Strollerderby : hygiene

They Say: Swimming Pools? Yeah, They're Kind Of Gross

Jen Chaney — Sun, 24 May 2009 19:28:00 GMT

Memorial Day weekend is traditionally the kick-off of the summer season at most community pools around the country. But after reading this post, you may be a little less enthusiastic about taking the kids for their inaugural dip.

It may not exactly surprise anyone to learn that swimming pools aren't the most sanitary places in the world. But my eyebrows raised a little when I read this CNN.com story that says a recent study conducted by the Water Quality and Health Council revealed that 17 percent of adults sometimes pee in the pool. Let me get this straight: these are adults who (I.P.) freely admitted to a group that studies water quality that they sometimes let a little leak out when they're practicing their butterfly strokes? That leads me to believe that perhaps even more adults who participated in this survey may do the same thing, but simply weren't honest when asked. Translation: every time you think you're just going swimming, you're actually splashing around in a big, festering, germ-filled community toilet.

Honestly, if the over-21-year-olds can't hold it in, what are the odds that all those water-winged four-year-olds can? (Um ... zero.)

Of course, many of us have long suspected this and we still go swimming all the time anyway. Why? Because it's fun, it's refreshing, we've never gotten ill because of it and, most importantly, if we pretend the pee isn't there, it doesn't bother us. (Denial rules.)

Seriously, once we start focusing too obsessively on all the germs and bodily fluids we can pick up at places like this, I think it's only a matter of time before we wind up in Howard Hughes-ville. The best thing we parents can do is make sure our kids are not contributing to the pool grime, and that the pools they swim in are maintained properly. The CNN story points out the importance of showering before going swimming, for example. And it also notes ways to tell if the pool is clean, like listening for signs that the filtration system is functioning, spotting the presence of a working drain and (this one kind of cracks me up) feeling the tiles and sides of the pool to make sure they are neither sticky nor slippery. Okay, sticky would seem a little strange. But slippery? I'm not sure I've ever touched a wet tile surface that wasn't slippery. Then again, I always assumed that most grown-ups know better than to piss in a pool, so what the heck do I know?

Also, it's probably a good idea to train kids as soon as possible that they shouldn't use the pool as a potty. Heck, if need be, remind some adults, too. Because together, America, we can stop unnecessary peeing in the pool, and ensure that we're all swimming in water that contains slightly less bacteria in the future than it does today.

Hey Kid, You'll Soap Your Eye Out

JeanneSager — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:00:00 GMT

So much for good, clean fun. Officials at an Idaho middle school claim they had to remove soap from the boys bathrooms because of vandalism.

Apparently, it's better for the boys to enact germ warfare by not washing their hands than it is to have a little soap wars in the bathroom.

Parents have been protesting the removal, pointing to its incredibly poor timing in light of the swine flu pandemic and health officials EVERYWHERE reminding people to wash their hands to reduce the spread of the disease (not to mention a fair number of other contagious diseases).

The state's education department notes that all school lavatories are required to have soap provided for the kids. Sounds like a pretty common sense requirement to me (see above). So why would a school yank the soap?

I remember some of the bathroom pranks pulled in my school days (by classmates, natch!). Milk poured down the heating vents. Smoking in the stalls. TPing pretty much everything. The school responded with measures that kept us on our toes, including a lock on the door so only a staff member could let a kid in (and they'd do a thorough once-over before you left to make sure you hadn't gotten up to any mischief while you were supposed to be doing your business). Even in an understaffed, underfunded school like mine, they made it work.

But they didn't take the soap. Because soap is point zero when it comes to preventing disease - especially with kids, who are not exactly the most hygenic creatures on earth. Why else would we spend hours teaching them to sing the alphabet song while they scrub a dub dub as toddlers?

So why, oh why, would anyone ever imagine taking soap away from kids is a good idea?

Image:1stInHandwashing

Playdate: Would You Go "No Poo"?

JeanneSager — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 21:27:00 GMT

Here's one way to answer the carcinogens in your kids' bath products - Amy Graff at The Poop is going "no poo."

As in no shampoo. Not a drop of Johnson & Johnson. Not a palm of Head and Shoulders. Graff, who is one of my favorite columnists over at San Fran's main parenting blog, is making a leap that I have to admire. Or hold my nose about.

