Is Being Too Clean Making Us Sick?

Episode 1 of 5

In the late 1980s a new idea surfaced called the "hygiene hypothesis". According to this new idea, early exposure to certain bacteria is extremely beneficial to the developing immune system of a child.

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Previous Series:

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Sources:

Your Inner Ecosystem:

"Biologists once thought that human beings were physiological islands, entirely capable of regulating their own internal workings. Our bodies made all the enzymes needed for breaking down food and using its nutrients to power and repair our tissues and organs."

Too Clean, Or Not Too Clean:

"The 'hygiene hypothesis' as originally formulated by Strachan, proposes that a cause of the recent rapid rise in atopic disorders could be a lower incidence of infection in early childhood, transmitted by unhygienic contact with older siblings."

Too Clean? Fight Against Germs Fuels Allergy Increase:

"A dose of dirt could be the best medicine for preventing allergies in kids who've never had them."

What Is the Hygiene Hypothesis?:

"Many parents believe that their children must be kept in an environment that is as clean as possible, but some research suggests that being exposed to what many would call unclean conditions is good for a child's immune system."

Hygiene Hypothesis:

"Millions of people suffer from the sneezing and wheezing of allergies and asthma, diseases that have suddenly become epidemic in some parts of the world. Initially, scientists blamed increasing air pollution for the surge in respiratory diseases."

Five Reasons Why You Should Probably Stop Using Antibacterial Soap:

"A few weeks ago, the FDA announced a bold new position on antibacterial soap: Manufacturers have to show that it's both safe and more effective than simply washing with conventional soap and water, or they have to take it off the shelves in the next few years."

FDA Taking Closer Look At 'Antibacterial' Soap:

"When you're buying soaps and body washes, do you reach for the bar or bottle labeled "antibacterial"? Are you thinking that these products, in addition to keeping you clean, will reduce your risk of getting sick or passing on germs to others?"

Triclosan And Antimicrobial Resistance In Bacteria:

"Triclosan is a widely used biocide that is considered as an effective antimicrobial agent against different microorganisms. It is included in many contemporary consumer and personal health-care products, like oral and dermal products, but also in household items, including plastics and textiles."

About Antimicrobial Resistance:

"Antibiotic / Antimicrobial resistance is the ability of microbes to resist the effects of drugs - that is, the germs are not killed, and their growth is not stopped."

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[David-zltp]

I used to be addicted to soap,
but I'm clean now.

[AKNeal]

Since being diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis and possibly severe case of it, I've had skin rashes that would only heal with use of steroids. After becoming majorly depressed I moved home and haven't gone out pretty much at all, but in my depression I slowed my washing schedule down greatly. Suddenly I noticed that reducing my number of showers(used to be daily) my skin has been able to heal better.

[JohnSmith-qyfh]

I have asthma, guess I didn't eat enough dirt

[aoeu]

You can put lots of herbs in your home; eating/drinking the tea of the herbs prevent cancer, depression, allergies, the leaves eat dust from the air, you can bury food scraps inside the potting soil to make more soil which after a while will go into the air helping your immune system.

[avarussurava]

If my food fall on a not too dirty ground, I eat it, I don't wash my hands every single time I touch something dirty/pets, I walk barefoot and guess what ? It's been almost 8 years since i've been sick and I think it's cause my immune system is well trained.

[faithhopeandlovetrustingJesus]

I think it does. I used to shower twice per day and wash my hands so much they bled lol, and I got sick ALL the TIME. It was frustrating. When one cold was gone another one would start up. Now, I shower twice per week, and I haven't got sick in like ...4 years. I found if you make yourself too sterile it makes there like no shield for the bad bacteria. You literally kill off your first line of defense if you shower too much and you make yourself weak. Sometimes I think that soap companies know this....so you will keep buying soap to clean away the constant colds xD

[PlasmaMongoose]

We don't need more pollution, we just need to be a little less sterile, after all we only want to give out immune systems some exorcise, not overwhelm them.

[williamallman]

It should be noted that it's not only hot water which removes the sebum, soap does the same thing, and both deplete the good bacteria which take 24 hours to rebuild their population. Shower with cool water, i.e. body temperature or lower, and only use soap daily on 3 areas--underarms, groin, and the gluteal fold (and maybe feet). Other than that, water pressure and manual agitation will remove the days' accumulation of bacterial waste products (which is what actually causes odor) and dried perspiration, and that only takes about five minutes. Use soap on your whole body only when needed, generally about once a week.

[fjoa]

IMO, most of our modern hygiene habits are all due just to product marketing. You see toothbrushes with a kilo of toothpaste on TV, but you need just a 1/10 of that to effectively clean your teeth. And Im not even going to mention how the shampoo industry has made women use like 19 different products to wash their hairs. Or anti-bacterial soaps which make kids get sick with higher frecuency because they kill all the bacteria which would be used to train their inmune systems, etc. Please stop watching TV guys, read and watch youtube instead (:

[marilynlucero]

I am 22, haven't been sick since the age of 8. A singular sneeze or cough here or there, but that is everything.
I have a strong immune system~

[amag]

Thank you! I've always been annoyed by germaphobes (like my dad), who constantly wash themselves and use antibacterial soaps. The only times I am wary of germs is when I handle raw meats or gross rotten foods etc. My immune system is fantastic, and I have very few problems with allergies...

[flipwarrior]

I grew up running bare footed, playing with dirt, and having many pets throughout my life. I have hay fever and intense allergies to many things, including cats and dogs.

Bad luck for me, I guess.

[ahh]

My brother is too clean... Every time someone touches his
He uses his hand and continues to pat it for hours and cries...

Please pray for him to get better... please.
I can't live with this.

[koukkoufos]

I used to be addicted to soap but now I came clean.

[garcia_ed]

Deodorant vs antiperspirant. Great video BTW!

[Owlabi]

So what I deduced from this is that my shower every three day schedule and habit of only wiping my important areas and washing my hair is actually good for me and not gross...Nice! xD

[adrenalinestairz]

When I worked in an assisted living facility they only used anti bacterial soap. We were required to wash our hands constantly. Well I got a rash on my hands and arms due to the anti bacterial soap. Of course it had Triclosan in it. My hands and arms got to be so bad that I had to buy just regular soap to use. I couldn't use hand sanitizer either. I noticed a lot of coworkers calling in and having antibiotic resistant infections.
Now that I don't work I refuse to be too clean. I think that the more bacteria and viruses we expose ourselves too, the better. Wouldn't it be awesome to have a sky high immune system so that if we ate some food containing bad bacteria and didn't get sick at all? And we were able to be exposed to Ebola and hepatitis and our immune systems would be able to just fight them off and we wouldn't get sick? And we didn't have to get vaccinated against anything because our immune system fought everything off? I believe that it's highly likely.
You know how anti bacterial soap creates super bugs that are resistant to antibiotics? Well I think that we should create an all natural environment that is super resistant to bugs and have super immunity to all bad bacteria and viruses so we'd never get sick. We can make it a reality.

[PhunkBustA]

I once drank water out of the gutter when i was a kid lol, im pretty unhygienic and I rarely get sick

[WouterSchouten]

This is a perfect case of "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger"

[Waterlooplein]

I know someone who grew up on a farm shoveling hog manure. He suffered badly from allergies. I grew up in the city and never have had allergies. However, one of my older brothers has allergies.