Rub a little dirt in it….

….or better yet eat it.

I’ve read things like this before, but never in so august a journal as the New York Times.  Turns out those chemicals we spray on things or rub on our hands to prevent disease are (guess what) leaving us more vulnerable to disease.

Microbes may cause disease but it’s also microbes that fight the bad bugs and you don’t want to wipe them out.  Here’s a link to the full story:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/21/opinion/lets-add-a-little-dirt-to-our-diet.html?_r=2&emc=eta1&utm_source=August+2012+Enews&utm_campaign=FCA+August+2012+Enews&utm_medium=email

This isn’t exactly a scientific breakthrough.  I remember some years back (okay, like maybe 50) when as horrified parents we saw one of our progeny eating dirt and ran to the pediatrician.  Compounding the sin, the little fella kept crawling on the doctor’s office floor.  All good, the doctor told us.  He needs those germs (hadn’t heard of microbes back then) in his stomach to fight off bad germs.

If there is any surprise in this it is that we received the link from Bill Roberts.  Shocked, we are, shocked that we caught him reading the New York Times!