Public transit is a pretty wonderful thing, especially for those of us who can not drive us from place to place. While it is well known that buses, trains and planes are full of germs, new research from the University of California concludes that all this grossness is actually much worse than we originally thought.
The study, conducted by the evolutionary biologist Andrew Moeller, found that when humans are in close quarters, we exchange a small amount of what he calls "intestinal bacteria" with each other.
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The human stomach has a large variety of these bacteria, since these organizations help us fight disease and infection.
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These fellows usually like stay in our guts, but can escape through our mouths by breathing, burping and coughing.
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Inevitably, people in close contact with each other exchange gut bacteria at some point. This means that you and the person sitting across from you on the subway are probably exchanging stomach bacteria right this second.
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Stranger still is that this exchange of gut bacteria actually ends up making our immune system stronger.
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(via Mysterious Universe)
Go figure. Nature is a majestic, terrifying beast. I still do not know how I feel on the exchange unintentionally gut bacteria with strangers, but if it helps my immune system, I guess it's worth it in the long run.
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