If you think you or your child may have threadworms, you can usually treat the infection yourself with medication available at pharmacies without a prescription.
Treatment to get rid of worms
If you have worms, a GP will prescribe medicine to kill them. You take this for 1 to 3 days. The people you live with may also need to be treated. Any worms in your gut will eventually pass out in your poo.
Some types of intestinal worms, such as tapeworms, may disappear on their own if you have a strong immune system and healthy diet and lifestyle. However, depending on the type of intestinal worm infection, you may require treatment with an antiparasitic medication.
If left untreated, the intense itching and scratching associated with these infections will result in secondary bacterial infections. Some of these may be difficult to treat. Untreated people can continue to infect other people.
You might have anal itching, especially at night. You could also have stomach pain, nausea, or vaginal itching. Sometimes pinworms can be seen around your anus or on your underwear or bed sheets about 2 to 3 hours after you've gone to bed.
For most people, treatment will involve taking a single dose of a medication called mebendazole to kill the worms. If necessary, another dose can be taken after 2 weeks.
Coconut is the most effective home remedy to treat intestinal worms. Consume a tbsp of crushed coconut in your breakfast. After 3 hours, drink about one glass of lukewarm milk mixed with 2 tbsps of castor oil. Drink this for a week to get rid of all types of intestinal worms.
Sometimes worms are visible in the anal area, on underwear, or in the toilet. In stool, they look like small pieces of white cotton thread.
Threadworms live about 5-6 weeks in the gut, and then die. However, before they die the female worms lay tiny eggs around the anus. This tends to be at night when you are warm and still in bed.
Once a year when the prevalence of soil-transmitted parasitic worms in the community is over 20% Twice a year when the prevalence of soil-transmitted parasitic worms in the community is 50%
The spread of worm infections
Threadworms are easily spread so the slightest contact can pass on the infection, which is why many adults end up with the same infection as their children. To halt the spread of worms, it's crucial to treat all members of the family – not just the youngsters!
How often should you deworm? According to the World Health Organization (WHO), all children living in underdeveloped and developing countries should deworm once every year. In adults, if the prevalence of such parasitic infestations is 20 % in your country, then once a year, and if it is over 50 %, then twice a year.
The signs of a parasite are often caused by the toxins that it releases into the human bloodstream. Here are the most common symptoms: Unexplained constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating, nausea or other symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome. You traveled internationally and got diarrhea on your trip.
Worms are, unfortunately, a very common and normal issue for children and adults alike. Worms are everywhere and contaminate public areas such as schools and playgrounds. From the age of two years old, children and adults should be dewormed once every six months.
Eat more raw garlic, pumpkin seeds, pomegranates, beets, and carrots, all of which have been used traditionally to kill parasites. In one study, researchers found that a mixture of honey and papaya seeds cleared stools of parasites in 23 out of 30 subjects. Drink a lot of water to help flush out your system.
You can buy medicine (mebendazole) for threadworms from pharmacies. This is usually a chewable tablet or liquid you swallow. Treat everyone in your household, even if they do not have symptoms. Tell the pharmacist if you need to treat a child under 2, or if you're pregnant or breastfeeding.
Worms are mainly spread in small bits of poo from people with a worm infection. Some are caught from food. You can get infected by: touching objects or surfaces with worm eggs on them – if someone with worms doesn't wash their hands.
Threadworms do not go away by themselves, and people do not build up immunity to them, so they must be treated in order to eradicate them totally from the body.
If pinworm infection occurs again, the infected person should be retreated with the same two-dose treatment. The infected person's household contacts and caretakers also should be treated. If pinworm infection continues to occur, the source of the infection should be sought and treated.
It moves. If it doesn't wiggle, it's probably lint or a thread. The worm may be seen around the anus or on the child's bottom. It is especially active at night or early morning.
It is estimated that around 80% of both adults and children have parasites in their gut. People can be infected with these parasites in a number of ways.