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caption56 goodhealth. ARE WE too clean? Some experts claim our obsession with cleanliness may be linked to an increase in allergic diseases. So how much germ protection do we need, asks Bonnie Vaughan W ith all the products on the market that promise to liberate us from the tyranny of germs, you would think our lives were under serious daily threat. Thanks to a staggering choice, we can arm ourselves with soaps, detergents, hand gels, toilet cleaners, air fresheners, surface sprays and wipes, bin liners, mouthwashes, toothpastes, cutting boards and toys that pledge to kill 99.9 per cent of harmful bacteria before it kills us. In the 21st century, it seems the simple act of combining soap, water and a little commonsense doesn’t cut it anymore. But should it? As our obsession with über-cleanliness has gained momentum over the last century, so has the number of autoimmune and allergic diseases. And many experts suspect this is no coincidence. WHY SOME BACTERIA IS GOOD FOR US Back in 1989, British scientist David Strachan found a link between hayfever and family size, known as the hygiene hypothesis. He discovered that allergic disorders were less common in younger siblings of large families thanks to cross-infection in early childhood from brothers and sisters or from a mother infected by contact with her older children. This gave rise to the idea that children’s lack of exposure to germs and other infectious substances has led to underdeveloped immune systems. Fuelling this theory are additional studies showing that: children who grow up on farms with animals have lower rates of allergies and immune-related diseases than their urban counterparts; the use of antibiotics in the rst year of life has been linked to asthma and other allergic diseases; and that the incidence of immunological disorders rises not only in children of immigrants who have moved West but also in those born into increasingly a uent

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caption57 gm1212clep57.pdf Page 57 22/10/2012, 11:24:44 AM

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caption58 PHOTOGRAPHY GETTY IMAGES / LEVI BROWN/ TRUNKARCHIVE. COM/ SNAPPER MEDIA. PHOTOGRAPHY GETTY IMAGES EMBRACE SOAP AND WATER You should always wash and dry your hands after going to the toilet, blowing your nose and before handling food – especially when switching between raw and cooked. But using plain soap and hot water will suffi ce. You’re killing your normal skin fl ora and encouraging dermatitis when you wash with antibacterial soap. Similarly, your kitchen and bathroom surfaces do not need to be disinfected. You should avoid chopping up vegetables on the same cutting board as raw meat, chicken or fi sh, for instance, but you don’t need to go overboard. Simply wipe down the cutting board with hot soapy water and turn it over. REPLACE CLEANING CLOTHS FREQUENTLY That goes for sponges and tea towels, too. When you wipe something down, you need to either rinse and dry out the cloth or get rid of it. Don’t leave it scrunched up and wet – it’s a nice environment for microbes to proliferate and it’s probably increasing your exposure. SKIP THE TOILET CLEANER By all means scrub your toilet clean but forget about gels, blocks, bleach, foams or discs. You don’t need to pour anything down your toilet other than what you use to clean it to remove all the particulate matter. As for all the bacteria in the bowl, there are two rules: close the lid before fl ushing to keep germs from becoming airborne, and don’t drink the water in it. DITCH THE MOUTHWASH We need to be diligent about tooth decay and infectious gum disease, but using antimicrobial mouthwashes or toothpastes is not the way to go. Good dental hygiene is as simple as removing food residue from your teeth. The physical action of brushing is often more important than the toothpaste. Abrasive fi brous foods such as carrots, celery and apples also help scour the teeth. And, of course, don’t forget to fl oss. REDUCE YOUR ANTIBIOTIC INTAKE Over-prescribin

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captionPHOTOGRAPHY GETTY IMAGES infl uenza and the common cold, are viral, and antibiotics do not kill viruses – they’re eff ective only against bacteria. We shouldn’t be using penicillin or derivatives to treat viral infections. All you’re doing is altering your normal fl ora and breeding resistant bugs. Even if we avoid prescription antibiotics, we may still be ingesting them without even realising it. The Australian government exercises strict regulatory controls aimed at ensuring responsible antibiotic use in local animal-based food production industries. The bigger concern is imported seafood. Earlier this year, reports surfaced that the number of Asian fi sh imports containing banned antibiotics is rising due to low levels of testing by the federal department. I would not eat any imported food – meat, fi sh or vegetable. LET YOUR KIDS GET A LITTLE DIRTY I think it’s very important that children are exposed to a degree of microbial agents in the environment. Just make sure they wash their hands before eating. The most important thing is the removal of surface matter. If they’ve been using the sandpit and you know the cat hasn’t been using it as well, it’s probably not even necessary to do that. g m1212_ I n ABo x _ H P H.p d f P a g e 1 10/22/2012, 12:56:24 P M gm1212clep59.pdf Page 59 22/10/2012, 4:02:46 PM