Caution: Killing Germs May Be Hazardous to Your Health

« Return to Article

Discuss

Member Comments

  • Posted By: marbleworksawalke15 @ 10/24/2007 7:06:05 PM

    The author is a poet - "Their ancestors began colonizing you the moment you came into the world, inches from the least sanitary part of your mother's body, and their descendants will have their final feast on your corpse, and join you in death." I would not try to live without them, I could just eat them up"!!

  • Posted By: marbleworksawalke15 @ 10/24/2007 7:04:07 PM

    It is as though we are one symbiotic community - we need the bacteria, and many of them need us. The author of this article is a poet - "Their ancestors began colonizing you the moment you came into the world, inches from the least sanitary part of your mother's body, and their descendants will have their final feast on your corpse, and join you in death." Thank you for that !

  • Posted By: literati408 @ 10/24/2007 6:04:39 PM

    Wow, Justmethinking--you are so far behind, you think you're first. Give you any open forum, and I'll bet you have something anti-gay to say. What's next--pumpkin carving? Go back to school, take a science course or two. Blood, mucus, tissue, and babies come out of vaginas. Mucus, vomit, bile, and saliva come out of mouths. Bacteria are everywhere and have been for a lot longer than we have (although something tells me you don't believe that, either). I'll also bet you have no idea how many billions of microscopic mites there are in your carpeting, drapes, and dishtowels...or your eyelashes. The media are getting tired of reporting the same old thing every day, so of course they're going to jump on the one or two studies that--shiver me timbers--report a rise in ANYTHING, be it bedbugs or staph infections. There's something alarmist about it, sure, but no more so than usual. How many people do you know who contracted SARS? Perhaps you should take your head out of your own "out hole" long enough to stop prattling on about what other people put in theirs. Ignorance like yours is the only real filth in this world.

    • Posted By: sienna1300 @ 10/24/2007 7:04:01 PM

      Wow, literati408---you assume Justmethinking does not accept the evolutionary process as a scientific fact because he displayed a certain amount of ignorance and/or intollerance? What kind of ignorance and/or intollerance have you just displayed with your assumption?

    • Posted By: sienna1300 @ 10/24/2007 7:00:01 PM

      Wow, literati408---you assume that Justmethinking must not accept evolution as a scientific fact because he displayed a certain amount of intollerance and/or ignorance? What type of intollerance and/or ignorance have you just displayed with that assumption?

  • Posted By: imagoro @ 10/24/2007 7:03:19 PM

    Great article Jerry Adler. The only problem I had with it, is that it seemed to sensationalize the misinformed fact that we should embrace all bacteria. The subtitle of the peice lends itself to that idea. I understand that it is meant to hook readers but informing the reader is also important and these days many people skim rather than read. It doesn't seem to be really stated matter of factly that "researchers now believe the key is exposure to a wide range of harmless germs" until page 4. Many people still don't understand this. We need to understand that our relationship with bacteria is a complicated one and that antibacterial products are not bad because they kill bacteria in general but because they kill both bad and good bacteria without distinction. Unfortunately I think it was not "a brief vogue for intentionally exposing youngsters to disease" but something that is still very popular. Other than this point, I thoroughly enjoyed the article. Thanks!

  • Posted By: imagoro @ 10/24/2007 6:55:58 PM

    Great piece Jerry Adler. I found this very interesting. But I think you are helping to perpetuate the idea that all bacteria should be embraced by your subtitle "new science tells us we should embrace bacteria". Maybe it would have been more apt to say "new science tells us we should embrace good (or helpful?) bacteria". It wasn't until page 4 of the article that the fact was stated that "researchers now believe the key is exposure to a wide range of harmless germs". Unfortunately many people still believe that exposure to any kind of bacteria is helpful which caused as your article states "the brief vogue for intentionally exposing youngsters to disease". I don't really think this was a brief vogue, many parents and adults in general still don't understand that its not helpful to use antibacterial soaps and hand sanitizers not because it kills bacteria, which one should be exposed to, but because it kills both bad and good bacteria across the board. The complexity of the bacteria question is never really understood by most people and I think journalists and scientists should do their best to lay out the truth of the situation. While I understand that the more sensational a title you create the more readers you will attract, I think that mentality should be balanced with a commitment to informing the populace. Otherwise I found this to be a great informative article.

  • Posted By: Nian Li @ 10/24/2007 6:49:05 PM

    A very interesting article! I am an acquaintance of a Daoist master named He, Binhui. I have been his student for over 3 years now. He is well known in China for medical qigong. One of the concepts he teaches is that we should learn to get along with bacteria, not try to wipe them out.