The "no poo" method has had its proponents for years, folks who say it's better to let the body's natural oils keep the scalp healthy and the hair "clean." As Graff explains in her "no poo" mission statement, the idea is that a few weeks of greasy hair must be endured. But when the body takes over, word has it luscious locks take over.

The sort of fringe movement is jumping from granola crunchy greenies to parenting mainstream as reports on parabens, phthalates and 1,4-dioxane make more of us realize there's a lot more to fear than a dirty kid. Take Graff - she's always thought the whole thing sounds kind of "icky" . . . but her kids' shampoo is on the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics' list of products loaded with carcinogens. For the sake of her kids, she's willing to give "no poo" a try.

I checked out the CSC list, and took heart that my daughter's shampoo isn't on there (although a bubble bath we once used an entire bottle of was - eek). If it was, I'd obviously change - to another shampoo. Although it's hard to trust the big companies, it's even harder to fathom not using something relatively heavy duty to rid my daughter's head of play-doh and play sand on a daily basis.

I'm going to follow Graff's experiment, but I'm not that brave. What about you?

Image: Boon

Cough Cover: Because We Can't Possibly Make Them Use a Tissue

JeanneSager — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 16:20:00 GMT

OK, I'm all for mompreneurship and new ideas to make parenting easier. But a cover for kids sleeves to trap their runny nose germs?

Aren't we supposed to be teaching them NOT to wipe their nose with their sleeves?

The CoughCover was created by a registered nurse, mother and grandmother who says she saw a need for something that would "help children manage their coughs, colds and runny noses and provide a convenient method for everyone to use good respiratory hygiene practices."

We thought Kleenex and Puffs had it covered, but Michele Strocel thought otherwise. The CoughCover is made of a non-woven fabric coated in an anti-viral solution. It's made to be slipped up on the sleeve or shoulder. It's supposed to help keep those "green sleeves" at bay by giving the kids a place to wipe their nose. It's also supposed to provide something to sneeze into so kids don't get germs on their hands.

Again, whatever happened to a tissue? Or, I don't know, washing your hands after you sneeze?

Because I can't think of any adults who walk around with their arms coated in snot - if I do see one, I'll make sure to keep my distance. Kids need to learn at some point to use their tissues and wash their hands. Giving them a crutch now, and a disgusting one at that (who wants to play with the kid whose got a snotty rag hanging off his arm?), and they might be the adult you're giving a wide berth in twenty years!

Image: Cough Cover

Source: Fox News

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Too Much Deodorant Kills Twelve-Year-Old

JeanneSager — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:03:00 GMT

If they're not running from the bathtub shrieking, they're swimming in perfume and there's enough gel in their hair to grease a whale. But parents might want to teach their teens that good hygiene can go too far. The death of a twelve-year-old in Britain is being blamed on excessive use of deodorant.

Now before you go running for your medicine cabinet, Daniel Hurley's usage of the Lynx deodorant (a Unilever brand, it's Axe here in the states) has been ruled truly excessive. He sprayed not only his armpits but his clothes, and was prone to spraying the bottle in an enclosed space - despite warnings right on the can that warn against doing so. Even after an incident several weeks before his death when Hurley passed out in his bathroom after spraying the deodorant, the pre-teen continued to violate the instructions on the can.

Clean air experts in Britain have deemed the product safe - if it's used properly. And that's the real issue here. Once kids begin requesting their own toiletries and often using their allowance or earnings to buy their own, are parents keeping up with how they're being used? I don't remember my mother ever sitting me down to tell me how to apply deodorant. She bought me a stick - probably around the time I started high school (seventh grade at my school) - and said, "It's time to start using this." The tampon talk was a little more in depth, but she left the toxic shock syndrome warnings to the folks at Playtex.

A cardiac arrhythmia caused by a build up of deodorant solvents in a child's system is a one in a million tragedy. Thankfully. But milder reactions to over-the-counter personal care products can cause a simple contact dermatitis or a major case of hives.

Yup, another thing to worry about. Kind of makes you wistful for those bathtub fights, doesn't it?

Image: Medicines2U

Boy Tells 'Your Mom' Joke, Boy Goes to Jail

When Moms Collide: Breastfeeder Kicked Out of Pool

Talking Pets, the New Child Safety Gadget?

