The Hidden Places Germs Lurk

Many surfaces and objects you come in contact with every day are covered in germs -- but then again, so are you. "Ninety percent of you is composed of germ cells," said Philip Tierno, director of clinical microbiology and immunology at NYU and author of "The Secret Life of Germs."

He explained that while we are constantly in contact with germs, only a small minority will cause any harm.

"Of the 60,000 types of germs that people come in contact with on a daily basis ... only about 1 [percent] to 2 percent are potentially dangerous to normal people with normal immunity," he said.

That works out well for us, because pretty much any surface contains some of these microscopic organisms.

"There's very few surfaces that are truly clean," said Dr. Aaron Glatt, president and CEO of New Island Hospital in Bethpage, N.Y., and a spokesman for the Infectious Disease Society of America. "You're almost never going to culture something and not find some germs on it."

Keep reading...

Comments

[Vyvjala]

Try watching the RNC..................plenty of germs................

[research]

" When Is Clean Too Clean?

Even with use of antiseptic preparations, which substantially reduce counts of hand flora, no reductions beyond an equilibrium level are attained (66). The numbers of organisms spread from the hands of nurses who washed frequently with an antimicrobial soap actually increased after a period of time; this increase is associated with declining skin health (67). In a recent survey, nurses with damaged hands were twice as likely to be colonized with S. hominis, S. aureus, gram-negative bacteria, enterococci, and Candida spp. and had a greater number of species colonizing the hands (64).

The trend in both the general public and among health-care professionals toward more frequent washing with detergents, soaps, and antimicrobial ingredients needs careful reassessment in light of the damage done to skin and resultant increased risk for harboring and transmitting infectious agents. More washing and scrubbing are unlikely to be better and may, in fact, be worse. The goal should be to identify skin hygiene practices that provide adequate protection from transmission of infecting agents while minimizing the risk for changing the ecology and health of the skin and increasing resistance in the skin flora."

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol7no2/larson.htm

Also look up the Swedish study linking allergies to to clean a childhood.

The immune system need constant updating. Ideally, we get weakened version of all the dangerous germs so our system can learn how to fight them.

[wolfgangmo]

If the developing immune system doesn't get "exercised" then it doesn't grow any muscles.

We are growing a generation of week paranoid kids.

Sigh.

Just let them play in the mud.

[research]

moderation in all things.