With the popularity of CleanTok on social media, we’re constantly being reminded about how dirty everything around us is. But while you might feel you should disinfect every surface in your home or send your child off to school with antibacterial gels so their hands stay clean, science actually shows us that being exposed to a bit of dirt can be good for kids’ health.

Evidence suggests that exposure to the microbes in dirt might actually help children develop stronger immune systems – and may even decrease their risk of developing allergies and autoimmune diseases.

Mud is not just a mix of soil and water. It’s a complex ecosystem filled with microorganisms. One gram of soil can harbour up to 10 billion microorganisms – of potentially thousands of different species.

The diverse array of bacteria, fungi and other microbes present in mud and soil play a crucial role in our health and is key to what immunologists call “immune training”. This is the process by which the immune system learns to distinguish between harmful pathogens and benign environmental substances.

During childhood, the immune system is especially adaptable. When exposed to a wide variety of microbes, it learns to........

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