Neonatal Nurse Puts Preemie in Her Pocket and Takes Pictures

Two Years, Six Months, and 25 Days Before the Romance Dies

Kelly Mills — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 20:31:00 GMT

You were wondering when your marriage would all go to hell? There's this study saying the average lifespan of the "honeymoon" phase is two years, six months, and 25 days. Oooh, everyone set your calendar with a reminder. "I know there's something happening this weekend, what was it? Oh yeah, that's the day our marriage will become drudgery and crap."

But what exactly marks the end of the sweet love? It sounds like the researchers define this as effort. They say on average, this is the time when most guys start leaving socks on the floor and the toilet seat lid up, and the women stop wearing make-up and climb into sweats instead. Romantic dinners are a thing of the past, and the third anniversary isn't even celebrated. Oh, and you hardly (sniff) cuddle any more.

You know, the whole thing sounds a kinda stereotyical and lame to me. Marking marital closeness by female appearance effort and male hygiene effort... Eesh. Not surprisingly, this study was detailed in the Daily Mail. But anyway, I have a solution: Don't get married. Just live together, and you can completely avoid the whoooole thing.

Happy World Handwashing Day!

Amy Kuras — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:34:00 GMT

I’ll admit it – I was super lazy about handwashing before I had a kid. I’d run my hands under water after using the bathroom at work so I didn’t look like a skank, but lathering up just seemed like too much trouble.

Until I had kids and the hormones and general new-mom paranoia had me lathering up constantly — after diaper changes, sure, but before nursing, after wiping noses, etc. I always had my little bottle of Purell for out and about excursions as well.

I’ve chilled somewhat, but notice a big correlation between my enforcing frequent handwashing and everybody staying well. And I can tell my husband (who definitely thinks I’ve gone germophobe) that I’ve got UNICEF on my side. They’ve declared today World Handwashing Day.

This is a much bigger deal than one might imagine – the Wiggles are involved, with a new handwashing song they’ll debut today, celebrities are making public service announcements and kids will be participating in mass handwashing events.

Of course the message behind it is serious. Diarrheal disease and pneumonia can be stopped from spreading with frequent handwashing, especially after using the toilet and before eating.

"More than 5,000 children under the age of five die every day as a result of diarrheal diseases, caused in part by unsafe water, lack of access to basic sanitation facilities and poor hygiene," according to a UNICEF news release. "By washing hands with soap, families and communities can help reduce child morbidity rates from diarrheal diseases by almost 50 per cent."

Today’s activities are being organized by the Public Private Partnership for Handwashing, a group led by UNICEF, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Bank, Unilever, and Procter and Gamble.

AH-HAH! You know what those last two make? That’s right, soap. Still, handwashing is important, and a nice bar of generic whatever gets your hands just as clean as the multinationals’ products. So lather up!

Part II: A Guy’s Take on Why You Shouldn’t Circumcise (and Why You Should)

Cole Gamble — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 16:04:00 GMT

Okay, I’ve had my say so now it’s time to acknowledge the pros of whacking the little bugger off (the foreskin, I mean).

There Are Some Small Medical Benefits

Among the benefits are:

Decreased potential for urinary tract infection.

Increased possibility for penile cancer (although probability for penile cancer is remote for either circumcised or uncircumcised males).

Three times more susceptible to contract HIV from infected women. (Might want to give your son the condom talk, what do you say?)

Some Girls Do Like it Better

And some don’t, I might add.

Will Make Son Look More Like Daddy

Assuming daddy is foreskin-less as well. Their similarity, anatomically speaking, is something they can bond over, like when they play catch.

Circumcisions Don’t Hurt Like They Used To

For months leading up to our boy’s circumcision (yes, my wife won) I feared the sound of betrayed wailing that would come from my son as the doctor has is way with him and a machete. On the day of the procedure, I was surprised the find the operation had more to do with string than scalpel. There was a quick cut, a quick yelp and then the doctor put a nice Boy Scout knot around my boy’s penis, leaving the foreskin to dry up and eventually fall off on its own.

I have given you all I can. Hopefully you’re now armed to make an educated decision regarding your son’s penile future. The most important part to remember is it’s your choice. Not grandpas. Not your neighbor’s. Not society’s. It’s yours.

