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On a previous post I jokingly talked about the econ-
omic and business uses of dirt, which is used for
construction and in our home gardens. That type of
dirt is what you might call "good dirt." In this post
I would like to talk about "bad dirt" — the dirt
that we are always trying to get rid of.
Normally when we talk about dirt it is "bad dirt."
We say that our clothes are "dirty", we talk about
a pornographer as a purveyor of "dirt", and we say
that someone has got the "dirt" on someone. And of
course we try to keep our homes clean and free of
dirt — "dirty dishes."
We usually don't think about it much: It's dirt —
get rid of it.
In Why Dirt Is Good, immunologist Mary Ruebush
supports her thesis that obsessive cleanliness and the
use of cleaning products is actually bad for young
people in that they prevent the building up of healthy
immune systems. And it seems that since the book was
first published in 2009 many in the medical community
have come to agree with that view [USC Health Magazine;
January 2000].
Looking at it from a common sense type of way in my
own field, I would say that it would be very difficult
to reduce a child's immune system by way of "protective"
cleaners inasmuch as a young person does not spend all
their time in their own home, but also attends school
and probably spends time in the homes of other children.
Nevertheless I think Nuebush's overall point is a good
one: We can't protect our children by putting then into
some sort of a bubble. As much as we humans may forget
or even deny the fact, we are a part of our environment
and cannot escape it. And as much as we like to think
so sometimes, we can't create a perfect world.
A lot has been made since the Swine Flu crisis of washing
the hands when out in public. I have to admit that I have
taken to rather obsessive hand washing myself since a
recent bout of bronchial pneumonia. And it is recommended
by doctors that washing the hands in public situations
is a good idea. But let's face it, even that one has its
limitations: It doesn't eliminate the fact that as soon
as hands are washed in a restroom that we touch the door
handle or the next table we run into, the next magazine,
the next elevator button or counter pen. Nevertheless my
own opinion is that trying to avoid germs is at least
better than doing nothing. And unlike antiseptic cleaners
in the home, doing so doesn't seem to have any bad effect
— except perhaps for dry skin if washed too often.
These days also we have antimicrobial air conditioners and
air filters as well. These are designed to keep microbes and
pollen out of the interior atmosphere of a space. I would
imagine that these could have the same overall negative
affect on young people that the antiseptic cleaners do —
although in this case I would have to add that for people,
young or adult, who suffer from allergies or who have asthma
or some other respiratory problem that such conditioners
and filters could have a very positive benefit.
If we humans had eyes that were as powerful as microscopes
and by which we could see into all the hidden nooks and
cracks of our world and see the tiny life forms which live
with us constantly, I imagine that for most of us it would
be very unpleasant to think about. In fact if you want to
torture yourself I'm sure there are photos out there on
the internet that would allow you to see that type of thing.
But it's not some horrible science-fiction world that we
live in. It's just our world, our ordinary dirty world.
[/ALIGN]
A doctor on handwashing.
I have long believed in the 'dirt is good for you' way of doing things, and I find the obsession with cleanliness that goes way beyond simple control of potential infectious agents or hazards to be perplexing. Perhaps we have been socialized into it by clever advertising from the chemical companies. My son has grown up in a far from ultra-sanitized household and has no allergies and excellent health. I personally believe his immune system has benefited enormously from this environment.
My pleasure! ๐
Originally posted by musickna:
Oh yeah, you betcha. I see commercials on television for these cleansers all the time. Thanks for the view of a biologist. I'm kinda out of my area here! ๐
I used to play outside in the grass, in the dirt, in the pollen, with dogs and cats, chasing fireflies and butterflies, rolling down hills, squirting ourselves with–and drinking directly out of–water hoses and eating mud pies. ๐ Almost never sick, and never had allergies, either.Sad how much the world has changed.
I did the same things Star did and never had an allergy one until I hit my thirties; then, overnight, I woke up one morning and discovered I was allergic to all kinds of environmental situations and ingredients. And there was plenty of dirt around when I was a girl, so the man may have something.I've read plenty of scifi books on this theme—we may come to the place whereby we live in totally environmentally controlled lifestyle. May live under biodomes with never a step into the outside world.
What a dirty girl you were! :p ๐
Originally posted by L2D2:
I kinda feel I do sometimes I get out so little. It's like Forbidden Planet. Except without Anne Francis. ๐
๐
dirty here too! :lol:building strong immune system growing up,did my life so much easier……. :yes:
So many dirty girls!But clean women, I know it!:up:
When there is already a problem (asthma or allergies) then it is smart to limit the influence of microbes and dust or pollen around. But, trying to avoid all the bacteries is impossible. Washing hands belong to necessary level of self hygiene but what some people do is just insane :faint:Originally posted by Stardancer:
๐
As I have mentioned before I am engaged in this local recycling thing as a volunteer. We have a sort of yard where people come with all kinds of garbage that they can't get rid off by other means, and also garbage that can be recycled or just plain re-used. You woudn't believe the stuff people just trow out. Working with this is really dirty business. The other day we got about 130 beer and soda cans, that somebody had found in his garden shed where they had been sitting for three or four years. Way too old to drink. We had to empty each and every can into a container, because it would be hazardous to the invironment to just pour them in the zink. In reality what they put in for example cola is very dangerous stuff. Our regulations demanded us to work with latex gloves and do it outside or in a room with open windows. You can actually pour beer in the zink without having to worry, but cola is an entirely different thing. And this stuff we give our kids to drink.Slightly off topic, but hey… same difference, right?
