Should children be kept too clean?

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Flu and epidemic seasons have prompted health authorities to require people to wash their hands frequently. While it is in the nature of small children to touch things that adults find very dirty. So should keep children too clean? How clean do children really need to have good health?

1. Theory for the immune system to get used to germs

Infectious diseases are a legitimate reason for parents to keep their children too clean , but there are also those who argue that current social attitudes are overprotecting children from germs.
A research team suggests that exposing babies to germs can help them be better protected, later at less risk of diseases like allergies and asthma. According to this hypothesis, without exposure to parasites, bacteria, and viruses in early life, children are more likely to develop allergies, asthma, and other autoimmune diseases in adulthood. In fact, kids who grew up in the countryside, on a farm, or who attended kindergarten earlier have lower rates of allergies.
Just like a baby's brain needs stimulation and interaction for normal development, a baby's immune system also needs to be strengthened by daily exposure to germs. As a result, the immune system can get used to, adapt and adjust itself. However, scientists have yet to determine exactly which bacteria fit this hypothesis.
In a recent study, a team of experts found that children under the age of 2 who are exposed to more animal feces and often have diarrhea have less inflammation in their bodies as they get older. Inflammation is linked to many chronic diseases in adulthood, such as heart disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer's.
Experts think that the immune system is not only involved in allergies, autoimmune diseases and asthma; but also play a role in inflammation and other degenerative diseases. Accordingly, exposure to microorganisms early in life may help control inflammation in adulthood.

2. Does disinfection help promote health or not?

Most of the germs that hide in our environment and live on the human body are harmless. These microorganisms have been with us for millennia, the professors say. As human behavior has changed - becoming too clean over the past half century, many bacteria are slowly disappearing, such as some of the beneficial bacteria that live in the gut.
Probiotics are originally responsible for important physiological functions, but modern life has changed them and some are disappearing. This will lead to both positive and negative consequences.
When we keep children too clean to protect against disease, we inadvertently deprive them of the opportunity to build strong immune systems. Besides being too clean to keep children away from beneficial natural microorganisms, other mistakes - such as overuse of antibiotics , will make people weaker instead of healthy. than.
However, external germs are not all good for you. From the expert's point of view, there are germs that are only adapted to dirt and garbage, not adapted to the human body.

3. So what should parents do?

Similar to most life problems, anything in excess is not good, including being too clean. Keeping your child healthy requires a balance.
Experts recommend that parents and doctors carefully consider whether antibiotics are necessary to treat all episodes of a child's fever. The overuse of antibiotics plays a big role in weakening the immune system's ability to fight infections.
Regarding the question of whether it's good to be too clean, you don't need to obsess over keeping your baby's environment completely germ-free. However, parents also need to understand the problem properly. That means not a dirty living environment will be good for your baby's health. But instead of worrying about your child getting dirty and just wrapping them around the house, let them be in contact with nature and freely explore life.
Pediatrics department at Vinmec International General Hospital is the address for receiving and examining diseases that infants and young children are susceptible to: viral fever, bacterial fever, otitis media, pneumonia in children, .... With modern equipment, sterile space, minimizing the impact as well as the risk of disease spread. Along with that is the dedication from the doctors with professional experience with pediatric patients, making the examination no longer a concern of the parents.

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Reference source: webmd.com