Back to part 1...the cons of circumcision

More by this author:

Child Prodigies So Amazing They'll Make You Feel Bad About Yourself

The 26 Most Disturbing Kids Movies Ever

7 Classic Kid's TV Shows Clearly Conceived on (Bad) Acid

12 Pregnancy Myths

**The Sh*t List: 10 Bizarre (or Terrific?) Potty Gadgets**

A Guy’s Take on Why You Shouldn’t Circumcise (and Why You Should)

Cole Gamble — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 16:00:00 GMT

To cut or not to cut: that is the question. Any parent about to have a boy faces this quandry. In ancient times circumcision was a must. Lack of proper hygiene made foreskins a liability. This is the modern era, however. The old slice n’ dice routine is more choice than mandate. Some of you made your decision the second you discovered the sex of the baby. “I’ll chop the sucker off myself if I have to.” Some of you were a bit more hesitant. The same problem saddled my wife and I two years ago. One of us was very pro-circ (wife) and the other less so. For full disclosure’s sake, I myself am not circumcised and it doesn’t bother me one iota. So I laid out my case to save the foreskin. Here’s is what I told my wife:

Penis Styling as Fashion

Save the religious exception, most parents chose to cut because they simply think it’s a more fashionable look. The line I got from my wife was, “Girls like them better.” To which I replied, “You married me, didn’t you?” At which point she added, “Oh, but yours is…special,” patting me on the head reassuringly. Um, nice save. My father in law tossed in his two cents: “The boys in the high school showers will make fun of him.” “Oh really?” I said, “Well then my son can just say, ‘Dude, you’re the one staring at my penis.’” Face it, parents circumcise because they want their boy to be like all the others. They’re shaping their child to conform from birth. Is that what you want, a conformist? Do you want to a kid who is a genital sheep, or do want one who rocks the system with a penis with personality?

Great Names

All the euphemisms for circumcised are played out. Bald headed soldier. One eyed snake. Yawn. Think of a cut penis as a wellspring of inspiration for new names. Like “The Sleeping Bag” or “Mr. Turtleneck.”

Men with Uncircumcised Penises Have More Pleasurable Sex

Okay so you’re not giving a lot of thought to your child’s future sex life. Fair enough, but many experts believe that circumcision leads to lessened penile sensitivity because the foreskin is jam packed with nerve endings. It is even said that an un-snipped penis is better for the woman as well. Leave the foreskin alone and, believe me, your son will thank you years from now. Not that you would ever, ever, ever want him to.

Possible Surgical Risk

Any and all surgery (and circumcision is surgery) comes with risk.

It Is Not Too Much Trouble to Care For

This was the big argument my wife trotted out. “You don’t want to clean it everyday, do you?” Turns out you are not even supposed to touch the thing until the boy is three, and by then it pulls back naturally and you clean it just like you would a normal penis. So there, you penis scrubbing fanatics!

Read Part 2: The Pros of Circumsicion

More by this author:

The 26 Most Disturbing Kids Movies Ever

7 Classic Kid's TV Shows Clearly Conceived on (Bad) Acid

12 Pregnancy Myths

**The Sh*t List: 10 Bizarre (or Terrific?) Potty Gadgets**

Call in the Baby Bath Police

Jen Chaney — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 17:32:00 GMT

Are you raising dirty kids? Apparently Kristen, a guest blogger over at MomLogic, is not ashamed to admit that she is.

As she says in this post, she doesn't bathe her three-year-old son every day. "Sometimes I give him a bath and sometimes I don't," she writes. "Mostly I don't. After all he's not a car mechanic. He doesn't get that dirty. I do touch up work, wiping his face and hands throughout the day."

Kristen, I feel you. We don't bathe our son every day either. He's one. The kid doesn't sweat yet. Unless he's smeared bananas all over his face or had the Mother of All Poops -- or, as I like to call it, a Jon Spencer Ass Explosion -- then he gets a bath every other day, occasionally every two if things are impossibly hectic.

Is this poor hygiene? Are we raising kids who will grow up to be smelly, soap-averse adults? Or do you sometimes cut corners on the cleanliness thing, too?

Photo: MomLogic.com

Clean Hands: Purell Ain't Getting It Done

Madeline Holler — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 19:38:00 GMT

We had a nice but icky discussion last week about how healthcare professionals weren't exactly scrupulous when it comes to washing their hands between patients (and door touching, etc.) and that patients are being encouraged to ask them to wash up. And there was some talk of hidden hand santizer pumps that they might be using outside the patient's room, which made a few of us (and by "us" I mean "me") feel better and like they could go on living in denial about their doctor's dirty hands.

