According to a recent article by Michael Pollan in the New York Times Sunday Magazine, “There’s a case for dirtying up your diet” in order to increase your exposure to bacteria. Really? More germs, not fewer? Yes! More germs, please, according to the article, “Some of My Best Friends Are Germs.”
And
potluck dinners might be just what the immune system ordered.
Since the
introduction of antibiotics, we’ve been on a mission to kill bacteria.
Cleanliness, next to Godliness and all that. But the photo on the cover of the Times Magazine’s May 19th issue calls all that cleanliness into
question: picture a chubby, healthy, drooling baby nested between the paws of
the family dog who is licking drool from the baby’s cheek and lips, introducing
the baby to germs and adding to the gut culture that will activate the baby’s
immune system now, and for a lifetime to come.
The
Pollan article advocates a new appreciation for the bacteria that lives in our
gut. Pollan calls this collection of living gut residents our microbiome, or
our “second genome,” and explains how these gastrointestinal hitchhikers exert
influence as great or greater than the genes we inherit by triggering
expression of strengths and weaknesses in our DNA. This mix of microbes
activates our immune system, modulates our metabolism, even balances enzymes responsible
for mental well-being.
What I
took from this interesting read was that taking hygiene to the max may actually
limit the ability of the immune system to keep us healthy. Instead, we should aim
for just enough exposure to bacteria to keep our immune systems engaged and
strong. Additionally, we should be aware of the limiting effects of exposure to
antibacterial soaps, hand sanitizers, antibiotics, various food additives and
preservatives; these protective products come with a price tag. So we need to
weigh the pros and cons of hygiene and consider the point of diminishing
returns for our own unique health vulnerabilities.
Similar
thinking about germs is popping up in my reading in many unexpected places. In The Extraordinary Healing Power of Ordinary Things by Larry Dossey, MD, a chapter entitled “Dirt” cites
a litany of research on beneficial results of exposure to dirt, dirty water,
sick siblings, and childhood illnesses – correlating with various reduced
incidence of asthma, hay fever, eczema, and even MS, mononucleosis, and other
auto-immune disorders.
“All
diseases begin in the gut,” per Hippocrates, 460-370 BC. This lead quote in Gut and Psychology Syndrome by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride MD, draws lines
between gastrointestinal dysfunction and various little-understood neurologic
and autoimmune diseases, including autism. These were interesting perspectives
I hadn’t heard before.
Over the
past several decades our preoccupation with the hazards of germs has resulted
in debates over the communal communion cup in churches and the introduction of
entire industries dedicated to antiseptic, antibacterial, sanitizing, and
disposable products tailored to our fear of germs: DuPont’s Cellophane claimed
protection against the deadly dangers of flies, fingers, and food; Listerine
antiseptic promised to protect against halitosis as well as “the 17 diseases
carried by the hands”; paper and plastic cups, plates, utensils, and containers
offer safe harbor from the residue of other people’s saliva.
The
proactive power of potluck
A couple
years back, I went through the food safety training necessary to become a state
licensed retail food producer and Certified
Food Manager. I took the training in
hopes I could mentor small value-added start-up food businesses that might
develop food items to offer for sale at Lanesboro Local Marketplace in Lanesboro,
Minnesota. I learned about all the potential food pathogens, the temperature
tolerances and food handling practices that minimize pathogen risk, basic
sanitation protocols and products, and more. As a result, I’m more acutely
aware than ever of kitchen infractions that invite contamination and bacterial
growth.
Already a
bit of a germaphobe, this training cranked up my reflex to cringe when a friend
tasted her potluck dish, added salt, then thrust the tasting spoon back in and
gave it a stir. Or licked a finger in the middle of a dishing-up task.
But with
the nudge from Pollan and other nutrition-focused advocates and researchers,
I’m trying to think outside the Pandora’s box of the pervasive germ pool. I’ve
begun to think of potluck dinners as social occasions that not only offer ideal
opportunities to learn from other creative cooks, but also to get a gentle
health boost. I consider every dip of the finger and lick of the communal spoon
a small gift that may arm my gut and activate my immune response against some
virus or malady I may now never get.
So, a
grateful shout out to all the cooks who’ve licked a finger or otherwise shared
your microbiota – and that of your various family members and circle of friends
– with me, my family and everyone everywhere who gathers to break bread.
So, what is your thinking on germs?
I
like to consider viewpoints from all corners of the food system and consider
food issues a little differently every time I read new information. So many
approaches to health seem plausible.
Maybe
I’ll feel differently about germs at some point in the future. A recent
cautionary piece I read stated that one in five of us have compromised immune
systems and really need the standards of anti-bacterial hygiene to be held
high.
I’m wondering about your take on germs. What do you know that can add to this discussion? Please share your approach to maintaining the health of your gut.
Kitty Baker grew up on a mixed ag farm, then in a small town, near Rochester, MN. She and husband Keith raised two daughters, living in Kansas City and Minneapolis. A professional writer, Kitty enjoys topics of lifestyle and food, especially since 1999, when they bought a farm, Root River Wilds, just north of Lanesboro, MN. The farm’s spectacularly varied acreage -- bluffs and woods, pastures and restored prairies cut with trails and wrapped in the oxbow of the North Branch of the Root River -- is rich with opportunities to discover and share ways to live abundantly. Her last article for SGT was: Intuitive Eating: What Do You Hunger For?
