There is no doubt in my mind that you make every attempt to give your child as many advantages as humanly possible. You cook good food, bath them and make sure they get enough rest, engage them in activities to increase their brain power and instruct them on the social etiquette needed to help them grow into a good global citizen. But do you let them eat dirt?
Probably not. But what studies have discovered, a little dirt goes a long way in your efforts to grow a healthy child. Dirt!
According to Dr. Joel V. Weinstock, the director of gastroenterology and hepatology at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, your child's immune system “is like an unprogrammed computer. It needs instruction.” he doesn't discount the fact that efforts make the environment safe by cleaning up contaminated water and food have saved the lives of countless children, but, he also adds, these efforts have “also eliminated exposure to many organisms that are probably good for us.”
“Children raised in an ultraclean environment,” he added, “are not being exposed to organisms that help them develop appropriate immune regulatory circuits.”
The answer apparently is not just the dirt, but the worms who make the earth their habitat of choice. many places in the developed world have all but eliminated exposure to these creatures and the result is an increase in immune system disorders like multiple sclerosis, Type 1 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, asthma and allergies".
Dr. Ruebush, the “Why Dirt Is Good” author does not suggest we throw out the wash water but she does point out that “The typical human probably harbors some 90 trillion microbes. The very fact that you have so many microbes of so many different kinds is what keeps you healthy most of the time.”
Citing the overall health of children who grow up in a rural environment, exposed to dirt, animals and worms, Dr. David Elliott, a gastroenterologist and immunologist at the University of Iowa suggest we may be taking the whole cleanliness thing a bit too far. He suggests that “Children should be allowed to go barefoot in the dirt, play in the dirt, and not have to wash their hands when they come in to eat.”
Sure, we all practice post bathroom wash-ups and clean where we might, hands, tables, dishes. But a little grim can go a long way in helping your child grow up healthy - or at least healthier.
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