Antiseptics, soaps, and antibiotics have created a new world of killer super bugs—multi drug resistant germs—which are now threatening the world. The world needs deschooling about the benefit of looking after the germs in their natural habitat for our own good in the long run

“Louis Pasteur's theory of germs is ridiculous fiction”—Pierre Pachet

Thanks to the soap and antiseptics industry, the whole world is becoming obsessed with the fear of germs. Last night I was watching the TV screen ad of an antiseptic soap in Tamil, which made me think of writing this note. There the child was telling her cat not to come into the house. The mother was watching from behind. The child told the cat “don’t come inside, mummy will hit you.” The mother then takes the child for a bath with that soap telling the child “mummy will hit not the cat but will hit the germs (kirmigalai) with this soap!”
 

Early this morning I saw the usual sight of the municipal corporation lorry carrying the waste dumps for incineration. The lorry had five workers and a couple of rag pickers who hang on to get some gold in the dumps! One of the women had an infant whom she put on the front seat of the lorry while they were loading the vehicle. They rummage through the contents as if it were some heap of gold! The woman breast feeds the child in between. One cannot pass by that area because of the foul smell. I have been seeing this scene being enacted daily. Despite my pleas to the powers that be the routine has not changed. These people do not have gloves or shoes. They bring their breakfast and eat it while on duty. They keep smoking beedies in between. I have not seen them wash their hands any time!
 

This also brings to mind the study of asthma in Mumbai slums compared to the best homes there. The ratio of asthma incidence was ten to one in favour of clean kids! The multitude of germs in the slums keeps the children’s immune system robust to avoid asthma. Whereas the child from the wealthy home gets antibiotics for even a common cold, the slum child probably has not come in contact with antiseptics and/or antibiotics, thus keeping its immune system robust. A crawling baby will go to every corner to pick up the dirt to eat! It is hardwired before birth to do that to get germs inside to strengthen the immune system! During delivery the baby acquires trillions of germs of all kinds into its orifices from the mother’s genital tract. Naturally a Caesarean section baby will be poorer to that extent.
 

For every cell in your body there are nine germ cells. No one could scientifically be proud because s/he has to have those germs bossing over her/him! Human meta-genome has about 25 thousand human genes while it also has 2-3 trillion germs genes. We have been living happily ever after with them inside us. Do not hate them from outside also. They are our friends and saviours indeed! When one takes antibiotics the gut gets depleted of these friends and then we suffer from immune deficiency. Today fatal gut infections are treated by transplanting fresh stools (faeces) from a healthy donor, faecal transplant. If one is lucky to have his mother alive her faeces will cure the fatal infections in minutes to hours! Mother’s gut germs are identical to ours, anyway! Resetting the gut germs is the best way to build our immune guard.
 

Antiseptics, soaps, and antibiotics have created a new world of killer super bugs—multi drug resistant germs—which are now threatening the world. Sooner we wake up the better. The newer quick dust eating washing powders have another danger lurking in the background. Many of them use bacillus subtilis as their base. This germ generates a protein residue when it works on clothes, etc. This protein is a lung poison. It provokes an incurable lung disease called Fibrosing Alveolitis (cryptogenic) which has no cure!
 

The world needs deschooling quickly about the benefit of looking after our friends—the germs in their natural habitat—for our own good in the long run. Let children play in the dirt outside in the sun. Simple inexpensive oil-based soap is all that is needed with clean water to wash one’s hands or for taking bath. No antiseptic soaps are needed. They could damage one’s immune system in the long run.

 “A sad soul can kill quicker than a germ”—John Steinbeck

(Professor Dr BM Hegde, a Padma Bhushan awardee in 2010, is an MD, PhD, FRCP (London, Edinburgh, Glasgow & Dublin), FACC and FAMS. He is also the editor-in-chief of the Journal of the Science of Healing Outcomes, chairman of the State Health Society's Expert Committee, Govt of Bihar, Patna. He is former Vice Chancellor of Manipal University at Mangalore and former professor for Cardiology of the Middlesex Hospital Medical School, University of London. Prof Dr Hegde can be contacted at [email protected].)