The Immune System

[The Gentleman Scamp]

If health & safety inspected some of the kitchens in Bangkok, let alone the food stalls then what would be the chances of them passing?

I for one am a firm believer that exposure to germs only increases the immune system and that over-clenliness and hygene obsession can be more harmful as ones body does not get used to germs.

I bite me my nails and I re-heat food and have even consumed McDonalds products on occasions when I have been desperate and yet despite suffering insomnia, and the occasional mild hangover, I have never been ill as a result of eating street food or biting my nails after a day's shopping.

Was it Bruce Lee that died from a paracetomol as a result of being a hygene obsessive?

...And yet the Nana worm-man is always well enough to slide along the filthy pavements holding his cup.

[Axel]

Makes sense, over a time you develop anti-bodies. I would, however, not take a new comer to the noodle stand where I can survive.

Side-effect, fly tomorrow to Eskimo-country and cough only once, you wipe out a whole village including igloo and what have you.

PS:McDonalds products, how do you do it?

[Falang Pan]

I think I heard somewhere that after you get "Bali belly" or "Montazuma's revenge" or the local really rough day of fever and diarrhea, that you are generally immune to that bacteria. That was true for me in Bali, but it was a rough inoculation! I get the occasional mild diarrhea here, but considering how food is left unrefrigerated and that flies are often landing on it, it's a mystery to me that food poisoning is so rare here.

[Davidcharles]

Didn't they do a scientific test to see if kids who played in the dirt, developed antibodies more potent than those who were prevented from getting their hands dirty.

As I recall, the Dirty kids proved to be a lot less likely to get sick!

I take Beta Glucan to boost my immune system......seems to work.

But frankly, how do you know if something like that works?

You can't tell if you would have got sick, if you hadn't taken it.......Oh well.

"Prevention is better than cure", they say.

[Falang Pan]

Didn't they do a scientific test to see if kids who played in the dirt, developed antibodies more potent than those who were prevented from getting their hands dirty.

Yes, I remember hearing of that as well. And kids who contract worms through playing in the dirt tend not to get bowel disease. It seems that worms have a symbiotic relationship with us, not merely a parasitic one.

[drummer]

That would make sense- the symbiotic relationship. Of course, wouldn't worms sort of eat your food before you? Kinda like a mother bird chewing up the food for the chicks?

One very big reason why people don't get as much food poisining in LoS is the chili peppers. They eat the food with so much chili that the germs can't survive...

I think there is a book, the Andromeda Strain by Michael ... whats his name. The guy who wrote Sphere and Congo and Jurrassic Park, etc. We just weren't meant to live in a bubble.

I will bet you that there is a self-fulfilling prophecy effect, too. You spend all your time worried about germs, you are gonna get sick more often. All the worry adds stress, too, and that is a known major contributor to the efficacy of your immune system.

P.S. The worm-man is one of the most pitiful things I have ever seen. You really gotta admire the guy, really (if not envy).

[cobra]

One very big reason why people don't get as much food poisining in LoS is the chili peppers.  They eat the food with so much chili that the germs can't survive...

... what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger...

Most of my crew comes down with diarrhea at some point with fair regularity, yet I never have, not once, and I've been all over the world.

I do eat very hot food, chilies out of the jar, whatever, I just dump the little saucer of chills on my padthai to the astonishment of the help, I even draw a crowd when I'm getting some Pok Pok made up from a street vendor (extra hot, extra spicy). Someone said it makes for a inhospitable environment for pathogens in the gut, who knows, or maybe just another urban legend ..

[KevinN]

The hot chili's do tend to help and so does the lime squeezed on the food,thats how the mexicans can eat the filth that they do and live thru it.

Also to pop the immune system I take Astrogalus,it is hard to find here but available in China and USA and aslo helps with lung function as I have enfazeme.

After you start to get a little cold or illness you can also take echinacea which you can buy at most pharmacys, made in AUS. by Blackmore.

As you get older your immune system tends to slow down and it does not hurt to jump start it once in awhile.

[Thetyim]

Thanks, Scamp for your new theory.

If I spend sometime in Pataya will I develope immunity to AIDS ?

Could be good for TAT, selling theapeutic courses in Patty.

[Thetyim]

Thanks, Scamp for your new theory.

If I spend sometime in Pataya will I develope immunity to AIDS ?

