andrewducker: (Default)
andrewducker ([personal profile] andrewducker) wrote2021-08-19 12:00 pm
  • Add Memory
  • Share This Entry
Entry tags:
Flat | Top-Level Comments Only
adrian_turtle: (Default)

[personal profile] adrian_turtle 2021-08-19 04:02 pm (UTC)(link)
Most of the article about cavity-causing bacteria seems entirely reasonable. Isn't it the well-known reasoning behind disinfectant mouthwashes? (Which don't work all that well, because the bad bacteria just grow back.) It feels faintly creepy that they think they could:
Hire attractive women with few cavities to kiss cavity-prone participants.
It's not just that it's sexist and unethical. It doesn't work very well. Kisses transfer enough microorganisms to be risky, when we're talking about infections we don't want to share, but they aren't actually a reliable way to transfer something we WANT to transfer. My mom had lots of cavities and my dad had hardly any, despite the fact that they kissed a lot.

If you really want to transfer bacteria from one mouth to another, you culture the bacteria from one person's spit and make a concentrated solution the other person can use like mouthwash (or those slow-dissolve lozenges.) And while you're waiting, you can screen for a few things like covid and strep and hiv.
andrewducker: (Default)

[personal profile] andrewducker 2021-08-19 04:33 pm (UTC)(link)
Yes, absolutely.
Flat | Top-Level Comments Only