Well, a study out of Nebraska got down and dirty and concluded that Purell and the other alcohol-based hand santizers aren't getting it done. Even though a hospital in the study doubled its use of the sanitizing gels, the rate of infections did not decrease. These gels may clean the hands but they don't kill bacteria that cause infections. Ew.

See, the hand gunk doesn't get in all the areas on the hands where the bacteria reside.

The doctor who studied the problem pointed to many villains: Rings and fingernails that are too long and hard to clean, poor handling of catheters and treatment areas that aren't sanitized.

Is it really such a big deal? Yes.

The spread of infection-causing germs in U.S. hospitals is a huge health problem, accounting for an estimated 1.7 million infections and 99,000 deaths each year, according to the CDC. These include drug-resistant staph, urinary tract infections and ventilator-associated pneumonia, among others.

So we're back to where we were the other day in this discussion. It's up to us to bravely ask doctors and nurses and any other healthcare worker who are about to touch us to wash their hands with soap and warm water if we don't see them do it. And gloves are only sterile if they've been put on by hands that have been washed. And hand sanitizer doesn't count. Can't wait to run that one by my defensive pediatrician.

You Can Ask? Really?

Madeline Holler — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 23:31:00 GMT

Have I mentioned I'm not terribly assertive with medical professionals? Well, I'm not. I've got a milllllion opinions and demands and I'm more than willing to share them, just not with the actual nurse or doctor. I just hate the double-takes, exasperation and sometimes mild offense of a reaction I get those times I have womaned-up and asked a question and/or made a request.

So I am at once in awe/totally tense reading about these people, who have the nerve to ask doctors and nurses to do something they should have had the professional sense to already have done: wash their hands.

According to this, repeated studies show that healthcare workers wash up adequately about half the time. (Half!) Some hospitals post a hygiene rate of 20 percent. (Twenty percent!).

I know! Washing hands! The No. 1 way to cut down on those infections and viruses that are spread around hospitals and medical facilities! But I think we all know they DON'T always wash their hands -- the pediatrician coming in to do a check-up, the nurse readying my kid for another round of shots. I HAVE noticed that the sink sits there dry and unused, but of course I haven't said anything (wouldn't want to cause ill will).

Here's what's supposed to happen: National guidelines say they’re supposed to use alcohol-based hand rubs or soap and warm water for at least 15 seconds before and after every direct contact with a patient, with excretions, or with contaminated surfaces or objects. And just putting on gloves isn't enough, the article says. They're supposed to wash their hands first and THEN put on the gloves, otherwise they contaminate the outside of the glove when putting it on.

In an effort to increase the hygiene rate, some hospitals across the country want you to ask. They've got posters, brochures, buttons, etc. saying "It's OK to ask," and hope to urge you to speak up when you don't see the nurses and doctors wash up before touching you.

That's exactly what Dalynn Morales did. The 33-year-old cancer patient at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Ore., noticed that a nurse failed to clean her hands before adjusting Morales’ antibiotic line.

“I said, ‘Could you please wash?’” Morales recalled, adding that the nurse quickly complied. “I’m not sure if she felt insulted or not.”

We'll just skip over why we even have to ask, how it's not already automatic to walk into a room and straight to the sink. But now that I know it's OK, I wonder if I will. I'm trying to think how I would ask. Do you say: "Hey, mind washing up?" or "I read that I should be asking you to wash your hands," or ... how do you phrase it without getting them all pissy with you? Come on, give me the script.

Have you ever asked your doctor or nurse to wash their hands? What was the reaction?

Out Damned Spot: Getting Kids to Wash Their Hands

makeitadouble — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 13:30:00 GMT

Medical experts all agree that one of the best defenses for children against winter colds and flu is for them to wash their hands. I contend the best defense against winter colds and flu is summer, then again I don’t have a sheepskin from Harvard Medical School framed on my wall; but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night. Unfortunately, for most kids washing their hands is not always a top priority. In fact, here’s my 5-year old son’s to-do list for today that I just printed out from his Outlook Task Manager:

Due in 15 minutes - Play New V-Smile Spiderman Video Game
Due 2 Hours Ago - Jam Hands Down Front of Pants
Due in 1 Hour - Frolic in the Snow Until Hands Go Numb and Lips Turn Blue
Due in 4 Hours - Ask No Fewer Than 500 Unanswerable Questions
Ongoing Project - Don’t Wash Hands

Thankfully some of the Industry’s leading authorities including a psychologist and an infectious disease specialist have offered some helpful and ingenious tips to encourage, scare and trick kids into washing their hands.

