Germs are Us?

I read recently that the adult human body contains 100 trillion cells but only ten percent of them actually belong to us, the rest are germs. I have to admit I'm not germ phobic. I've dropped food on the flood picked it up and ate it. I know the five second rule about germs but if it's something good like a piece of dark chocolate I don't care. I'll eat it anyway.

Not so for a good number of people. Many people are so obsessed with germs that hey are literally scrubbing their way to disease. Ten years ago sanitizing hand gels could only be found in hospitals, now they are everywhere.

We scrub our bodies and our environment but it's not always to get cleaner. It's to alleviate our anxieties. But in the process we are sabotaging our health. All this sanitizing is compromising the immune system. The immune system ironically needs germs to keep it viable.

An interesting fact is if you were germ free you'd be dead in two weeks. Most germs in the human body live in the digestive track and aid in securing nutrients and breaking down food.

So why then do so many of us see germs as evil?

Perhaps it harkens back to our supposed Puritan roots where cleanliness is next to godliness and a clean person is a moral person. Psychologists agree that those most preoccupied with cleaning have an excessive amount of anxiety. Cleaning is the ultimate go to activity for the anxious.

So what do you need to do if you are plagued with this obsessive thinking?

Keep yourself healthy but don't go overboard. Do the simple things like:

• Wash your hands with soap and water after using the restroom
• Keep your hands off your face to avoid transmitting germs
• Beware of the hot spots in your home: dirty dishrags, vacuum cleaner bags, keep the toilet lid down while flushing, disinfect your toothbrush, and clean the garbage can
• Clean your cutting board with soap and water and keep a separate board for meat and vegetables if possible
• Wash laundry with warm or hot water, cold water spares germs

You don't have to become causality in the war on germs. By doing the simple things you can insure the great diversity of your body's environment and also work to let go of the need to control things. You will be less anxious and healthier.

Karen Pesta helps students sharpen the saw with daily success tips promoting academic, social and physical achievement
http://www.creativeworldconnection.com

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