Eat Dirt! It's Good For You.

So what kind of mom are you? Do you let your child pick things off the floor and eat dirt because that's what kids are supposed to do? or Do you chase your baby around making sure they don't lick everything in sight and secretly wipe off the saliva covered toys at music class with antibacterial wipes before they play with them?

Maybe you're a little of both or somewhere in between. It's hard. Who wants their child to get sick? While some say,"it's good for them to get sick, it builds their immune system", but doctors say there are hundreds of different viruses, just because your child got sick already doesn't mean he won't get sick again. And when your baby gets sick, you may get sick and then your husband. It's a vicious cycle. Yuck!

But then again we can't be overprotective all the time, can we? And if it's your 2nd or 3rd child who has the time?

But check out this article from the NY Times
"Babies Know-A little dirt is good for you"

It basically says when babies put things in their mouth it is instinctive and all instinctive behaviors have an evolutionary advantage that helped us survive as a species.
In studies of what is called the hygiene hypothesis, researchers are concluding that organisms like the millions of bacteria, viruses and especially worms that enter the body along with “dirt” spur the development of a healthy immune system.

Hmm! Food for thought. So in the meantime maybe dirt worms are ok, but I'm still not so fond of viruses.