Copyright Jessica
Snyder Sachs, as first published in Parenting magazine
While experts
don't have all the information, they do have some clear and practical
advice -- some of it surprising. Here are their answers
to parents' top questions about germs:
Q: I've read about children who've died from
drug-resistant supergerms. How can I protect my family?
MRSA generally
produces hard-to-treat skin infections. Less often, it can cause severe
pneumonia, typically on the heels of a chest cold or the flu, says John
Bradley, M.D., director of infectious diseases at the Children's Hospital and
Health Center in San Diego. Infection with the other bacterium, C. diff, is
usually triggered by antibiotics and generally causes intestinal problems, such
as diarrhea. But in rare cases C. diff can cause dangerous intestinal
inflammation.
To protect
against MRSA: Wash cuts and scratches thoroughly with soap and water, and keep
them covered with a bandage until they've healed. Check the bandage every day
or so, and don't ignore redness, swelling, or pus, as these can signal an
infection. If the wound gets worse after a day, see a doctor and ask her about
the possibility of MRSA. The same advice goes for a chest infection that takes
a sudden turn for the worse.
For C. diff, the
best prevention is to avoid taking antibiotics needlessly. Remember, they work
only against bacterial infections, not viruses like colds and flu. When you or
your child must take antibiotics, talk with your doctor about choosing the
least gut-disruptive drug available and consider taking probiotics (beneficial
bacteria that may help protect against drug-resistant germs). Sources of this
good bacteria include Saccharomyces yeasts (in supplements), as well as yogurt
and supplements containing lactobacillus. You can take probiotics after a
course of antibiotics, or you can take probiotics regularly. Ask your doctor
what's best for you.}]
Q: My kids love snacking on fresh fruit and
veggies on the way home from the market. Is this safe?
A: It's probably
okay -- and it's great that your kids
are eager to snack on produce -- but in
very rare instances contaminated fruits and vegetables can lead to serious,
even life-threatening food-borne illness. (Bad spinach, anyone?) The most common
culprits include sprouts, lettuce, unpasteurized juice, melons, and tomatoes.
But with the exception of sprouts (which can't be cleaned well and should never
be served raw to children), a thorough rinsing under tap water decreases the
risk for most fruits and vegetables --
no soap or special sprays needed. So even though your kids may like to munch on
grapes or apples on the way home from the grocery store, it's better to rinse
off the produce before digging in.
Using public
restrooms; the 5-second rule
Q What can I do to make sure my kids don't pick
up disease-causing germs in public rest rooms?
Of course, be
sure your kids wash their hands with soap and water when they're done. And
during cold and flu season, it's a good idea to use a paper towel on the
doorknob as they leave, since one-third of public-bathroom visitors don't wash
their hands.}]
Q: What about the "five-second
rule" -- that it's okay to pick up
and eat a dropped cookie, say, if you get it off the floor quickly. Is there
any harm in it?
A: That depends
on where you drop the cookie. "Compared to your kitchen sink, a bare floor
is quite safe," says Gerba, who practically shudders at all the germs he's
catalogued in drain traps, dishcloths, and sponges. "So long as you clean
the floor now and again, I wouldn't worry."
As for food that
drops outside, Gerba suggests erring on the side of caution. "Toss
it," he says, whether it's been on the ground for five seconds or five
minutes. You don't know what got deposited on that spot before you arrived.
Beach sand, for instance, is notorious for being contaminated with bird
droppings, which can spread intestinal bugs. "Knowing what I know, I never
eat off a bare picnic table," says Gerba. "Birds use it as their rest
room while they're cleaning up the crumbs the last picnicker left behind."
Eating rare meat;
avoiding avian flu
Q: My husband likes to cook our burgers
medium-rare and our eggs "sunny and runny," but what about the
bacteria in these raw foods? Am I being a germophobe?
A: No. Much
of the meat and eggs on our supermarket shelves is contaminated with
disease-causing bacteria, and these bugs are more drug resistant than ever.
Most of the time, the infections people get are run-of-the-mill food poisoning,
but in a small fraction of cases, gastrointestinal infections can become a
life-threatening problem. Infected babies and toddlers are among those at
highest risk of death and serious complications.
To kill these
germs, public-health experts recommend that you hard-cook eggs and use an
instant-read thermometer to make sure burgers and egg dishes reach an internal
temperature of at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, don't let raw meat or
eggs contaminate other food in your kitchen; wash any plate, cutting board,
counter, or silverware that's come in contact with the raw food before it
touches any other food. For people who really want their eggs sunny-side up and
runny, a growing number of supermarkets now carry pasteurized-in-the-shell eggs
(such as Davidson's Safest Choice).
Q: I heard that avian flu could arrive any time
with migrating birds. Is it safe to let my child feed ducks at the park or
seagulls at the beach?
A: Even if
the dangerous avian-influenza virus (technically referred to as highly pathogenic
H5N1) turns up in North American birds, the chance of transmission from birds
to humans is low. In Asia, the people who have gotten this flu were almost
exclusively those who regularly handle chickens and ducks. The greater risk,
then, is that this virus will mutate, or change, so that it can be transmitted
easily from one person to another. Thankfully, that hasn't happened yet.
Still, you and
your child shouldn't get too close to wild birds, says Paul Slota, branch chief
of the U.S.G.S. National Wildlife Health Center. Feeding wild birds encourages
their crowding -- which is bad for the
birds as well as for people (bird droppings can spread germs).
If your child
does touch a wild bird or its droppings, be sure to wash her hands with soap
and water before letting her touch her face, eat, or drink. If you're not near
a sink, a dollop of alcohol hand gel will do the trick.
Antibacterial
soaps; puppy kisses
Q: The supermarket is filled with soaps and
household cleaning products labeled "antibacterial." Are they better
than regular cleaning products?
A: No.
Antibacterial soaps and cleaning products aren't any more effective in
preventing the spread of disease-causing germs. (Alcohol-based hand gels, on
the other hand, have been shown to cut down on the spread of infections.)
What's more, the chemicals in antibacterial products work like antibiotics -- by interfering with bacterial growth -- and you've no doubt heard there's concern
(not yet proven) that these chemicals may promote the rise of drug-resistant
bacteria. "If they don't provide any benefit, why take the risk?"
says Tufts University microbiologist Stuart Levy, M.D. When you want to
disinfect surfaces, he and other experts recommend cleaning products that
contain bleach or alcohol.
Q: Our new puppy loves to give playful kisses.
Is it okay to let him lick our child's face?
A: "The odds
are in your favor that the occasional face lick is okay," says Gerba.
"Just ask yourself, what was the last thing your dog licked?" Dogs
can pick up intestinal parasites from infected canine buddies or if they drink
from streams and lakes frequented by wildlife
-- and these infections show up in stool. So if your dog has just licked
himself down there, that may not be the best time for a kiss. But if your dog
doesn't show signs of illness, you should generally feel safe letting him give
your child friendly licks from time to time.
Parenting
contributing editor Jessica Snyder Sachs is the author of Good Germs, Bad
Germs: Health and Survival in a Bacterial World (Hill&Wang/FSG).
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