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Girls' Cleaner Lifestyles Could Make Them Sick, Study Shows
Filed under: In The News, Health
Keeping girls squeaky clean could lead to health issues down the road. Credit: Getty
In today's cleanliness-obsessed world where anti-bacterial soaps and other cleansers are frequently used to keep germs at bay, researchers are finding these preventative measures actually may be responsible for an increase in illnesses and allergies for kids, especially little girls who are less likely to emerge from the playground covered in mud.
It's called the hygiene hypothesis, according to a study reported by NPR. Because little girls tend to have a cleanlier lifestyle than boys, their bodies no longer need to fight germs. As a result, they're more likely to develop allergies, asthma or autoimmune disorders as they grow up.
In the study, reported in the journal Social Science and Medicine, Sharyn Clough, a philosopher of science at Oregon State University who studies research bias, says young girls are held to a higher standard of cleanliness than young boys, a discrepancy that could help explain later health differences.
Long-term, this could result in women having higher rates of certain illnesses, Clough tells NPR.
Women already have a higher rate of asthma than men -- 8.5 percent compared to 7.1 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They're also more likely than men to have allergies. And the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association says autoimmune disorders affect women three times more often than men, NPR reports.
The reason little girls don't get exposed to germs as much as boys has to do with the way kids are socialized, Clough tells NPR.
"We still dress little girls in clothes that are restrictive and not supposed to get dirty," Clough tells NPR. "Little girls are still way less likely to play outdoors than little boys. And little girls are supervised more often by their parents during their play, which is likely to keep them from getting dirty."
The reason dirt is good for kids, Clough tells NPR, is because there is a variety of bacteria in the soil. That makes playing in dirt a reliable way to ingest dirt, and thus bacteria.
And, despite the fact that it's socially acceptable for little girls to play sports, they're still wearing dresses, Clough tells NPR.
"I think for little girls, things aren't changing much," she tells NPR.
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 1)
2-04-2011 @ 3:10PM
Alicia said...Thank you! I've been trying to make a point very similar to this to my cousin for years as to why she shouldn't freak if her daughters get dirty. She already uses extra-strength detergent and who cares if they get a little muddy and scrap their knees. Bath time's at 8 anyway. If she didn't insist on dressing them up like mini-models everyday, they might have clothes she wouldn't mind them getting dirty.
As a kid, I was allowed to roll in dirt, scrap my knees and crawl around the playground and get as messy as I pleased, so long as I was in play clothes and my mom just hosed me down at the end of the day. Hygiene for girls doesn't become an issue until they get their period, at which point, yes, they have to be sure to keep themselves clean or risk yeast infections and UTIs, but even then, too clean and it'll mess up her natural pH balance and cause the same.
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2-04-2011 @ 4:35PM
Rochelle said...Like with most things, balance and reasonableness is required. There's plenty of germs out there that are terrible and only good for avoiding, but on the other hand (no pun intended) there's lots of good bacteria's we actually need. HTtp://BIt.lY/washvssanitize had some awesome statistics and tips as well as some totally free samples on the site.
2-12-2011 @ 3:58PM
Amanda said...I've been saying the same thing for years-let kids play in the dirt! My two daughters are the exception to this "don't let girls get dirty" rule-they're both outdoor nuts who love playing and getting dirty! My older daughter still likes wearing dresses, but she just throws a pair of leggings on underneath them before playing outside, and it doesn't bother me a bit.
Last summer, we had one of those 10'x30" above-ground pools in our backyard that we had taken down for the winter, leaving the big dirt circle where it had been. The kids were playing in the backyard, where I could see them from the windows while I got the kitchen organized. My older daughter saw the dirt circle, looked at the garden hose hanging on the wall, and thought, "Why not?" The next thing I know, they had turned the pool spot into a giant mud wallow and were having the time of their lives! It didn't bother me a bit-all I asked was that they wash off their feet before coming in the house and go jump in the shower with their clothes still on so they could rinse everything off. Any dirt still on their clothes? Again, no worries. They hung the clothes up to dry, and the next load of laundry took care of any remaining dirt!
I'd rather have a slightly dirty, fun-filled house with healthy, happy kids than a sterile one where the kids weren't allowed to have any homegrown fun and ended up with a hyperactive, cannibalistic immune system as a result!
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