Author Stacey Kannenberg says, “Make hand washing your mantra.” Stacey tells her daughters, ages 6 and 8, to wash their hands over and over again. Whereas the girls hands appear spotless they now spend hours trying to wash away imaginary stains and the 8-year old has on two separate occasions seen the ghost of King Duncan.

Industrial psychologist Terri Khonsari recommends, “Use fun soap, such as SquidSoap which stamps a child's hand with vegetable dye and doesn't come off until 20 seconds of washing.” A free piece of advice here is that a real squid is not an adequate replacement if your local supermarket doesn’t carry SquidSoap as a real squid doesn’t suds up as much as the soap and its dye is essentially permanent.

Mother of two Mary Jo Finley tells her children “that there are bugs you can't see and you need to wash them off so you don't get sick.” Medical professionals will often refer to this method at the Brown Acid Method which was popularized at Woodstock in 1969.

It is also suggested that parents buy step stools for the sinks since kids like the idea of stepping up on something. My kids, for instance, love to step all over my spirit, hopes and desires. It’s cool though, it’s cool. Really, I’ll be fine…

Here are some tips offered by Infectious disease specialist Dr. Marian Michaels to assure you’re children are using proper hand washing techniques:

Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds or longer. A good guideline for children is the time it takes for them to sing their ABCs. I’ll add that if your child is not yet an accomplished Abecedarian try The Butterfly Song. And if you child has squid dye on their hands you may want to try a song by Iron Butterfly like Ina-Gada-Davida.

Finally, Dr. Michaels says, “Don't use really hot water. Hot water can chap hands.” Dr. Michaels is right. Really hot water can scold a child’s skin. Instead use sort of hot water, just hot enough to pinken the skin. An easy way to remember this is, “If the skin’s not pink, hands back in the sink. If the skin turns red, then the bugs be dead.”

For our family though, the best way to encourage consistent hand washing has been for me and my wife to model the behavior for both our sons. That, and to make sure my ambition to become King one day is placed in front of the sink so they can reach the faucet; that is at least until the great Birnam wood moves to Dunsinane hill.

Kids Are Developing Peanut Allergies Much Younger

Kelly Mills — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 00:01:00 GMT

Researchers found peanut allergies are showing up in younger kids than before, and they don't know why. In a study of 40 kids, the median age of first allergic reaction was 14 months for those born between 2000 and 2005, compared to a median age of 22 to 24 months in kids born between 1988 and 1999. Doctors urge parents to avoid exposing susceptible kids to peanuts until they are older, because as one says, "When kids are older, it can be easier to manage bad reactions. They can tell you right away if their mouths feel funny. For that reason alone, it's worth delaying exposing your child to a peanut product, especially if a child is at high risk."

But hold on a minute--could it be that by limiting exposure, we're helping create these allergy problems? That was one theory in this article I posted about a while back, anyway. I love it when our caution turns out to be the thing that invites the plague upon us. 'Course we should still follow the doctors' advice here, because I doubt anyone wants to test that theory in a potentially fatal way. For now, PBJ can just remain food for thought.

Weekly Check-Up: Scary Allergies on the Rise Because We're Too Careful?

Kelly Mills — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 17:06:00 GMT

Once a month we bring snack for my daughter's class of 20 kids. Because of allergies, the list of forbidden foods includes dairy, nuts, strawberries, and wheat. Which means the kids can have rice cakes, and cut fruit, and veggies, and...did I already mention rice cakes? While I'm glad to know he needs of allergic kids are being taken care of, I was stunned by the number of foods on the danger list. Turns out that allergies, like the deadly peanut one, are on the rise in the younger population. But I was even more surprised to learn why more kids are having these reactions, because it seems like it could be due to our collective cautious parenting.

