I had to laugh out loud at your post @HEChicken .
It was truely funny although I'm sure not for you at the time.
I remember the lady beetles thing, Trish. It actually occurred in Hoisington, Ks. But here's the thing: Although it is said to be common, it's the only documented case in the U.S. Those bugs are the Asian lady bugs that were introduced here in the last couple decades. Not the ones that we grew up with as children. They are more of an orange or even a yellowish color, where as the native type is more of a red color. The Asian ones are the ones that invade your homes in fall as well and also the stinking ones. They were imported as a program to reduce the aphid population. A huge mistake on the parts of the people that did so. They would have been far better off to help propagate the native lady bugs. But it was all for profit and obviously they didn't research things thoroughly before bringing them into the U.S. and letting these nasty things establish themselves here.
I got over eating mulberries after my mother showed me one after another with those little white worms or larvae in them. I actually cut down all the volunteer mulberry trees I find around here cause the wild birds eat them then poop purple every where. They can make some nasty messes.
I'm sure I still get my fair share of bugs though. I think nothing of popping a tomato into my mouth straight out of the garden without even brushing it off. Thinking back on HEChicken's post about food safety I was so picky when my daughters were babies. I mopped floors every day. Kept the babies spotless and made sure they never got a speck of dirt in them or on them. My daughters were both always getting a cold or something and still have lots of issues with health.
When my sons were born a decade or so later I let them be boys,. They played in, got covered in, and ate dirt. My house was a mess then and I took plenty of muddy rocks and what have you out of their mouths when they were outside. They ate cat food and heaven knows what else they got their little hands on. My boys have always been much healthier. My oldest son has always had severe asthma, however he never missed a single day of school from kindergarten to high school graduation due to being sick. The other two were not quite that healthy but they did substantially better than my daughters did health wise.
I of course got my fair share of dirt and germs as a child, but because of a surgery done to save my life as a baby, a large part of my immune system was killed. But my sisters are super healthy even though they are older than I am. Must be something to the HEChicken's theory. It falls in line with traveler's diarrhea. The natives' digestive systems have become accustomed to the constant germs, viruses, or amebas that infect travelers.
I think I'm immune to all things chicken poop after being around them so much. I don't even want to think about how many times I've accidentally ingested some. Even breathing in that dust from the coops surely exposes us to it. Or how often after handling birds I've failed to come in and wash my hands with soap and water before I touched my mouth.
