Study Shows Thumb-Sucking and Nail-Biting Can Be Good For Kids 75
HughPickens.com writes: Perri Klass M.D. writes in the NYT that according to a new study of children aged 5 to 11, thumb-suckers and nail-biters were less likely to have positive allergic skin tests later in life. In the study, parents were asked about their children's nail-biting and thumb-sucking habits when the children were 5, 7, 9 and 11 years old. skin testing for allergic sensitization to a range of common allergens including dust mites, grass, cats, dogs, horses and common molds was done when the children were 13 years old, and then later when they were 32. The study found that children who frequently sucked a thumb or bit their nails were significantly less likely to have positive allergic skin tests both at 13 and again at 32. Children with both habits were even less likely to have a positive skin test than those with only one of the habits. The question of such a connection arose because of the so-called hygiene hypothesis, an idea originally formulated in 1989, that there may be a link between atopic disease -- the revved-up action of the immune system responsible for eczema, asthma and allergy -- and a lack of exposure to various microbes early in life. Some exposure to germs, the argument goes, may help program a child's immune system to fight disease, rather than develop allergies. "The hygiene hypothesis is interesting because it suggests that lifestyle factors may be responsible for the rise in allergic diseases in recent decades," says Robert J. Hancox. "Obviously hygiene has very many benefits, but perhaps this is a downside. The hygiene hypothesis is still unproven and controversial, but this is another piece of evidence that it could be true." Although the results do not suggest that kids should take up these habits, the findings do suggest the habits help protect against allergies that persist into adulthood.
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but if you don't, don't.
I was the only kid in my family of 5 kids who sucked their thumb. I was also the only kid in the family of 5 kids who didn't have braces. Every new dentist I go to asks me when I got my braces off.
Nice try...but try again.
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Parent made a blanket statement. I provided an example in which the blanket statement was incorrect.
Blanket statements are also not data.
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And three rights make a left.
What about nose-pickers? (Score:5, Funny)
I'm asking for a friend.
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they were found to be more likely to be overweight social outcasts.
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As much as that comment was probably intended as a troll, it is technically accurate.
Similar to biting fingernails (more importantly, biting the stuff that gets caught under fingernails), it benefits from the basic principles of vaccination and controlled exposure. Small samples of local pathogens caught in the mucous filter and then passed near your tonsils (major lymph nodes) and digestive system (really good at killing cells and isolating organic compounds for future use/analysis) provide immune system
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Because thanks ti PhotoShop you CAN pick a friends nose!
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If cocksucking improves the immune system then your mom should live forever!
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What about ear, butthole, etc. pickers? :P
Everything they siad was wrong (Score:1)
What a pity! (Score:1)
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I bit my nails as a kid and despite years of trying my nails are an awful mess, always wish my parents had pushed harder to stop it. Anecdotally, never had any remote problem with allergies, also rarely get sick.
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However a lot of natural behaviors have been discouraged by changing cultural norms.
While people are freaking out about GMO and other devious actions by big agro food for all these allergies, Where the true cause may just be our new bubble hyper clean life style, where kids are seen as ultra fragile and in some areas laws will punish parents who raise their kids in a manner where they are exposed to such dirty behaviors.
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Exactly, and it's interesting that allergy rates differ based upon where you were born...
From http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pm... [nih.gov]
The reasons for this stark difference in peanut allergy compared to the western population are not known. It is tempting to speculate that early exposure to peanut which is cooked braised or boiled may be one of the reasons for the development of tolerance, as Asians including children are often exposed to peanut rice porridge. It has been shown that roasting of peanuts increases it
A Slightly Better Article (Score:4, Informative)
NYT spends as many inches on name dropping the researchers as it does explaining the research. The NHS has released an article [www.nhs.uk] that's a little better IMO.
tl;dr Research paper shows correlation between nail biting in childhood and incidence of allergies in later life, does not elaborate on causal relationship. Results hailed as "common sense" by the usual crowd.
Not really (Score:2)
If the hypothesis is right, the point isn't the thumb-sucking or nail-biting, it's the exposure to bacteria, and there's a ton of other ways to do that.
Thumb-sucking in particular often correlates with tooth alignment issues later in life, so perhaps just stop sterilizing the shit out of everything around your kid and they'll get the same benefit without needing braces later?
Re: Not really (Score:1)
Yeah, we should be licking other people for maximum effeciency!
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YMMV, but we raised a child with allergies so severe he would wind up in the hospital every spring from 0-3 years of age. With a family history of asthma, we chose to let him strengthen his immune system playing in the dirt with the other children, rather than keeping him inside in the bubble. He is (mostly) grown now with few breathing issue
Another uncheckable study (Score:2)
You cannot check this for causation. Does the habit cause later protection, or does per-existing protection cause the habit? No way of doing a controlled study, as feeding nails to random children (even own nails) can be frowned upon.
Anyway, if it can help reduce the all-encompassing parent anxiety about anything their precious child does, it's welcome.
Not worth the other issues (Score:5, Insightful)
Unproven (Score:4, Interesting)
The hygiene hypothesis is still unproven and controversial
That's not quite correct; "unproven" is a confusing word here. It's more of an "it depends" situation, rather than a "true/false" situation.
The hygiene hypothesis can be sort-of demonstrated in some situations (e.g. reduced allergic response to peanuts in mice via oral sensitisation with very low amounts of CpG-coated peanut extract [nih.gov]), and rejected in others (e.g. the parasitic worm H. polygyrus suppresses the adaptive immune response [nih.gov]).
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What should be looked into more are things like nut allergy. It seems that every other US kid has some kind of nut allergy, often severe and potentially life threatening, while in Europe it's rare and in Asia it's pretty much a non-issue.
One notable difference: in the US, parents are advised to stay clear of peanuts and other nuts for the first year or so, until sure there is no allergy.
In Asia, peanut oil is some of the most commonly used cooking oils, peanuts and other nuts are used in food big time, and
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Makes you wonder what is in dairy that is not in breast milk. The most common chemical that causes reaction is lactose, but that's present in breast milk as well.
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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pm... [nih.gov]
Not 1989... (Score:2)
Saying it originated in 1989 is like saying gravity originated in the 1600s with Newton, or like saying the idea of America originated with Columbus.
I personally know people who heard variations on the "hygiene hypothesis" from doctors in the 70s, although maybe nobody managed to get it published until later. But anybody with a brain would have tossed variations on it around casually in conversation once they understood we could build up resistance to things. Contrary to the certainty of all of us today, t
*Thumb* sucking (Score:2)
*Thumb* sucking is good for kids. Ooops, the catholic church got it all wrong!
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Kids aren't outside playing in the dirt nearly as much as in the 60s. My parents rarely knew where I was until they saw me come in for lunch or dinner back then. We didn't sit in front of a computer or Xbox all day, so in addition to the exposure, we were actually getting physical exercise.
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Don't forget picking your nose. (Score:2)
A study done years ago suggested it gives the same benefits.
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getting to the point (Score:1)
Just eat more dirt.
--
I was a beta tester for dirt. We never did get all the bugs out.
What about adults? (Score:1)
Study Shows Thumb-Sucking and Nail-Biting Can Be Good For Kids
What about Adults?
Humans: 10% Human and 90% Bacteria (Score:1)
If we bathe in mud and dirt we will be invincible!
In other news... (Score:2)
Please change the title of this post (Score:2)
The study only says that kids who such thumb and bit may develop fewer allergies. This does not mean that there are no other side effects and it is overall good for them. The referenced article has a proper title, "Thumb Suckers and Nail Biters May Develop Fewer Allergies".