Heard a NPR story the other day about the various micro organisms that live upon the human biome. They tested various peoples' mouth, nose, arm pits, elbows, knees, guts, etc. Lot's of difference between people but lots of similarities between same areas. Just before birth the micro organisms living in a woman's vaginal cavity change significantly. It's suspected this change essentially coats the child in the micro organisms it will need to live.
They cited our "obssession with cleanliness" as a possible factor leading to sickness, or probably better said "unhealth," because of the reaction these micro organisms will have when their environment is changed. Clearly we have a symbiotic relationship with them much the way some sharks and whales have with those little fishies that swim around them and suck the dirt off. Interesting stuff.
Point being, I wonder if that over production of oil is caused by a reaction of said micro organisms to compensate for how the human has been destroying their environment with shampoo.
Where do we draw the line though? Clearly humans can live without bathing. Up until somewhere during the period of the crusades, Europeans bathed very infrequently. The Muslims taught them to bathe on a daily basis. It's also clear that being generally clean protects us from lots of foreign, dangerous bacteria. It also pisses off and kills our natural bacteria. One reason many doctors will advise against enemas, for instance, is because it kills too much of your intestinal flora, leaving you susceptible to non-natural intestinal flora to take root.
We know too that exposing our selves to that foreign bacteria strengthens our immune system. I grew up swimming in dirty creeks, cattle troughs, and a dirty environment in general. I've also traveled around the world and been exposed to a ton of different people. I can't remember the last time I got sick. My fiance who grew up fairly wealthy, lets say middle class, gets sick all the damn time. Anecdotal, but still an interesting thought.
Ok, done rambling.
