A new study suggests that the right kind of dirt—dirt containing the right combination of germs and allergens—can actually be good for us. Weve posted about the “hygiene hypothesis” before. This is the idea that modern standards of cleanliness (definitely good from most perspectives) are reducing the effectiveness of our immune system. More specifically, it’s the notion that exposure to bacteria when we’re very young helps train and calibrate our immune system so that it targets real health threats but ignores harmless substances in the environment. So not being exposed to bacteria early in life actually makes it more likely that we’ll have allergies or asthma, or that our immune systems will over-react to common, everyday things. But it turns out that certain combinations of bacteria and allergens may be better than others when it comes to supporting the immune system and preventing asthma and allergies. Here’s a short link history of NPR’s coverage of this idea: June 2014: npr.org/blogs/health/2014/06/06/319420973/early-exposure-to-bacteria-protects-children-from-asthma-and-allergies March 2012: npr.org/blogs/health/2012/03/23/149232765/why-getting-grimy-as-a-child-can-make-for-a-healthier-life February 2011: npr.org/blogs/health/2011/02/04/133371076/how-keeping-little-girls-squeaky-clean-could-make-them-sick And here’s a link to the full study in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(14)00593-4/fulltext
Posted on: Sat, 14 Jun 2014 17:30:12 +0000