That’s the message health professionals are delivering as many states contemplate potential legislation to allow the sale of unpasteurized dairy products. Advocates of the unprocessed dairy claim that raw milk can magically prevent asthma, tooth decay, diabetes, attention deficit disorder, osteoporosis and other ailments. On the other hand, the health community points out that you’ll most likely end up with salmonella, E. coli, listeria, and more.

Ohio’s House Agriculture Committee is hearing a bill this week that would allow licensed farmers to sell raw product straight to the consumer, with advocates for the bill filling the statehouse chambers Wednesday at the hearing. Passions run high on both sides of the debate, but the science appears to be stacked heavily in favor of food safety.

For over nine decades, the FDA, CDC, and AMA have recommended avoiding raw milk, praising the process of pasteurization, where milk is heated to 161 degrees for 15 seconds to kill harmful bacteria. Opponents to pasteurization claim the science is wrong, though they have little more than anecdotal evidence to back up those claims. At issue are the concepts of herd-sharing agreements, by which consumers buy shares of a dairy to exploit a loophole in state law that allows herd owners to consume the raw product.

The Ohio Department of Agriculture has recently cracked down on the so-called loophole, through which consumers are paying between $6 and $17 per gallon to pick up the raw milk from the farm. ODA’s attempts to protect public health have drawn the ire of many of the herd owners, who claim they are being unfairly targeted. Raw milk sales are currently permitted in 27 states.