Dog Licks Could Help You Kick Diseases

People now have a reason to get even more chummy with man’s best friend – a study from the University of Arizona says bacteria from dogs and their saliva can help people avoid allergies.

By being exposed to the germs and bacteria that a dog has, a person’s immune system can be aware and become immune to it. This is part of what’s called the hygiene hypothesis.

“It’s a thought that when you’re living on, say, a farm with animals drinking milk fresh out of their utters, you’re getting some good bacteria that helps populate your gut,” saidPunita Ponda, MD, assistant division chief of allergy and immunology at Cohen Children’s Medical Center. “And that process of having the bacteria in the gut helps the immune system not be super reactive to allergens.”

If a person is allergic to dogs, this idea of having dogs around you to avoid allergies would not be beneficial.

A recent study showed that leaving your dishes not completely sparkling clean could benefit your allergies for this same reason – exposure to certain bacteria.

“I think the pendulum is swinging towards not having a completely sanitary environment around us all the time and seeing the benefits of a life where you do have some of the exposures that were just so vilified in the past, such as dog drool,” Dr. Ponda said.

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