One theory for the increase in allergies is that with our highly clean, sanitized, germ-free lifestyles, we have basically given kids' immune systems too much free time. Without the need to wage small battles against bacteria and other stuff, the immune systems start amping up a response to innocous things like wheat. And our zealousness at protecting kids from allergies themselves may actually cause problems. Countries that advise avoidance of peanuts early in life have seen the biggest increase in peanut allergies. One researcher is actually conducting a study with babies that have egg allergies and eczema, but no peanut allergy--he is going to give half the kids a snack containing peanuts, and then follow the children to see if the exposure actually prevented a peanut allergy.

And then there's one more factor in the cautious parent-allergy relationship: some parents may believe kids have an allergy when that hasn't actually been confirmed. In fact, "'Studies have shown that up to 25 percent of parents think their children may have a food allergy,' says Dr. David Fleischer, of National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, 'but they've only been confirmed in about 8 percent.'" Good to know--maybe next year my kid's class will be able to ditch the rice cakes.

The Places You Go And Things You Use Are Filthy and Disease-Ridden

Kelly Mills — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 23:02:00 GMT

Oh, I so love a germy story. You know, where they tell you all the nastiness that lurks in your house and on your body and how you swallow bacteria and foulness every minute just by functioning in the world... So here's a story on the twelve germiest places you know. And yeah, your purse is one of them. And guys, I think man-purses are included in that. By the way, I cleaned out mine yesterday and found an old cheese stick. Life with kids is like swimming in a nasty petrie dish daily.

Other gross places (and do note how many of these impact parents) include: the playground, the shopping cart handles, the ATM buttons, your kitchen sink, and mats at the gym (double yikes for me). There's tips for how to deal with each of these (like, um, cleaning stuff off) but we'll just summarize by saying you should probably have truckloads of wipes handy. Also, wash your hands often. Every ten minutes, and don't let anyone tell you you're OCD or whatever. I like to shriek "Out damn spot!" when I wash my hands in public bathrooms, because people totally move away and give you good access to the full soap dispenser and paper towels.

Study Confirms What I've Been Saying For Years: Housework Is Bad For You

Kelly Mills — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 18:25:00 GMT

I'm wading through the dust bunnies and the piles of stuffed animals and jackets and assorted crap to tell you that housework might just mess with your health. Scientists even think so. They said exposure to cleaning sprays and air fresheners even just once a week could increase your risk of adult asthma. Which means you might want to leave an extra big tip for your cleaning person if you have one, because he or she is screwed.

And let me tell you why else housework is bad: Your clean house just makes some of us feel serious envy. I believe a clean house is a thing of beauty, my biggest wet dream. But with two working parents, we rarely achieve a level of hygiene that would get us past the local health inspector. There's often good intentions of picking up nightly and establishing some kind of routine, but more often we just get to it when the filth level makes one of us (me) fly into a rage, or if we are having guests over and want to maintain the fiction that we dust. When I go to someone's house and I see clean laundry still sitting in baskets, I think, "Whew, I'm not the only one." And when I enter a spotless house, I hang my head a little bit. I guess I should just be grateful I can still breathe.

On the Road Again: Surviving While One Parent Is Traveling

Kelly Mills — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 12:30:00 GMT

I've got a little secret: sometimes I find it a little easier to parent when my better half is out of town. Sure, it's hard flying solo, but somehow being the lone wolf gives me the space to just do whatever the hell gets us through the day without feeling like Bad Mom. That means more movies, less laundry, and more strange dinners that can be prepared in two minutes (as opposed to the five minutes I lovingly put into meal preparation when the old ball and chain is home.) Mitch McDad has some nice workarounds and shortcuts for surviving while his mate is away on bizness. He calls it cutting corners. I call it sweet freedom.

Mitch's survival strategies include: a dip in the hygiene level, the use of fruit snacks as shower-buying currency, and a crash course in the mani-pedi. Oh, and bed-head. He says it better, so go unto his site and learn to get through the next spousal excursion with a minimum of bloodshed and insanity. And don't tell anyone that having your partner travel is probably good practice in letting go of the smaller stuff, because we'll all lose the martyr points that come from a week alone with the kids, and that would be truly tragic.

