As I was scratching my butt this morning, while I was eating some finger food...the subject of this thread crossed my mind. Can I get sick from some bacteria, produced by my very own body, if I scratch 'down there' and then eat without washing my hands? And, what about females with feminine itch?
You could conduct an experiment but, for increased efficiency, you could dip the fingers right in.Iamme said:
You can get thrush in the mouth as well I think (at least babies do).Iamme said:
Wait, I'll ask my dad.......
Yes, he says you can get oral thrush from a woman.
Tommy
(I'm glad I have already digested my dinner)
Billy Joe---Thrush? Never heard of it. The only '
thrush' I remember is a make of glass-pack mufflers back in the late 60's-early 70's. Please tell more about this thrush business. After all, if we aren't going to get all THAT sick from our own bodies...the least we could do is make ourselves sick in a hypochondriacs type of way.
thrush' I remember is a make of glass-pack mufflers back in the late 60's-early 70's. Please tell more about this thrush business. After all, if we aren't going to get all THAT sick from our own bodies...the least we could do is make ourselves sick in a hypochondriacs type of way.
You can indeed get sick this way, although it isn't all that dangerous.
Microflora is the term for bacteria that typically resides in any given part of the body. For instance, the skin has a whole range staphylococcus (including the infamous 'golden staph', which 10% of the population have in their nasal cavity). Various 'enterics' live in the lower gut. And as has already been pointed out, the same with some forms of yeast and fungi.
Now most of the time, transferring gut bacteria to the upper gut (stomach etc.) won't do a lot. But some enterics can cause problems, especially if your immune system is already compromised. So too with some viruses (the rotavirus, for instance, can be perpetuated this way, which is why it is often prevalent in infants). Not to mention many forms of parasitic worm.
But on the whole, there isn't a huge problem.
In fact many animals eat their own and other animal's faeces to maintain a steady balance of gut microflora, and this includes primates. So maybe instead of 'yakult', we should just be partaking in a steady passion for coprophagia instead!
Athon
Microflora is the term for bacteria that typically resides in any given part of the body. For instance, the skin has a whole range staphylococcus (including the infamous 'golden staph', which 10% of the population have in their nasal cavity). Various 'enterics' live in the lower gut. And as has already been pointed out, the same with some forms of yeast and fungi.
Now most of the time, transferring gut bacteria to the upper gut (stomach etc.) won't do a lot. But some enterics can cause problems, especially if your immune system is already compromised. So too with some viruses (the rotavirus, for instance, can be perpetuated this way, which is why it is often prevalent in infants). Not to mention many forms of parasitic worm.
But on the whole, there isn't a huge problem.
In fact many animals eat their own and other animal's faeces to maintain a steady balance of gut microflora, and this includes primates. So maybe instead of 'yakult', we should just be partaking in a steady passion for coprophagia instead!
Athon
No, it's Tommy. I'm posting instead of my dad who is indisposed. But he did tell me about the thrush. It is caused by a fungus called "monilia" (also called "candida albicans"). It commonly affects babies' mouths (oral thrush) and womens' vaginas (vaginal thrush).Iamme said:
The bit about us men being able to catch oral thrush from women was a sort of joke and was in bad taste.
Tommy
(You can blame dad for that joke as well - I can't believe him sometimes)
Prester John
Anti-homeopathy Illuminati member
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The oral faecal route is important in the transmission of many infections. Usually tho' its from someone elses faeces to your mouth. Self inoculation is the way that pinworm remains in your body as without reinoculation the infection is self limiting. That said prevention of self reinoculation is very difficult as it is very infectious. So get down to your GP and get some drugs!
Wash your hands !
Wash your hands !
Michael Redman
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Try opening a route for the contents of your intestines to get into your body cavity, and see if that doesn't make you sick.
Michael Redman said:
Yes, a huge complication of abdominal surgery.
Also, the Streptococcus viridans group of bacteria, normal residents of the oral mucosa, can cause problems in people prone to subacute bacterial endocarditis when they undergo dental procedures. This is why most dentists will prescribe prophylactic antibiotics to patients with rheumatic heart disease or mitral valve prolapse prior to doing any major dental work.
-TT
HopkinsMedStudent
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BillyJoe said:
Which drugs are you referring to?
Drugs used to treat worm infestations (I was going to say "infection" but my dad corrected me)
He says we used "Combantrin" which is the brand name but he can't remember the chemical name (and can't be bothered to look it up)
Tommy
He says we used "Combantrin" which is the brand name but he can't remember the chemical name (and can't be bothered to look it up)
Tommy
Dilettante
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I'm amazed that no one has mentioned E. coli yet. That's probably the most obvious thing for a guy to give himself by scratching his butt.
Don't worry, though -- it's not normally fatal, except in young children or people who are already seriously ill. But it will give you "food poisoning" symptoms (sometimes that's what food poisoning is, like at those Jack in the Boxes a few years ago).
So many reasons not to eat dead animals...
Don't worry, though -- it's not normally fatal, except in young children or people who are already seriously ill. But it will give you "food poisoning" symptoms (sometimes that's what food poisoning is, like at those Jack in the Boxes a few years ago).
So many reasons not to eat dead animals...
TillEulenspiegel
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I live in Florida and at the height of the tourest season,I have seen some bodies at the beach that make ME sick. 50yr old men w/potbellies in thongs <shudder> and 190lb women in string bikinis...........O! crap here comes lunch............
Segnosaur
Penultimate Amazing
Yahweh said:
That's quite a bit different than the case presented in the original post (scratching your butt, etc.), however, you are right; there are some diseases where the immune system attacks its own body (although I don't know if any cancers are like that.) They are called autoimmune diseases.
I think the best known example is Type 1 (insullin dependent or "childhood" diabetes), where the body attacks the part of the pancreas that produces insulin. Other types of autoimmune diseases can attack the thyroid or adrenal glands, muscle, or skin.
In my case, I think my immune system is going after my brain.
Just a quick google search found this:
http://www.aarda.org/qa_frames.html
http://www.niaid.nih.gov/publications/autoimmune/autoimmune.htm#what