Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Why You Should Let Your Children Play In Dirt!

I just came across it! I'm a huge advocate for just letting kids be kids. Dirt washes off and now there's a good possibility that it actually is GOOD for kids! I've never been one to stop the kids from getting dirty when we go to the park, track, etc. We spend most of our spring, summer, and fall days at the park. The boys are normally full of sand in ever crevise that it can possibly get into, their heads are ususally full of it, shoes always have to be emptied on the steps before going inside and normally a shoe full of sand falls out lol...but they're happy, tired, and dirty little boys. Staying clean happens when we're adults. Too many parents are worried about germs and dirt...when the fact is a little is good. How are our immune systems supposed to get stronger if they're never exposed? We rarely do hand sanitizers, we're non antibacterial soap family. They wash before eating and when dirt is visible on their hands after coming inside...otherwise they're fine. A little dirt isn't going to hurt them. They don't have compromised immune systems so why act like they do?!

Jacob and Jack don't know how to get a little dirty...they know how to get REALLY dirty and they're happier because of it!

Here's the link tot he article:
http://www.parentdish.com/2007/04/03/why-you-should-let-your-children-play-in-the-dirt/

Here's the article:

Nolan loves dirt. He loves to smear his little fingers in whatever gooey muck he can get his little fingers into, if there is a puddle he will splash in it, if there's a chunk of thick brown soil he will attempt to insert his limbs as far as they will go. And up till now, I have stopped him: Nolan, yuck. That's dirty.

But he might just know exactly what he's doing. This recent BBC article claims that exposure to dirt might lift mood as well as the immune system. Apparently, seratonin, a key ingredient in the brown gunk, may restore a healthy immune function in people who are depressed and prone to infection.

More study is needed, caution experts, but in the meantime, I guess it wouldn't hurt all of us to learn from our kids and smear a little mud.

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