Tree Hugging Family - Living Green

Are We So Clean That We’re Breeding Super Germs?

by Jennifer on March 27th, 2008

We’ve been talking about cleaners pretty obsessively here the last couple of days. Maybe the most interesting of posts has been the Palmolive eco+ Gel Dishwasher Detergent post that Peggy wrote. A post I figured no one would have any argument against. But it looks like some people think that Palmolive Eco sounds like a pretty sweet deal. More on why I think this is bunk later.

But first…. I’d like to address the argument of clean.

Most commercials and traditional cleaners sell a few ideas.

1. Cleaning must happen fast and often.
2. You need a special cleaner for each and every little item in your home.
3. That we basically need our homes so clean that we could perform surgery on our kitchen floor - or we aren’t being good parents, good housekeepers, or what have you.

This ends up translating over into body cleanliness as well. You better carry antibacterial wipes in your bag, you better have antibacterial hand soap or else, and anyone smart should nod and agree. This leads to not only issues around germs that resist basic actions we can take against them, but also to people buying more and more into the myth that harsh chemicals are necessary for true cleaning action. This harms our health and our environment.

Many in the scientific community don’t agree that antibacterial products or super cleaning is even necessary. In fact what much research notes is that clean beyond all shadow of a doubt is not possible, overrated, and may be doing us more harm than good.

You can’t kill all germs, you shouldn’t try, and the sooner you realize this the better.

According to a presentation from the 2000 Emerging Infectious Diseases Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, and backed up by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and a slew of other research, antibacterial cleaners may be decreasing antibiotic efficiency, have not been demonstrated useful for households, and extended use will only encourage the growth of antimicrobial drug–resistant species as time passes.

Here are some key points from this presentation:

“The antibacterial substances added to diverse household cleaning products are similar to antibiotics in many ways. When used correctly, they inhibit bacterial growth. However, their purpose is not to cure disease but to prevent transmission of disease-causing microorganisms to noninfected persons. Like antibiotics, these products can select resistant strains and, therefore, overuse in the home can be expected to propagate resistant microbial variants. Moreover, these agents, like antibiotics, are not cure-alls but have a designated purpose. Whereas antibiotics are designed to treat bacterial (not viral) infections, antibacterial products protect vulnerable patients from infectious disease-causing organisms. Neither are demonstrably useful in the healthy household.”

“We must think not just in terms of resistance but also in terms of the changes in the microbial ecology of our infants and our homes. We exist in the bacterial world, not bacteria in ours. Unfortunately, we believe that we can rid ourselves of bacteria when, in fact, we cannot. Instead, we should “make peace” with them. Although we need to control pathogens when they cause disease, we do not have to engage in a full-fledged “war” against the microbial world. Improved antibiotic use, including shorter treatments and removal of improper usage, will encourage the return of antibiotic-susceptible, commensal flora and return the environment to what it was before the antibiotic/antibacterial onslaught.”

This is not the only research pointing toward super germs emerging due to our over zealous cleaning and disinfecting:

Antibacterial Cleaning Products and Drug Resistance

The Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics

The Department of Physics at the University of Illinois

Worldwatch Institute

And if you just start looking around, you’ll see more info pointed toward the misuse of cleaners. Or better yet take a basic microbiology course at the local college - you’ll be thinking about germs in a while other light.

Most of the population can quit using these harsh chemicals meant to keep us squeaky germ free. I don’t know about you, but fighting future germs that can’t be killed sound like much less fun then having a few typical germs around my house. Hot water and basic soap kill most of the germs that people in typical situations come into contact with. Why not use them? Your family won’t be exposed to as many dangerious chemicals and neither will the earth.

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POSTED IN: Green Cleaning, Health & Wellness, Toxic Stuff