As is usual this time of year, an intestinal disturbance is making the rounds. In this household we gravitate to berberine-containing herbs (Oregon Grape Root, Barberry), oregano oil, coconut charcoal, probiotics and Saccharomyces boulardii, as well yogurt, kefir and other fermented foods to help us through the process. Staying hydrated is critical, so water, teas and electrolytes are part of the program as well.
It reminds me of the effectiveness of the simple act of washing ones hands.
In Dr. Atul Gawande’s bestselling book, The Checklist Manifesto, he describes the slums of Karachi where four million squatters live in squalor and abject poverty—sewage in the streets, contaminated drinking water, and where 30 to 40 percent of children are malnourished and 10 percent die before age five from diarrhea or respiratory infections. UNICEF’s Global Handwashing campaign provides devastating statistics about diarrheal diseases, stating that they "remain the second largest cause of under-five mortality globally. With 600,000 children dying in each year and over 1.7 billion cases, diarrheal diseases are also associated with a higher risk of stunting (low weight for age and developmental delay).”
Gawande relays the story of researchers working out of the U.S. Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) office in Pakistan who taught residents how to wash their hands and provided them with free soap for a year—some with regular soap, others with antibacterial soap. After a year’s time, children living in some of the worst conditions in the world showed these dramatic results “…children younger than 5 years in households that received plain soap and handwashing promotion had a 50% lower incidence of pneumonia; children younger than 15 years in households with plain soap had a 53% lower incidence of diarrhoea and a 34% lower incidence of impetigo.”
The study found no difference in disease incidence or lack thereof between the use of plain soap versus antibacterial soap, illuminating how simple measures (plain soap, water and a culture of handwashing) could halve the incidence of killer illnesses, improving the quality of life of some of the world’s poorest inhabitants.
As a side note, similar research was done in Bangladesh where over 80% of the participants didn’t have money for soap, but it was found that “washing” ones hands with ash or soil and then rinsing with water was also effective in staving off disease.
Sanjay Wijesekera, the former global head of UNICEF’s Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programmes said, "The simple act of handwashing with soap is one of the most effective ways to save children’s lives...”
These are impressive statistics and illustrate the old adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. And given the harmful effects of anti-bacterial soaps and other products, it is reassuring to hear that you don’t need those toxic products to fend off illnesses.
In addition to my herbs and other health support, I am so grateful for the beautiful water that flows through my faucets—that hydrates me, that cleanses my body and hands, that cleans my food, that becomes part of my food, makes my tea, and that waters my gardens, bringing nourishment and joy to my family—a bounty of medicine that is all around us.
Water—such a simple yet precious thing.
What would we do without it?