    It is encouraging to learn of research and articles being published in JAMA that supports this notion. It is also gratifying to learn of these things in a major publication such as Newsweek.

  • Posted By: penny'sthoughts @ 10/24/2007 6:48:32 PM

    The Pediatrician I had 40 years ago knew what she was talking about when she told me it was not necessary to sterilize everything around the children..she said they needed to build their won resistance to germs nd bacteria.
    If the children were sick she did not give them antibiotics unless it was really necessary.
    Today Parents insist on antibiotics thinking they are the cure all....
    Look at how many "Anti Bacterial" products are sold, not giving our children the opportunity to
    build up their own defense.

  • Posted By: Nian Li @ 10/24/2007 6:42:22 PM

    This is a very interesting article. I am an acquaintance of a Daoist master named He, Binhui. I have been a student of his for over 3 years now. He is well known for medical qigong in China. Part of the training he gives is the idea that it is better to be exposed to the bacteria and "get along" with them than to try and wipe them out.. It is encouraging to see articles like these at all...and more so in a major publication like Newsweek..

  • Posted By: literati408 @ 10/24/2007 6:09:21 PM

    Endthesickness--I applaud your overall message, but some of what you said is misleading. Colds are viruses (the rhinovirus), NOT bacteria--two completely different organisms. Antibiotics are specifically for killing bacteria. Viruses do not respond to antibiotics, because they are not bacteria. Using a cold as part of your argument against over-prescription of antiobiotics is noble, but only if you know the reason why. Yes, your body will pull through a cold just fine on its own, but not because you leave antibiotics alone--it'll pull through on its own because cold VIRUSES have been around long enough to have become a lot less serious than they used to be.

  • Posted By: endthesickness @ 10/24/2007 5:51:53 PM

    Ok, People I just have to say that this whole "MONSTER BUG" that is in the news seems to be bothering everyone. Well, I would like to enlighten everyone with this idea.....
    STOP USING ALL THE LYSOL AND GERMEX....
    Why might you ask.......
    WELL...
    Germs are nessary for the human body to build immunity...YES....
    I said it , you need to touch a few door handles and even shake hands with a stranger and leave your hand ALONE.
    The reason all of our children are at risk for this "SUPER BUG" is because the physicians are over prescribing ANTIBIOTICS.

    SO......The next time you decide you are sick...and need some ANTIBIOTICS.....Think before you run to the Doctor for ANTIBIOTICS.

    The reason ANTIBIOTICS are even subscribed is to "help your immune system pull through" but you see, the thing is, You likely to kick the cold you have all by yourself.

    Fevers over 102 F , by all means go...but if your just feeling lousy, REST...
    REST......REST
    Your body is feeling like crap because its busy fighting off the cold you have.

  • Posted By: endthesickness @ 10/24/2007 5:49:44 PM

    Ok, People I just have to say that this whole "MONSTER BUG" that is in the news seems to be bothering everyone. Well, I would like to enlighten everyone with this idea.....
    STOP USING ALL THE LYSOL AND GERMEX....
    Why might you ask.......
    WELL...
    Germs are nessary for the human body to build immunity...YES....
    I said it , you need to touch a few door handles and even shake hands with a stranger and leave your hand ALONE.
    The reason all of our children are at risk for this "SUPER BUG" is because the physicians are over prescribing ANTIBIOTICS.

    SO......The next time you decide you are sick...and need some ANTIBIOTICS.....Think before you run to the Doctor for ANTIBIOTICS.

    The reason ANTIBIOTICS are even subscribed is to "help your immune system pull through" but you see, the thing is, You likely to kick the cold you have all by yourself.

    Fevers over 102 F , by all means go...but if your just feeling lousy, REST...
    REST......REST
    Your body is feeling like crap because its busy fighting off the cold you have.

  • Posted By: HidraGirl @ 10/24/2007 5:44:17 PM

    People also need to be aware that if they are getting recurring boils they may have Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS). HS is often misdiagnosed as a Staph infection. However unlike Staph and MRSA, HS is *NOT* contagious. If you are getting recurrent boils in inverse areas and have been diagnosed as having a Staph infection I recommend you investigate the disease Hidradenitis Suppurativa.