I've heard some bad stuff about cola, like the carbonation being bad for the teeth, and the sugar and caffeine being bad for the body. Regarding it as hazardous waste is a new one. Antifreeze is the Bad One here in Spokane. People never seem to learn that you just can't dump the stuff out in a parking lot or on a street.
Well, I don't think ordinary fresh cola qualifies as hazardous waste. Only when it is old. Something about the chemical process when you open the can, as far as I know. We have about eight blue barrels for various chemical waste, and some boxes for batteries. Ordinary small batteries are to be handled like nuclear waste. We sometimes wonder about the regulations, but I guess they are made to ensure the security of us who work with the stuff.
Well just don't cut yourself on a rusty piece of metal. Those tetanus shots really hurt!
Oh jeez. :no:
Hey, when you can use a can of Coke to clean the terminals on your car's battery cables, that tells ya' that there's something in that Coke that is pretty potent.:eyes::lol:
I've fixed a clogged zink with a bottle of Coke once. For the records, the cannister we had to 'process' where Pepsi Max and a few locals brands. The beer was all local. Having the World's best ourselves, we don't do foreign beers in Denmark.
Originally posted by Aqualion:
Well there is Germany and the Netherlands. But I'll concede you that one. :up: ๐
Thanks, Scott. Yeah, rabies — certainly gotta watch out for that one. I was over at the grocery about an hour ago and I noticed they had these sanitary wiped you could use to wipe down the handle and child seat of your grocery card. But assuming say a mother does that, it doesn't eliminate the fact that she picks up things like can goods that are handled by store stockers or which things that people pick off the shelves and then put back. I think that some of these things, people just aren't thinking straight. It's just a psycological placebo. I do agree with you that various diseases should be dealt with though, like salmonela, which can be serious. :up:
i am only fastidious about cleanliness in the kitchen. salmonella and botulism are not on my list of the 'philosopher trying everything once.'i do agree about the findings about the immune system. i think a good immune system is the key to health in general. but that won't help with the more virulent diseases like tetanus, rabies, typhoid… even mumps and chicken pox. so, an eye to clean is also good. ๐ก
Well right now I absolutely have to take 6 different meds per day. LMAO. It's a total pain in the ass. Have a great weekend!
Originally posted by edwardpiercy:
yeah. it's a little crazy. like a phenomenal increase in people searching health sites… it's possible to become a hypochondriac just reading about the little aches and pains which come and go. too much imagination.we will all become like "monk" if we're not careful. :happy:and medicine… for god's sake, don't take anything unless you absolutely have to. :sherlock:
you too ed, be cool. well, that's what i meant. you must need the meds. ๐
Speaking of meds, I have become concerned about the pills prescribed for me by my latest family doctor, tramadol and Mirapex (generic of same), which is for Parkinson's Disease. She gave it to me for restless legs syndrome, and it has stopped the horrible charlie horses I have had for the past two years when I lie down at night.The druggist told me the Mirapex is a very strong medication, and I'm beginning to believe that it is responsible for the trouble I'm having remembering lately. Or maybe a combination of the two. But I'm easing myself off the Mirapex to see if that improves matters. I stay sleepy all the time since I've been taking those two meds. Can't go off them all at once. Am promised dire results if I do. If my legs start giving me problems again, I'll go back to taking them.It's a shame that today's medicines have so many bad side effects. It's a tradeoff—a bad result in exchange for a worse one!
That'd true, Linda. Have you asked your doctor about the possibilty of a reduced dose? Sometimes the side effects are lessened on a reduced dose. That is what happened to me on the Lisinopril.
I take 20mg Lisinoprils along with 240mg verapamil for my blood pressure, Edward. Tried the 10s, but they weren't strong enough. And those meds don't bother me much. I do need to ask the doctor if I can take a lesser dose. Also, it works well if you take two 10s twice a day rather than a 20 at one time. That way the full benefits are there, but it doesn't cause the problems of too stong a dose at one time.
get a juicer and exercise every day. lay off sugar and call me in a year. :spock:
That would probably work, Scott. Can't exercise a lot, though. Have a slipped disc in my back that causes a lot of pain in my lower back, hip joints and legs. Do you have a Jack Lalanne juicer? That man is going to live forever—he and Richard Simmons.
yes, linda. i have a jack lalane juicer. today i am juicing fresh strawberries. then i will add a banana to soy milk, yogurt and a protein/mineral powder. i won't be hungry again for eight hours.i have a slipped disc too. 20 years ago. but i haven't had a problem with it in 15 years. but i know how it feels. me, i was in bed with a piss pot for two weeks… could hardly move. that's what you get for picking up a gas powered lawn mover and setting it in the shed with a twist. chruuuunch… you could hear it.
I've also submittet to the juicer fab lately. That, and some ginseng snakeoil my wife recommended me. Tastes of liquorice and gives me an instant feeling of increased power lasting for about two hours. And since the wife and I decided to buy organic vegetables and fruits only and also found a really good local meat dealer who gets his products from local farmers only, my life energy and general health has improved imensely. Funny thing is, that even though organic products are slightly more costful, our echonomy has actually improved as well. I guess it is because you don't have to eat as much food when it is healthy and fresh. In fact I know it is because of that. I have done comparising research on that. I can feed three people for the same amount of money, I spent for two people when I bought conventional food products. This is a fact. Try it yourself, if you don't believe me.PS: I will never become a vegetarian.
Originally posted by Aqualion:
me too.and water… i have a filter on my faucet which takes out 99.9%. after i installed it, i felt twice as good. but i also like my perrier.you really can feel better if you watch what you put into yourself.eat half as much and feel better. :up: