by Mike James

With Covid-19 still raging around the globe, recent news from the Far East reminds us these types of issues will be with us moving forward. In June, Chinese researchers discovered a new type of swine flu that could be dangerous. This information was published in the U.S. scientific journal PNAS. The new strain, known as G4, is descended from the H1N1 strain that caused the pandemic in 2009. 

From 2011 to 2018, researchers took 30,000 nasal swabs from pigs in slaughterhouses in 10 Chinese provinces and in a vet hospital. About 179 swine flu viruses were found. Most of these viruses were a new kind which has been dominant in the swine population since 2016. 

The researchers then did experiments, including experiments on ferrets, which experience similar symptoms to humans when it comes to flu. The G4 strain was found to be highly infectious. It replicated in human cells and caused more serious symptoms in ferrets than other viruses.

Blood tests showing antibodies created by exposure to the virus showed up in about 10 percent of swine workers. About 4 percent of the general population showed exposure through blood tests. The virus is believed to have already passed from animals to humans, but there is no evidence of human-to-human exposure. Researchers are concerned about a mutation of this virus, which could increase the chances of another pandemic.

The study’s authors are calling for measures to watch people working with pigs. “The work comes as a salutary reminder that we are constantly at risk of new emergence of zoonotic pathogens and that farmed animals, with which humans have greater contact than wildlife, may act as the source for important pandemic viruses,” said James Wood, head of the department of veterinary medicine at Cambridge University.

Also in July, in the Chinese region of Inner Mongolia, officials are on alert after a suspected case of bubonic plague. The case was found in the city of Bayannur, northwest of Beijing. 

Plague is caused by bacteria and is transmitted through flea bites and flea-infested animals. Antibiotics can prevent complications and death if given quickly. Bubonic plague causes painful, swollen lymph nodes, fever, chills, and coughing.

Health authorities are urging people to take precautions to minimize the risk of human-to-human spread. People are being urged not to eat animals that could cause infection. 

Bayannur officials warned the public to report dead or sick marmots. Marmots are a type of large ground squirrel that is eaten in this part of China. These animals have historically caused plague outbreaks in this region.

The 1911 pneumonic plague epidemic killed about 63,000 people in northeast China. The marmot was hunted for its fur, which became popular among international traders. The diseased fur products were traded leading to the infection of thousands. 

Two cases of bubonic plague were confirmed in Mongolia in June. Last year in Mongolia, a couple died from bubonic plague after eating the raw kidney of a marmot. Marmot kidney is a folk remedy for good health.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a couple thousand people get the plague every year. Modern medicine can now treat this disease with antibiotics, but it can still kill us if we are not careful. 

In Leviticus 11, God provides information to us on which animals he allows us to eat. The marmot is not specifically mentioned, but it would fit into the category of animals mentioned in Leviticus 11:3-4. The marmot does not have a split hoof, so we should not eat it. The pig is specifically mentioned as an unclean animal in Leviticus 11:7. Interestingly, in Leviticus 11:8, we are told not to even touch the carcass of these animals. The 1911 plague mentioned above is a good reason why God may have mentioned this.

There is no doubt that we can get sick from clean animals, but if you do the research you will find the unclean animals mentioned in Leviticus are far more often the source of human disease and sickness than the clean. When clean animals are the source of disease and sickness, it is usually because the animal was already sick or humans made the animals sick (mad cow disease). 

The food laws are not just about our health, but if you do the research on this subject, I think you’ll agree with me when I say it seems obvious health is one aspect of why God created the food laws. Despite all the knowledge we have acquired in this area, men continue to reject the Word of God. China continues to be one of the primary locations where these problems occur. This has something to do with the lack of biblical knowledge there and the large population.

Sources:

“New Swine Flu In China Could Morph to Cause Human Pandemic, Study Warns,” https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-swine-flu-china-researchers-pandemic/, July 1, 2020.

“Suspected Case of Bubonic Plague in China’s Inner Mongolia,” Jessie Yeung, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/06/asia/china-mongolia-bubonic-plague-intl-hnk-scli-scn/index.html, July 6, 2020.