poultry (see this USDA fact sheet) is an important step whenever you are preparing meat or poultry, to protect yourself from salmonella and other food borne illnesses.
