"Hygiene Hypothesis" for rise in allergy revisited

[ajasfolks2]

http://www.news-medical.net/news/20170217/New-article-provides-thought-provoking-view-on-the-rise-of-allergy-autoimmune-diseases.aspx


Am recalling my 2-kids-piggy-mud-bog photo I used to post everytime this "theory" used to come up.

 

[ajasfolks2]

Link to open access .pdf

http://www.pnas.org/content/114/7/1433.full.pdf

[Mr. Barlow]

With full knowledge I am speaking to the well informed FAS choir, it is troubling that hypotheses thrive primarily through their retelling rather than survive skeptical challenges that produce results that may support the proposed hypothesis.

The momentum of many hypotheses and supposition in allergy/immunology seem to be dependent on insulation by isolation.  It's easy to win the World Series if your only competition is limited to one country.  We don't hear enough from Levin, et al., and WHO on jumping to conclusions that while well intentioned and bear some limited suggestive evidence, are insufficient for generalizing to a meaningful extent, or worse - in a self-congratulatory rush are made into sweeping practice changes that inadvertently create equal or worse health impact.

[eragon]

 and to be frank, as our son is nearly 21 had enough of hearing the words 'hygiene theory' .

[CMdeux]

.... the notion of false equivalence always sticks in my mind everytime I hear certain phrases....


Hygiene Hypothesis....



Sure.  Because I wanted my child vaccinated, I am totally a germ-o-phobe who kept her away from the world...    Explain to me again why the frequent ear infections in infancy, RSV pneumonia at 13mo.... was "keeping her in an immunological bubble"?

But there are plenty of other phrases that elicit this kind of Pavlovian eye-rolling in me...

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Homeschooled... sure, that = unsocialized.  Sure it does.  Because if it were not for spending 6-8 hours daily around children within 14 months of my child in age, she would have been chained in the basement we do not have...  Sure.

Only children....  self-centered, narcissistic....   Right.  Because apparently fighting with siblings over toys and parental attention is the only way that one learns to be unselfish, compassionate, fair... er.... wait.  Maybe not, actually.   

   Just saying.

And yes, I do understand that the hygiene hypothesis is a more global kind of theory, that has nothing to do with individual exposures really... but still.  Given that IgE is apparently an evolutionary holdover from a time when parasitic organisms ravaged infant survival... maybe we should view that atopic quirk as being more like.... a sickling trait?  Maybe??