    http://www.hs-foundation.org
    http://www.hs-usa.org

  • Posted By: fihuang @ 10/24/2007 4:55:44 PM

    Unfortunately, advertisements for products such as Lysol and Chlorox try to scare parents to keep everything sanitized. I am more worried about the products in Lysol than I am of the rhinovirus. The same goes for these anti-bacterial soaps. Years ago they had an ad campaign on the New York City subways, scaring the people who were holding to the bars or the pole, when the reality is that metal breeds very little bacteria, and most of that bacteria is harmless and probably good for developing our immune system. Let us not even forget about the environmental damage caused by manufacturing, shipping, and disposing these products. Using products that are usually meant for hospitals and other medical facilities for the every day home is completely unnecessary. Commons sense hygiene is important, but people who chronically wash their hands need to think about people in the rest of the world who barely have enough water just to drink, cook, and bathe. As for Mr. Sansoni from the Soap and Detergent Association, why do you make all of these soaps anti-bacterial, when the research has shown that they do not make a difference. Soap works by lifting dirt off skin, which prevents bacteria from breeding. By adding triclosan, a topical antibiotic, you are adding an unnecessary chemical that does very little to keep hands any cleaner than they should be. As I mentioned before, your industry's advertising has contributed to this germaphobic anxiety that exists in this country. This has prevented children from developing their immune system properly, and, most likely, this has probably contributed to the increase in allergies in this country. It is just not natural for us to live in a germ-free environment; instead, we have to learn to co-exist.

    Flora Huang, BA (Biology), MPH

  • Posted By: fihuang @ 10/24/2007 4:54:57 PM

    Unfortunately, advertisements for products such as Lysol and Chlorox try to scare parents to keep everything sanitized. I am more worried about the products in Lysol than I am of the rhinovirus. The same goes for these anti-bacterial soaps. Years ago they had an ad campaign on the New York City subways, scaring the people who were holding to the bars or the pole, when the reality is that metal breeds very little bacteria, and most of that bacteria is harmless and probably good for developing our immune system. Let us not even forget about the environmental damage caused by manufacturing, shipping, and disposing these products. Using products that are usually meant for hospitals and other medical facilities for the every day home is completely unnecessary. Commons sense hygiene is important, but people who chronically wash their hands need to think about people in the rest of the world who barely have enough water just to drink, cook, and bathe. As for Mr. Sansoni from the Soap and Detergent Association, why do you make all of these soaps anti-bacterial, when the research has shown that they do not make a difference. Soap works by lifting dirt off skin, which prevents bacteria from breeding. By adding triclosan, a topical antibiotic, you are adding an unnecessary chemical that does very little to keep hands any cleaner than they should be. As I mentioned before, your industry's advertising has contributed to this germaphobic anxiety that exists in this country. This has prevented children from developing their immune system properly, and, most likely, this has probably contributed to the increase in allergies in this country. It is just not natural for us to live in a germ-free environment; instead, we have to learn to co-exist.

    Flora Huang, BA (Biology), MPH

  • Posted By: Evagation @ 10/23/2007 4:41:58 PM

    Thank you, Newsweek for your fantastic article. I've had Crohn's Disease for almost twenty years (and I'm only 26) and I have been trying, for years, to explain to people that the rise in auto-immune diseases like mine is at least partially related to our super-sanitized worlds. Most people do not realize that, as organic beings, we need germs in our systems to perform vital functions necessary to our life. Asthma and other auto-immune illnesses became widespread, global problems when we completely removed ourselves from nature and trapped ourselves in sterile, artificial environments. We were never meant to live in such environments, as organic creatures, we were meant to live in an organic environment that would expose our bodies to germs and give our bodies a chance to acclimate to them. Our immune systems are truly amazing and, if we expose them to the right microbes, it will only make our immune system stronger. (I don't want this comment to come off as preaching that everyone should expose their kids to all germs--the article made it very clear, and I completely agree with Jessica Sach's assertion that we must be careful to expose ourselves to the "good" microbes.) Thank you Newsweek, again, for bringing people's attention to the harm we are doing to ourselves with our overly sanitized environments.

  • Posted By: Evagation @ 10/23/2007 4:41:48 PM

    Thank you, Newsweek for your fantastic article. I've had Crohn's Disease for almost twenty years (and I'm only 26) and I have been trying, for years, to explain to people that the rise in auto-immune diseases like mine is at least partially related to our super-sanitized worlds. Most people do not realize that, as organic beings, we need germs in our systems to perform vital functions necessary to our life. Asthma and other auto-immune illnesses became widespread, global problems when we completely removed ourselves from nature and trapped ourselves in sterile, artificial environments. We were never meant to live in such environments, as organic creatures, we were meant to live in an organic environment that would expose our bodies to germs and give our bodies a chance to acclimate to them. Our immune systems are truly amazing and, if we expose them to the right microbes, it will only make our immune system stronger. (I don't want this comment to come off as preaching that everyone should expose their kids to all germs--the article made it very clear, and I completely agree with Jessica Sach's assertion that we must be careful to expose ourselves to the "good" microbes.) Thank you Newsweek, again, for bringing people's attention to the harm we are doing to ourselves with our overly sanitized environments.