Don't Flush Wipes, Terrence Howard

Kelly Mills — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 15:30:00 GMT

From Jezebel, we get this handy post that has two tips in one. Tip number one: Do not flush diaper wipes. It's a real plumbing no-no. (And from my own personal experience, you should also not flush those hemorrhoid wipes either, even though it says on the package that you can. The Roto Rooter guy and $500 later says you can't.) Anyhow, y'all probably knew this, and have your diaper genies or diaper pails handy, or don't even use those ecologically evil wipes in the first place. So it's just a reminder.

The second tip is actually a BRAND NEW use for diaper wipes. Remember when Sarah wrote about the 47 bajillion uses for wipes, and many of you added your own? Well, actor Terrence Howard has a whole new use. Apparently you can use diaper wipes to make it clear that you are a total asshole. Along with a bunch of other freaky statements, he insists that women he dates use diaper wipes, cuz dry paper isn't clean enough. "So if I go in a woman's house and see the toilet paper there, I'll explain this. And if she doesn't make the adjustment to baby wipes, I'll know she's not completely clean." Okie dokie, creep guy.

Collective "ewwww" When School Toilet Water is Cleaner Than Fountain Water

Kelly Mills — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 16:05:00 GMT

Kyleray Katherman opposes a ban on water bottles in his school. So to support his position, he swabbed the school drinking fountains for an English project (yup, took it science, cuz it's a charter school and you can do that kind of stuff.) He also took a swab from a toilet. Then he grew cultures in petrie dishes and showed that the potty water was cleaner than the nasty, skanky, fountain water. He presented his findings in a powerpoint for his class. Somebody give that kid a scholarship, or better yet, a little venture capitalist money.

The school officials were mighty embarrassed, and ordered all the fountain faucets be removed and cleaned. They had banned the water bottles when some students were caught bringing alcohol to school in them. Also known as "trying to stop a tsunami with a washcloth." Kids are nothing if not resourceful.

I, for one, am not shocked at all. We never drank out of the drinking fountains at school; they were reserved for the foulest bodily fluids, like spit and other things I will not mention on a family blog. But I did not know you could drink out of the toilet. That information would have saved me some money on New Coke from the 7-11.

Child Gets Drunk Off Hand Sanitizer

Kelly Mills — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 14:01:00 GMT

In keeping with my theme of late, "dirt and germs are good," check out this story about a child who was taken to the emergency room for lethargy and strange behavior. Apparently the four-year-old was licking the hand sanitizer off her little mitts, and she got drunk. Hand sanitizer has a higher alcohol content than booze, and Purell has 62 percent ethyl alcohol. Wowsa.

So we could echo the moral here and say to use the sanitizer sparingly, wash with soap and water, and keep an eye on the children's hand-to-mouth action. Plus I'll add that with all these chemicals and cleansers and special wipes we use for a germ-free, extra-sparkly, and safe life, we may find some unintended consequences start cropping up from time to time. But I just keep thinking, duuuuude, getting intoxicated on hand sanitizer is the most hardcore thing ever. I distinctly remember inhaling deeply from the Sharpies and rubber cement in elementary school (yeah yeah, it explains so much) but this makes our huffing look like sipping a Shirley Temple. I imagine that when word gets out about the Purell buzz, we'll see some kids with very clean hands and a campaign by parents to stop sanitizer abuse.

Dirty Babies Have Better Skin

Kelly Mills — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 11:37:00 GMT

Okay, that post title is a little misleading, but as it turns out, washing babies a ton may not be so good for their sensitive little skin. More than twice as many babies have skin problems as did a generation ago, and part of this may be due to our over-zealous scrubbing of their little bodies. Ellen Dalrymple, editor of Mother and Baby magazine, says in a lovely turn of phrase, "'It is not a good idea to bath baby every day, two or three times a week is plenty with the odd top and tail in between.'" Hey, I'm happy for any excuse not to have to deal with yet another baby chore. I can't wait for the study that says a once-a-month bath is good. And if you have a newborn, how often do you actually shower yourself? Not every day, I bet.

The other issue with all the rub-a-dub is that we use more chemicals on our kids now, what with special soaps and antiseptic wipes. But if you need to get your OCD out somewhere, go the sun protection route. Only a third of parents in this survey made sure their kids wore sunscreen regularly. Now, I believe you are supposed to use "chemical free" sunscreen on infants, like titanium oxide or zinc oxide, which provides a physical barrier against rays. And a hat with a brim. Perhaps this monstrosity could have some use after all.