The word parasite can strike fear in us all! We assume they only live in those in 3rd world countries with poor living conditions and no access to clean fresh water but they can affect people worldwide.
Parasitic infections cause a tremendous burden of disease in both the tropics and subtropics as well as in more temperate climates. “Anyone can get a parasite but, in the U.S., parasites are mostly neglected diseases occurring in marginalised populations,” says Purnima Bhanot, Ph.D., an associate professor of microbiology at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. That doesn’t mean others are immune though we should all be aware of how serious they can be. It is estimated that 80% of the population unknowingly are living with some kind of parasite infection.
A parasite is an organism that lives on or in a host (humans/animals) and gets its food from or at the expense of its host. There are three main classes of parasites that can cause disease in humans: protozoa, helminths, and ectoparasites.
The Three Main Classes -
Protozoa
Protozoa are one-celled organisms that can live on their own or be parasites. Just a single organism can multiply in your body and cause serious infection. Protozoa can live in your intestine, blood, tissue, or other areas of your body. More common protozoan infections include Giardia, Plasmodium, and Cryptosporidium.
Helminths
Helminths are the ones we hear about the most (tapeworms) and the parasites that get the most attention. These are large, multicellular organisms. Tapeworms, thorny-headed worms, and roundworms are all helminths.
Ectoparasites
Ectoparasites are organisms that quietly feed off your blood. They typically attach or burrow into the skin and stay there for weeks to months sometimes unnoticed. Ticks, fleas, lice, and mites are ectoparasites.
Anyone can get a parasite anytime anywhere; you don’t have to be trekking through the amazon jungle eating bugs to get one! Parasites can be caused from eating raw foods/fish (like sushi), undercooked meats, cleaning out pets litter boxes, walking bare foot over an infected/toxic area, widespread lack of sanitation, which provides a breeding ground for human parasites, worms in particular. These are just a couple of examples of things that people may do daily and Human parasites are extremely contagious making them easy to catch.
“One of every four people in the world is infected by roundworms, which cause fever, cough and intestinal problems. A quarter of the world's people have hookworms, which can cause anaemia and abdominal pain. A third of a billion people suffer from the abdominal pain and diarrhoea caused by whipworms."
Dolly Katz, Miami Herald
Many of the symptoms of hosting a parasite are often the same as other problems so are dismissed; think the flu, digestive issues, migraines etc. so parasites go on living unbeknown to us. Once a parasite gets into your body, it can manifest in a number of different yet common ways. Some, like cryptosporidium, can settle into your small intestine and cause watery diarrhoea and slight discomfort, while others, like malaria, enter your bloodstream, causing fever, chills, body aches, and an enlarged liver. Some intestinal parasites consume your food, leaving you hungry after every meal and unable to gain weight. Others feed off your red blood cells, causing anaemia. Some lay eggs that can cause itching, irritability, and insomnia.
Intestinal parasites tend to get the most attention because these can cause a huge amount of discomfort.
Symptoms of intestinal parasites:
- Anaemia
- Bloating/gas
- Insomnia
- Constant hunger
- Chronic fatigue and exhaustion
- Stomach cramps and pains
- Diarrhoea and constipation
- Skin rashes
- Persistent cough and flu like symptoms
If you’ve been suffering from any of these symptoms for some time AND have ruled out other possibilities then it’s absolutely worth getting checked for possible parasites.
The best way to test for an intestinal parasite is a stool test, not a blood test. Most doctors will run a conventional stool test if they see signs of parasites. However, these are not as accurate as the comprehensive stool tests used in functional medicine. You will need a functional medicine comprehensive stool test to rule out a parasite for you as these tests are able to see them alive and dead. It uses Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technology to amplify the DNA of a parasite. This means that the parasite can be dead or in its dormant phase, and it will be detected on this test. Because this test utilises PCR technology, it does not rely on a pathologist seeing a live parasite in stool.
So how can you get rid of a parasite sharpish?
- Get properly stool tested.
- Intestinal parasites attach themselves to your intestinal walls, so it seems only logical to starve them out by being a bad host and eating the foods they hate- fruits, veggies, honey to name a few. Avoid greasy fried foods, sugar, dairy and alcohol.
- Load up on your fibre to help clear them out of your body.
- Eating raw garlic releases a compound called allicin, which kills existing eggs and prevents female parasites from laying more.
- Coconut oil contains caprylic acid, a short chain fatty acid that stops the parasites from growing.
- Ginger can reduce the production of stomach acid, killing parasites and preventing infections.
- Apple cider vinegar has been known to alter the body’s pH balance, which can contribute to parasite die-off.
- Take a good probiotic to help boost your digestive tract.
- Support your immune system with a wholefoods plant based focused diet and supplement vitamin d, c and zinc.
- Work with a nutritionist or naturopath to help heal and repair your gut.
