Humans are hosts to nearly 300 species of parasitic worms and over 70 species of protozoa, some derived from our primate ancestors and some acquired from the animals we have domesticated or come in contact with during our relatively short history on Earth.
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. The most common route is through the faecal oral route.
Intestinal worms (also known as soil-transmitted helminths) affect more than 1.7 billion people worldwide including more than 1 billion children, according to the World Health Organization. The three most common intestinal worms are hookworm, ascaris (roundworm), and trichuris (whipworm).
Tapeworm, hookworm, pinworm, and other types of worm all enter the body and affect it in different ways. Treatment can get rid of all types of worm. Types of intestinal worms include tapeworm, hookworm, liver fluke, threadworm, Ascaris, which causes ascariasis, and Trichinella, which causes trichinosis.
And those cysts can end up in people's brains, causing a disease known as neurocysticercosis. “Nobody knows exactly how many people there are with it in the United States,” says Nash, who is the chief of the Gastrointestinal Parasites Section at NIH. His best estimate is 1,500 to 2,000.
An MRI scan revealed he had more than 700 worms writhing in his brain and chest in a condition known as neurocysticercosis. This occurs when parasitic larvae in undercooked pork build-up in the body, eventually invading the central nervous system and triggering seizures.
The infection is treated with albendazole or praziquantel (drugs used to treat parasitic worm infections, called antihelminthic drugs). However, if a person has many cysts, antihelminthic drugs may kill many organisms, causing the brain to swell significantly.
Parasites exist, and it is estimated that the majority of people may have parasites in their bodies.
Deworming is not always necessary, but is recommended for children who live in endemic areas once a year when the prevalence of soil-transmitted parasitic worms in the community is over 20% and twice a year when the prevalence of soil-transmitted parasitic worms in the community is 50%.
Take the correct dewormer
When infected with worms, it should be dewormed periodically, for adults and children over 2 years old should be dewormed 2 to 3 times a year, ie every 4 to 6 months.
Adult worms may live up to 17 years in the human body and can continue to make new microfilariae for much of this time.
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. During treatment and for a few weeks afterwards, it's also important to follow strict hygiene measures to avoid spreading the threadworm eggs.
Adult worms can live up to 7 years in a person's lymph system. The disease only spreads from person to person through mosquitoes. When a mosquito bites an infected person, they can spread the tiny worms to other people they bite.
Thanks in part to modern plumbing, people in the industrialized world have now lost almost all of their worms, with the exception of occasional pinworms in some children. Intestinal worms are properly called “helminths,” which most dictionaries will tell you are parasites.
Humans are the only host of threadworms. The adult worms live in the lower intestine, coming out of the anus at night to lay their eggs. Children with threadworms can get the eggs under their fingernails when scratching their itchy bottoms at night.
Humans evolved from a five-centimetre-long worm-like creature that wriggled in the sea more than 500 million years ago, scientists have learned. The extinct Pikaia gracilens has been confirmed as the oldest known member of the chordate family, which includes all modern vertebrates including humans.
Not deworming can cause malnutrition, intestinal perforation, death –Paediatricians.
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.
Be aware: You can worm your dog too often
And it has no obvious benefit. In fact, over-worming your dog can actually backfire, and make your dog build up a tolerance – you most certainly don't want that.
Why? Most people do not know they are infected or at risk, or don't have access to appropriate care. And often, health care providers are unfamiliar with these parasitic infections, and may not diagnose or treat them appropriately.
So, what are a few warning signs of a parasitic infection? Digestive issues such as constipation or diarrhea are some of the most common. A few other issues patients may experience include fatigue, intense bloating/gas after meals, and sugar cravings.
Wormwood tea has been used as a remedy for fever, liver and gall bladder ailments — and now it's being tested for the flatworm infection schistosomiasis. Schistosomiasis is listed as a "neglected" tropical disease by the World Health Organization — one of those diseases that's been overlooked by modern medicine.
First, the clean-out process for the colonoscopy is very thorough (if you've had one you know what I mean) and it wipes out any obvious parasites. Even more important, is the fact that parasites actually live INSIDE the colonic wall which will not be seen with the camera.