Is eliminating germs hazardous to your health?

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/healthscience/134293715_clean13.html

Sunday, May 13, 2001 - 12:00 a.m. Pacific

Is eliminating germs hazardous to your health?

By Bob Condor
Chicago Tribune

How clean is too clean? How dirty can we be and still be healthy?

No matter which hygiene question you prefer to ask, this is one matter best mediated by one hand washing the other. Let Dr. Gary Noskin explain.

"Always stop to wash your hands when they are visibly soiled," said Noskin, medical director of infection control at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, who has conducted numerous studies on the subject.

"We should wash them any time we come in contact with bacteria or viruses, such as when we touch our noses or use the bathroom. Our findings show using soap, water and friction for 25 to 30 seconds is what's most effective."

Passing bacteria and viruses among us is the most common way we get sick with any infectious disease, including colds and flu. Hand-to-hand contact is a major culprit; so is touching items such as faucet handles or telephones that are harboring bacteria and other germs. That's why hand washing is a must for daily health.

The antibacterial-soap debate

Yet an ongoing scientific debate focuses on whether there is such a thing as being too clean. Researchers have been asking - and finding - that maybe our homes and indoor environments are overly resistant to germs. There is growing skepticism about whether antibacterial soaps are necessary.

The American Medical Association recently asked the government to expedite review of such products to determine if they actually pose a health threat by encouraging the growth of super-resistant bacteria. It has even been argued that a young child covered head to toe in grime might be strengthening his immune system rather than just tracking in mud.

The debate breaks into two parts. One issue is keeping our hands and bodies clean. The other hot point is exposure to allergens ranging from dust to pollen to cat dander, especially among young kids.

Dr. Stuart Levy of Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston is a highly outspoken critic of new antibacterial soaps and cleansers. He said these products are providing a false sense of security among consumers and "could be promoting superbugs that might otherwise be kept in check."

Using antibacterial products wipes out not only the harmful bacteria and germs but also "good" bacteria. Levy said household standbys such as chlorine bleach, hydrogen peroxide and alcohol are antibacterial cleaners, but once you use them, they vanish. The newer synthetic products leave a residue to kill bacteria for an extended period, not allowing the good bacteria to re-establish themselves.

Good bacteria are vital for the intestinal tract, fighting off germs. They also help the body make vitamins and protect it at the mouth and skin layer.

"The vast majority of bacteria are out there serving a purpose for us," said Levy, director of the Tufts center for adaptation genetics and drug resistance. "They help our intestinal tract mature, and they help our immune system mature."

Levy recommends using stronger hand cleansers only when someone in the household is seriously ill or has lowered immunity. Wiping hands on a paper towel might even be most important, he said, because it gets organisms off the hand even if you don't kill them.

The hygiene hypothesis

As for the second part of the too-clean debate, Levy makes frequent presentations about what is known as the "hygiene hypothesis." It holds that when small children do not get enough exposure to bacteria, the immune system can overreact to pollen or dust or other typically harmless substances.

Parents might think they are doing the right thing using antibacterial soaps and household cleaners, strong laundry detergents, antiseptic diapers and minimizing exposure to other children and pets. Now it seems they might need to think again.

"I have been studying the data from Europe for 10 years," Levy said. "Europeans with the highest air-pollution report the least amount of allergies. In addition, one recent Italian study showed exposure to bacteria is essential for development of an infant's immune system.

"It's just like a child needs exercise to build strong bones and muscles," Levy said.

"A child's immune system needs its own workout to develop a normal resistance to infections."

ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR LEGAL ADVICE. THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.