  • Posted By: bsansoni @ 10/23/2007 10:27:54 AM

    In Newsweek's press release for this story and in the on-air promotions (Newsweek on Air, MSNBC), the reporters are making all kinds of claims about antibacterial soaps and cleaners that aren't backed up by the facts. We've seen no real-life evidence that these beneficial products are contributing to the MRSA problem or to antibiotic resistance at-large.

    What is not being emphasized enough is the major real-life contributor to much of the antibiotic resistance problem: the misuse and over-prescription of antibiotic drugs.

    Clearly, when it comes to dealing with the staph infection problems we're seeing, common sense hygiene practices need to prevail. But we can do without the headline hype that can discourage the use of beneficial hygiene and cleaning products.

    Brian Sansoni,
    VP-Communication
    The Soap and Detergent Association, Washington, D.C.
    www.cleaning101.com

  • Posted By: Justmethinking @ 10/22/2007 11:24:25 AM

    OK, I am not going to disagree with you, but I would like to point out that while your statement, "But bacteria never surrender; if there were one salmonella left in the world, doubling every 30 minutes, it would take less than a week to give everyone alive diarrhea." is probably accurate, for it to actually do that every person in the world would have to come stick their fingers in the germs and then ingest it. You statement was concocted to be alarmist, and is not indicative of reality. I will continue washing my hands and sanitizing when I feel like doing so. "I" do a good job when cleaning them and it has cut down on my sicknesses since I started being effective at it several years ago. No, it won't give me eternal life. I don't expect it to. But there has been no evidence of any of the germs on my hands that die from alcohol contact, evolving or morphing into an acohol resistant germ. These different infections that are occuring are the direct result of people who aren't clean, who don't complete their medicines, who gather and spread filth because they are uncivilized. Note the recent reports (alarmist again) of bed bugs re-infesting the U.S. Did they suddenly appear out of thin air, cast there by a magic spell by a gay Dumbledor? No... They were carried there by humans who are not clean, who care little or nothing about others.

    No, we can't irradicate germs. But we can and should educate people to be cleaner. And yes, I was trying to annoy people with the Gay Dumbledor statement above. Did it bother you.? Too bad. "That' group is part of the worst filth offenders and you know why. (In an out door)

    Likely this will not be posted. If it is, then good. If not, then I know where Newsweek stands in relation to morality versus depravity.

    • Posted By: 2cents @ 10/22/2007 12:34:46 PM

      Wow "justmethinking", are you saying that the gay community is the most responsible for spreading germs?! That sounds pretty "alarmist" to me. Get a grip guy. Let's keep this discussion on topic.
      With regards to bacteria not evolving alcohol resistance, that is because of the way in which alcohol works. It denatures all the proteins of the microbe. There is no protein that can withstand this. The bug will die quickly and completely regardless of what proteins it is made of. Antibiotics target individual proteins to disrupt the function of a part of the bug???s metabolism. Many bacteria have alternate, or backup systems to get around the attack. Also just one cell in a million with a mutation in that target protein will render the antibiotic ineffective against it and that one little cell will grow to replace the other cells that died. A resistant strain is born. It has nothing to do with "unclean people" and everything to do with the way antibiotics and genetics work. It is bound to happen. But, you are right in that the most effective thing we can do is to maintain good hygiene habits.

      • Posted By: JackDrewA @ 10/22/2007 8:03:06 PM

        to paraphrase some ancient wisdom: let he who is without bacteria cast the first...

  • Posted By: MelvinBear @ 10/22/2007 1:16:27 PM

    Enter Your Comment

  • Posted By: MelvinBear @ 10/22/2007 1:15:55 PM

    first of all, the reason alcohol works as an antiseptic is because unlike normal antibiotics which are comprised of chemical compounds that specificially target and inhibit the normal activities of certain proteins, enzymes, and cofactors, an alcohol solution draws water out of the cells (bacteria, germs, etc) thus killing them. basic biophysics where a cell has a high concentration of water relative to an alcohol solution thus the water molecules will diffuse down the gradient and out of the cell. that's how alcohol works to disinfect!

    Secondly, if cleanliness is the answer, then why is it that hospitals have the most dangerous/pathogenic forms of germs, bacteria, etc. when they are routinely cleaned and disinfected? It's because of the evolution via mutation by the germs, bacteria against the antibiotics!

Reply

Report Abuse

Enter comments if any for reporting abuse