Could be good for TAT, selling theapeutic courses in Patty.

[mbkudu]

Didn't they do a scientific test to see if kids who played in the dirt, developed antibodies more potent than those who were prevented from getting their hands dirty.

Yes, I remember hearing of that as well. And kids who contract worms through playing in the dirt tend not to get bowel disease. It seems that worms have a symbiotic relationship with us, not merely a parasitic one.

Children who grow up with pets in the home are pretty much allergy free their adult lives, while adults who never had pets as children sniffle and sneeze their way through life.

[The Gentleman Scamp]

Thanks, Scamp for your new theory.

If I spend sometime in Pataya will I develope immunity to AIDS ?

Could be good for TAT, selling theapeutic courses in Patty.

Would be nice if it worked that way and maybe in the future we'll be able to eat AIDS - then it might just be possible.

[Totster]

PS:McDonalds products, how do you do it?

exposure = tolerance

[thatguy]

it's been well documented that tolerance, if not immunity, is enhanced by

exposure. especially early in life.

the fact that human children will stick anything that they find in their mouths

may point to an evolutionary advantage.

they also puke a lot,

perhaps leaving a nonlethal trace to fire up the immune system.

growing up with pets seems to correlate inversely with developing athsma

later in life.

the literature abounds with examples too numerous for this forum.

but, my mama always said: "you gotta eat a peck of dirt before you die"

she never said if that was in one sitting, or a teaspoon a month will croak you in your ninetys.

by the way, scamp, reheated McD doesn't sound like the answer to your "can't eat Thai food" topic. it's pushing two months. have you learned any tips and home cooking styles for the rest of us underfed?

xtg

[john b good]

I think I will stick with the staying hygienic approach.

Maybe your immune system does toughen up a bit.??

What did your mum tell you scampie? "wash your hands after going to the dunny"

Why do you think surgeons scrub up before they cut you open.

If the philosophy of eating all this grubby food worked they would put you on that diet before an operation. Toughen you up.

No I don't think so.

I watch what I eat and mostly stay free of prolonged doses of the sh1ts.

I do eat a lot of seafood though I must admit. Fresh as you can get (straight out of the shower)

[thatguy]

jbg:

what you swallow goes thru a multimillion year designed grinder, a surgeon touches parts better left alone.

i agree most !!! the cleaner you eat, the cleaner you be

btw, as in the oceanic variety, if it don't smell right, it ain't

xtg

[Crushdepth]

I for one am a firm believer that exposure to germs only increases the immune system

This is true to a fair extent - you don't develop antibodies unless you are exposed to a bug, and while your immune system can 'remember' it also eventually 'forgets'. So occasional low-level exposure helps keep the defences up.

Of course, a big dose of something nasty can still hammer you regardless, so disregard for hygiene is not a good idea...and as someone pointed out, even a small dose of some things will just totally kill you anyway :-)

[Pepe']

Well I'm really not sure what to say. Actually I did get a kick out of most of these previous posts.

No offense but poor sanitation and unhygenic food preparation have been well documented to be detrimental to health.

Rest and proper nutrition are the real keys to a strong immune system.

Also having the constitution of an ox doesn't hurt either.

Constant exposure to filth is not conducive to good health contrary to the general consencous here.

You guys kill me

[Sarawudt]

Well I'm really not sure what to say. Actually I did get a kick out of most of these previous posts.

No offense but poor sanitation and unhygenic food preparation have been well documented to be detrimental to health.

Rest and proper nutrition are the real keys to a strong immune system.

Also having the constitution of an ox doesn't hurt either.

Constant exposure to filth is not conducive to good health contrary to the general consencous here.

You guys kill me

my 2 baht,

'you are what you eat'

[drummer]

No offense but poor sanitation and unhygenic food preparation have been well documented to be detrimental to health.

Use it or lose it. Just like everything else in your body, it needs use to maintain or improve function.

Granted, you don't want to live in a sewer, and many bugs will kill you if you get exposed. But being to concerned about cleanliness can make your immune system soft and weak.

Maybe a military anaolgy is apt here? ...so having a well equipped and supplied army is really important- critical, really, it doesn't do to have them be untrained.

[Smokin Joe]

I am thinking about converting this info to something more practical. If I start crashing my motorbike at slow speeds into soft bushes, and slowly increasing speed and target hardness, I should be immune to high speed collisions with Thai buses.