4 ms·

I presume you're referring to the "Hygiene hypothesis" which links early childhood exposure to microorganisms with fewer allergies and autoimmune disorders. It

by lukev 3y ago

I presume you're referring to the "Hygiene hypothesis" which links early childhood exposure to microorganisms with fewer allergies and autoimmune disorders. It's important to note that this has not been demonstrated conclusively, and when medical professionals talk about it they stress that it's not worth exposing yourself to fecal matter intentionally to "build resistance." Personal cleanliness is still one of the more important things you can do for health. A reasonable compromise seems to be: let your kids play in the dirt, but also teach them to wash their hands after using the bathroom.

zdragnar 3y ago
We've absolutely seen that people not exposed to certain types of bacteria don't develop resistances to it. There's a reason tourists have to drink bottled or sterilized water, after all. That said, your compromise seems right, but it missed the point of the parent post. Living in a hyper-sterilized world is going to have consequences.
solarpunk 3y ago
Yeah, folks gotta understand the hygiene hypothesis kinda relies on assumptions about baseline environments, it falls flat on its face if you consider environments with industrialized biological contaminants such as hospitals, factory farms, or open sewage.
pmarreck 3y ago
FYI I have psoriasis and I was consciously avoiding any dirt as a kid, I was just always repulsed by dirt and mud and whatnot (was not a huge fan of sand either)... Years later I find out that non-exposure to certain environmental bacteria (that usually exist in dirt) within a certain developmental window results in a much higher chance of getting stuck with lifelong psoriasis... F___ me
Chico75 3y ago
In case anyone is curious about research related to this area, you can read the short history from Karelia study to biodiversity and public health interventions (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10043497/#:~:text=The%20Karelia%20Allergy%20Study%202002,circuits%20and%20lower%20allergy%20prevalence https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10043497/#:~:te....) research paper that looks at the health condition disparities between the Russian and Finnish border kids.

by lukev 3y ago

zdragnar 3y ago

We've absolutely seen that people not exposed to certain types of bacteria don't develop resistances to it. There's a reason tourists have to drink bottled or sterilized water, after all. That said, your compromise seems right, but it missed the point of the parent post. Living in a hyper-sterilized world is going to have consequences.

solarpunk 3y ago

Yeah, folks gotta understand the hygiene hypothesis kinda relies on assumptions about baseline environments, it falls flat on its face if you consider environments with industrialized biological contaminants such as hospitals, factory farms, or open sewage.

pmarreck 3y ago

FYI I have psoriasis and I was consciously avoiding any dirt as a kid, I was just always repulsed by dirt and mud and whatnot (was not a huge fan of sand either)... Years later I find out that non-exposure to certain environmental bacteria (that usually exist in dirt) within a certain developmental window results in a much higher chance of getting stuck with lifelong psoriasis... F___ me

Chico75 3y ago

In case anyone is curious about research related to this area, you can read the short history from Karelia study to biodiversity and public health interventions (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10043497/#:~:text=The%20Karelia%20Allergy%20Study%202002,circuits%20and%20lower%20allergy%20prevalence https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10043497/#:~:te....) research paper that looks at the health condition disparities between the Russian and Finnish border kids.