The human body is, to some extent, just a luxury cruise liner for microbes.
Science writer Carl Zimmer has a post at Discover’s science blogs about the increasing understanding among scientists about the symbiosis of the human organism and its assorted microscopic passengers. Indeed, there is a growing belief that the symbiosis might actually be under the control of the micro-organisms rather than ourselves. This Scientific American article reviews some of the same research as Zimmer’s piece and includes a variety of additional links to plumb through.
On a slightly different, but related, topic: this article in Slate considers whether or not hand sanitizers like Purell have any real effect in preventing the spread of diseases like colds and flu, then goes on to consider the weightier question of whether it’s really a good idea at all to be trying to de-germify every surface in sight.
