I’ve raised two kids, and through the years, I cant even tell you how many times I’ve wiped dirt off faces or begged filthy children to wash their little hands. It was like a constant battle to keep them even remotely clean. Turns out, it might have all been in vain!
Brett Finlay is a professor at the University of British Columbia and co-author of Let Them Eat Dirt: Saving Your Child from an Oversanitized World, and he believes that kids must be allowed to get dirty. He cautions parents and teachers from offering up hand sanitizer or foaming up soapy hands at every turn because it actually does more harm than good. It kills off the good germs, along with the relatively few bad ones. I guess little microbes found in dirt and dirty things play a crucial role in training a child’s immune system to respond correctly, and to populate the good microflora in their gut. I don’t know much about microflora in guts, but what I do know is that it’s pretty important!
“Finlay says studies have shown that kids who grow up on farms or have dogs at home are 20 percent less likely to develop asthma, the reason being that they’re always in contact with a greater number of microbes, often feces, which Finlay doesn’t see as a bad thing. Fecal transplants are being used successfully to repopulate good microflora in some patients whose intestinal microbes have been wiped out by antibiotic treatments.”
Looks like what his studies have shown and the science backs up is that keeping kiddos constantly clean is actually not the best thing to do. Well I wish someone would have told me that 20 years ago! But at least now, when I encourage people to go play in the dirt and Dig for Your Dinner, I can be talking to readers and their little people!
Get to diggin’
~Mavis
Debbie says
We hag dogs and the kids got dirty and they still have asthma and allergies.
TX Deborah says
Thank you for this. I think kids need to play in the dirt. Either gardening or whatever. The most healthy kids I know have played in the dirt and even, yes, gasp, eaten dirt. I did, and my kids did. Yes, we all have allergies, but genetics has to do with that, not getting dirty, or dirt.
Carole says
We stayed outside all day. We ate lunch off a paper plate, shared our sandwich with the dog and drank from a hose. We climbed trees ,played chase and tried to dig a hole to China. And guess what? Still here, still going strong. Kids need to play outside, use their imagination and Yes get dirty.
Tamara says
AMEN!!!
Donna says
I agree with this … I was raised on a farm and played in the dirt on a daily basis. I rarely get sick.
ephofma says
I would be somewhat cautious about the whole putting dirt in your mouth. My youngest daughter played in our backyard a lot with her older sister. The older sister was fine; but, our youngest daughter contracted atypical tuberculosis from putting dirt in her mouth. According to our pediatric doctor this is not unusual and is found in dirt in most places. This has to be removed because it continues to grow and if it is not removed can cause the child to have trouble breathing and swallowing. He told me he has seen a number of children in the ER whose parents thought it would go away. It does not. Had to take her to a specialist and they tried to lance it and that did not work. It came back quickly. She had to undergo outpatient surgery at the hospital completely knocked out. They removed the infection and the surrounding lymph nodes. It did leave a scar and was very traumatic for her and us and even her big sister. I agree a little dirt doesn’t hurt; but, I’d be careful where that dirt ends up.
Lace Faerie says
My kids used to complain, just as I did, when young about being forced to stay outside all day during summer. Now, they all tell me how great it was and how much they now appreciate it. I grew up on a horse ranch. We used to wrap our giant ropes of red licorice around the saddle horn to “keep it clean” !! We caught tadpoles and salamanders, made mud pies, had cow-pie fights (yes, dried cow doo), took dunks in the horse troughs to cool off and often came in at the end of the day so dirty that Mama hosed us off on the porch before allowing us to strip before coming back into the house! It was glorious! I wish every kid had a chance to ride horses bareback, play with chickens and bunnies and spend the summers barefoot, grubby, happy and healthy!
BTW, my late grandmother was an RN and registered dietitian during the 40’s-70’s. When anti-bacterial soaps started making their way into our daily life, she told us back then that the only reason to be germ-free was if you were up to your elbows in someone’s guts in the operating room! We need the bacteria to keep bad bugs in check and to keep our immune systems revved up!
Who was that lady on the gardening show who always ended the show with ‘go get your hands dirty’? Brilliant lady!
Cindy says
It has long been my opinion that children who play outside and are not kept scrupulously clean all the time will develop stronger immune systems and be healthier overall. Glad to have some science to back it up! Besides, playing outside is better AND more fun!
Jennifer says
Thank you for posting this, Mavis!! My mom was an EMT and told me way back when that hand sanitizers were going to do more harm than good and to NEVER use them. WHEN you get your hands dirty, wash them with soap and go on.
My kids are 16, 18 and 22 and we have not had a dr. visit for illness in over 8 years. Maybe it’s strong genes, but who knows?
Also, my mom also kept our house at 65° YEAR ROUND and we were always healthy. Where does bacteria thrive? In heat and moisture. We still do the same in my home now, but have been known to drop it to 64°. 🙂
Patty P says
I grew up on a farm and I rarely get sick. I have allergies (but I’ve had them my entire life…it actually got me out of unloading hay, but unfortunately I wasn’t allergic to rocks or dirt, so still had to pick stone in the spring). I’ve eaten my fair share of dirt (not on purpose of course) and have even been swatted across the face with a crappy tail when I milked cows to help pay rent when I was newly married and in grad school. Is it gross? Yes, but I didn’t die. My son loves to go play in “the pile”…a pile of dirt that we have in our back yard. He comes in looking like he’s been rolling in it, which he probably has, and he’s rarely sick too. I have friends at work that use bottles of hand sanitizer and are always sick. I never touch the stuff. I’ll keep playing in the dirt!