Importance of exposure to dirt for your immune system
By Stacey Macdonald

When I was younger, I spent my time, in the vegetable garden and trying to feed them to my sister, constantly covered in dirt, splashing in puddles, barefoot walking on grass, climbing trees and honestly, always dirty. Thankfully, my parents weren’t telling me to keep clean and I have benefited greatly from this. This has led me to exposing my own children to the same lifestyle.
Recent research, is stating that dirt, grime and germs are joining forces with microorganisms that can support the immune system and build resilience to a range of illnesses, including asthma, allergies, as well as depression and anxiety. It states that certain natural materials, for example, soil and dirt are creating a positive impact on children’s health (Franco and Robson, 2022). By getting our hands
dirty, walking barefoot on grass, we are able to improve our gut health. The amount of physical contact we have with soil, affects the diversity and health of our gut microbiome. We have many of the same bacteria as soil in our intestines as well as our skin, therefore the human body is literally covered inside and outside with microbes that are found in soil (Casas, 2024, pg. 2).
One gram of soil, can have up to 10billion microorganisms, with potentially thousands of different species. With the diverse array of bacteria, fungi and microbes in mud and soil, they play an important role in our health. This immune training, supports our immune system to distinguish between harmful pathogens and benign environmental substances. When children are young, their immune system is very adaptable. When exposed to a variety of microbes, it learns which are good or bad. Such as, to respond aggressively to harmful substances, and leaving harmless substances, like pollen or food particles alone (White and Wilson, 2024, pg.2)
Over time, the western world, has become cleaner, especially during COVID, with the constant overuse of hand sanitiser wherever you went, to removed harmful bacteria from our environment. However, the consequence of this, is now children are no longer exposed to dirt, grime and germs to support a well-functioning immune system. What we think is harming children, is in fact supporting their immunity to build up its resilience. By introducing young children to certain strains of nature’s bacteria, the body is able to build its defence system accordingly (www.nutricia.com.au ). Lack of exposure to microorganism, especially when children are young, may increase the likelihood of developing common colds and illnesses due to lack of the immunes system ability to handle everyday pathogens (White and Wilson, 2024, pg.2)
Not only does mud play, benefit our immune system it provides essential sensory experiences, such as touching, smelling and use of fine motor skills with manipulating different textures. This stimulates brain development and emotional resilience. It can also reduce stress in children, thus supporting and maintaining a well-functioning
immune system. “Research shows, Mycobacterium vaccae, a type of bacteria, found in soil, is shown to reduce inflammation and improve mood. It does this by influencing the release of serotonin” (White and Wilson, 2024, pg.3)
To be honest, my own children, are gross, and barely wash their hands, however I can count on one hand the amount of times, they have been sick, and they are five, ten and twelve. All that playing in mud has not only been fun, it has also been an essential part of building a very strong immune system. By embracing nature, my children have enabled their immune system to thrive and we all benefit from it.

References:
Franco, A and Robson, D (2022) How mud boosts your immune system https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220929-how-outdoor-play-boosts-kids-immune-systems
Casas, Jose David Henao (2024) Healthy soils are good for your gut, brain and wellbeing-here’s why https://theconversation.com/healthy-soils-are-good-for-your-gut-brain-and-wellbeing-heres-why-237681#:~:text=We%20carry%20many%20of%20the,health%2C%20of%20your%20gut%20microbiome.
White, S and Wilson, P (2024) Playing in mud and dirt can boost your child’s immune system – here’s how https://theconversation.com/playing-in-mud-and-dirt-can-boost-your-childs-immune-system-heres-how-241532#:~:text=Immune%20development&text=Sensory%20activities%20(such%20as%20playing,inflammation%20and%20even%20improve%20mood.
Why it’s good for kids to get outdoors and get dirty https://nutricia.com.au/aptamil/baby-and-toddler/health-and-nutrition/why-good-kids-get-outdoors-dirty/#:~:text=Some%20germs%20can%20actually%20stimulate,building%20its%20defence%20system%20accordingly.