So it seems that someone wants kids to live in a bubble

[fireheart17]

...http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/strict...-1226571089528

Honestly, I hope this doesn't affect my OSHC job in the near future (sort of like daycare for school-aged kids).

[Greenday]

Wow this is absolutely pathetic. I mean really! How did we survive without all these senseless precautions?

[bara]

Wow this is absolutely pathetic. I mean really! How did we survive without all these senseless precautions?

Natural selection. Some of us just manage to live through those common colds and flu bugs and minor injuries that all kids get.

[Beckpatton]

And people wonder why allergies and asthma etc are on the rise. If we keep our kids in a germ free environment, how can we expect their immune systems to develop so that when they do come across a serious germ they have some chance of beating it naturally!

I swear, I will be throwing my kids in the dirt and encouraging them to pick their nose... this is getting beyond a joke!

[TheHuckster]

Energy could be so much better spent simply teaching kids proper hygiene practices, such as washing hands before meals and after using the restroom, taking showers, and most of all staying home when they are sick!

I find it interesting that, just 15ish years ago we were making fun of germaphobes. Now we're being forced to become germaphobes.

[fireheart17]

Energy could be so much better spent simply teaching kids proper hygiene practices, such as washing hands before meals and after using the restroom, taking showers, and most of all staying home when they are sick!

I'm going to be teaching kids some of these although when I was in Year 5 or 6, my Science/Tech teacher did a very awesome experiment to show us why it's important to wash your hands. Basically it was done in two parts: we had a petri dish full of jelly which we had to rub our fingers on (unwashed) and then in 3 groups, our hands were sprinkled with paprika and we either had to wash it off by dunking our hands in cold water, using soap or something else I forget.

Our hands were very pleasantly scented for the rest of the day.

[Seifer]

And people wonder why allergies and asthma etc are on the rise.

Well, it's certainly not because of a germophobic society. Allergies are caused by an overactive immune system, not the lack of one.

The logic that allergies are caused by not getting sick enough doesn't make any sense. My asthma didn't begin until after I came down with acute bronchitis. Did I just not get enough bronchitis? Is that what caused my asthma?

Damn, if only I had gotten sicker! Then I wouldn't have suddenly developed allergies to dust, mold, and pet dander, even though I've lived with those things my entire life!

[Andara Bledin]

The logic that allergies are caused by not getting sick enough doesn't make any sense. My asthma didn't begin until after I came down with acute bronchitis. Did I just not get enough bronchitis? Is that what caused my asthma?

Not precisely.

The asthma is actually a reaction to your immune system overreacting to a stimulus and attacking something that it shouldn't be.

Research isn't clear on the causes of autoimmune disease, but it's likely both genetic and environmental.

On the environmental side, the most likely culprits are diet and lack of exposure, and it's possible that the diet issue is also partially lack of exposure.

The immune system starts development prior to birth, and is essentially kickstarted through colostrum, which is transferred during breastfeeding. After that, the immune system needs to be trained to recognize the body's own tissue as opposed to invading threats. Without sufficient exposure, the system fails to learn how to recognize the body's own tissues when affected by an infection, which triggers a response which then attacks those tissues as well as the source of the infection.

Basically, the idea is that the more variety of stuff you get exposed to when you're young, the greater the ability of your immune system to adapt to a wider variety of threats appropriately when you get older.

^-.-^

[Seifer]

The asthma is actually a reaction to your immune system overreacting to a stimulus and attacking something that it shouldn't be.

Okay, I'm with you.

Research isn't clear on the causes of autoimmune disease, but it's likely both genetic and environmental.

Okay, still with you.

On the environmental side, the most likely culprits are diet and lack of exposure, and it's possible that the diet issue is also partially lack of exposure.

Aaaand you lost me. I don't see how lack of exposure caused my allergies, since the things I'm now allergic to have been in my life from day one. I've always owned pets (cats and dogs, mostly), and now I get hives if I come into contact with certain ones. (I'm assuming the ones with high dander counts, since my allergies seem to pick and choose.)

My allergies literally started after I had that serious case of bronchitis, and they're what kick-start my asthma. None of my parents had breathing problems at my age, and my sister has no such issue with asthma.

I also doubt Photodermatitis (an allergic reaction to sunlight) is caused by lack of exposure. The same with Aquagenic urticaria, which is an allergy to water.

Basically, the idea is that the more variety of stuff you get exposed to when you're young, the greater the ability of your immune system to adapt to a wider variety of threats appropriately when you get older.

Yes, but a lack of head colds as a child do not cause allergies to peanuts, mold, pet dander, dust, etc.

Lack of exposure to viruses and bacteria can cause someone to have a weak immune system. I can see that. However, having a weak immune system doesn't mean it's going to suddenly "get bored" and go after the neighbors it's known for years. Until it's proven without a doubt that the cause of allergies is just not meeting the standards of "sick enough" , I won't buy that argument.

[Nyoibo]

Many illnesses can trigger the onset of allergies and autoimmune diseases.

[Andara Bledin]

Yes, but a lack of head colds as a child do not cause allergies to peanuts, mold, pet dander, dust, etc.

It's a multi-step situations.

1) Lack of exposure while young leads to the immune system having fewer templates than it needs to carry you through life.
2) Later on, you develop an infection that falls into one of those gaps.
3) The immune system, not being able to recognize the infected cells then begins to attack the cells in addition to the cause of infection, which is bad, as it creates new templates to attack similar cells.
4) You have an reaction that you've experienced before (you were sensitive to something, but not enough to really notice it), but the new template sees the affected cells as bad and attacks them, making you suddenly have a much greater reaction to whatever the trigger was than before.

This is a very simplistic and incomplete view of why a person might develop allergies to things later in life after being underexposed to template-producing conditions, but it covers the basic mechanism in a general sort of way.

^-.-^