Germ theory denialism is the pseudoscientific belief thatgerms do not causeinfectious disease, and that thegerm theory of disease is wrong.[1] It usually involves arguing thatLouis Pasteur's model of infectious disease was wrong, and thatAntoine Béchamp's was right. In fact, its origins are rooted in Béchamp'sempirically disproven (in the context of disease) theory ofpleomorphism.[2] Another obsolete variation is known as terrain theory and postulates that germsmorphologically change in response to environmental factors, subsequently causing disease, rather than germs being the sole cause of it.[3]
Germ theorydenialism is as old as germ theory itself, beginning with the rivalry of Pasteur and Béchamp. Pasteur's work in preventing beverage contamination led him to discover that it was due tomicroorganisms and led him to become the first scientist to prove the validity of the theory and to popularize it in Europe.[2] Before him, scientists such asGirolamo Fracastoro (who had the idea thatfomites could harbor the seeds of contagion),Agostino Bassi (who discovered that themuscardine disease of silkworms was caused by a fungus that was namedBeauveria bassiana),Friedrich Henle (who developed the concepts ofcontagium vivum andcontagium animatum), and others had proposed ideas similar to germ theory.[4][5]
Béchamp strongly contested Pasteur's view, proposing a competing idea known as the pleomorphic theory of disease. This theory says that all life is based on forms that a certain class oforganisms take during stages of their life cycles and that germs are attracted to the environment of diseased tissue rather than being the cause of it.[6] Proponents of this idea insist that microbes that live in an organism go through the same stages of their development. According toGünther Enderlein, the stages are as follows:[7]
Related to this is the disproven premise that viruses are the result of bodily damage caused by unwholesome habits or lifestyle.
Mary Baker Eddy, founder of theChristian Science church, was another prominent germ theory denialist. When asked in an interview by theNew York Herald whether she "reject[ed] utterly the bacteria theory of the propagation of disease", she replied, "Entirely," adding, "If I harbored that idea about a disease, I should think myself in danger of catching it.”[8] Christian Scientists deny the material reality of disease and rely solely on prayer for healing.
The terrain theory is a variation of Béchamp's ideas that is also anobsolete medical theory thatheld that diseases were caused by the composition of the body. The "terrain", will attractgerms to come as scavengers of the weakened or poorly defended tissue. Béchamp believed that thepH of the body is important, and that anacidic pH will attract germs and analkaline pH will repel them. Pasteur disproved spontaneous generation with a series of experiments in the 1870s.[4]
However, understanding the causes of sickness does not always immediately lead to effective treatment of sickness, and the great decline inmortality during the 19th century stemmed mostly from improvements in hygiene andsanitation. In fact, one of the first movements to deny the germ theory, theSanitary Movement, was nevertheless central in developing America'spublic health infrastructure. Providing clean water and sanitation reduced the environment forpathogens to develop, andmortality rates fell dramatically.[9][10][11]
Germ theory denialism is counter to over a century of experiments and practical observations, and the prevailing opinion of almost all doctors and scientists.[1][2][12]
A common thread among manyalternative medicine proponents isopposition to vaccines, and some use their disbelief in germ theory to justify their claims.[13] Germ theory deniers make many claims about the biological underpinnings of the theory and the historical record[14][15] that are at odds with what most modern scientists and historians accept.[1][2][4][16] Another claim from the anti-vaccine community involves the theory that all diseases are caused bytoxins due to inadequate diet and health practices.[17]