Friendly Bacteria Keep Your Skin's Defenses in Check

The article begins with talking about something everyone can relate to, the nasty bacteria on our skin. When thinking about it you probably get a little squeamish thinking about things living on you, but Geddes shockingly shows us how a few of these bacteria may be helpful to us. Those bacteria are Staphylococcus, when I think of this word I immediately think of staph infections. "How could that be helpful to your health?" a question I asked myself while reading this article. It turns out that the Staphylococcus helps cut down on inflammation by releasing lipoteichoic acid (LTA). Granted inflammation is key to helping heal injuries, too much inflammation causes psoriasis. To keep these bacteria intact, limiting the amount of antibacterial soaps is necessary. Usage of these soaps is helpful but in moderation. This article really helps get a better understanding of how even the things that we think we should get rid of help us in the long run, granted there are definitely things that we need to be rid of. Looking into the science of how things that we thought harmful are actually helping us really gives a feeling of hope for the cure of so much more than just a skin infection, it leaves the possibility for so much more that we once thought harms us, in the end helps with other more important things. 

"Friendly Bacteria Keep Your Skin's Defences in Check." - Health. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Sept. 2014.