Edge on Health Blog

Beware of Parasites in Food, Water—and Even Your Own Backyard.

Relaxing outdoors during these last lazy days of summer? Whether you’re digging in the garden, backpacking in the woods, or swimming in the pool, make sure you don’t pick up any uninvited guests along the way.

Infectious parasites are cropping up in alarming numbers throughout this country. Most prevalent in Appalachia, the South, and along the U.S.-Mexico border, these invisible—and unwanted—visitors are now making big inroads into suburbia.

Here are some troubling facts: Raccoons can deposit roundworms in grass, sandboxes, parks, and playgrounds where your children play. All puppies are born with roundworm. And at least half of all dogs are infected with one or more parasites.

Once in the soil, parasite eggs quickly become infectious. Think how often your children put their hands in their mouths while playing outdoors. Do you sometimes forget to wear gloves when gardening? It’s so easy to swallow a tiny—but contaminated— bit of dirt.

Once swallowed, parasite eggs can hatch larvae. Even if larvae never mature to full-grown worms in humans, they can travel to the circulatory system and virtually any organ. Once they’re inside, roundworms can cause abdominal pain, enlarged liver, and anemia.

Impacting 1.5 million people every year, toxoplasma is another prevalent parasite that’s spread by cats. It’s estimated that up to half of American adults may be carrying this latent parasitic infection.

Toxo is also the third leading cause of food-borne illness from eating raw or uncooked meat. Most people never connect their flu-like symptoms to an undercooked entree the night before!

Toxoplasmosis is linked to muscle aches and swollen lymph nodes, which can last over a month. This parasitic infection can spread to the eyes creating symptoms like blurry vision and eye pain.

Then there are all the microscopic “vampires” in contaminated water. Giardia is a major cause of persistent diarrhea, chronic fatigue, and gallbladder problems.

Another water-borne parasite, cryptospordium (characterized by abdominal cramps, diarrhea, nausea, and low-grade fever) can kill. Crypto has recently been found in illegal, shallow wells discovered by the thousands in Florida subdivisions and even swimming pools.

According to Peter Hotez, MD, PhD, a microbiologist at George Washington University, parasites are particularly troubling because they’re rarely on anyone’s radar.

Dr. Ann Louise’s Take:

Looks like what you don’t know can hurt you! Nearly 20 years ago, the Chief of Pathobiology at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Peter Weina, PhD, FACP, told me, “we have a tremendous parasite problem right here in the United States—it’s just not being identified.”

If you suspect parasites, start re-evaluating your habits. Train your kids to wash their hands every time they come into the house from the great outdoors (I like Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotic Soap for this purpose because it leaves a protective acid mantle behind). Buy a nailbrush so you can scrub under the nails where parasitic cysts like to hide.

Remember to wash your hands after changing the baby’s diaper or petting your animals. Be especially careful in cleaning out your cat’s litter box, another source of toxoplasma, and see that all pets receive regular vet care.

Always wash your hands thoroughly after using the bathroom, as well as before handling food. Remember when one family member becomes infected, the whole family needs treatment to prevent spreading the infection.

Diet-wise, avoid all sugar. Parasites love simple sugars and  thrive on milk—even the finest organic goat milk. Years ago, I used to supervise 8-day milk fasts. The milk served as bait to encourage worms to come out of their nooks and crannies in the gut. They were then zapped with parasite-killing herbals every two hours.

Gently increase your fiber intake. Super-GI Cleanse is great for this purpose because it includes five of the least irritating soluble and insoluble forms of fiber to sweep out the critters.

Also strengthen your defenses with parasite-fighting nutrients. Vitamin A (in brightly cooked veggies and peeled fruit) enhances resistance to tissue penetration by parasitic larvae, and zinc (in cooked meat and turkey, eggs, and pumpkin seeds) is useful in fighting unwanted guests.

If you have parasites, I recommend My Colon Cleansing Kit. It consists of three products—Verma-Plus, a tincture containing time-tested herbs used by Native Americans for centuries to help clear the body of worms; Para-Key, capsules containing the most gentle yet effective botanicals to help eliminate microscopic organisms like protozoa; and Flora-Key, a probiotic formula that doubles as a natural sweetener to recolonize the GI tract with beneficial bacteria to crowd out pathogens.

Used according to directions, this kit eliminates parasites while promoting healthy digestion and immunity. If you still have bloating and gas after the first 30 days, then consider another round of the program. Most people clear their systems in 60 to 90 days.

Since different organisms have varying reproductive cycles, you want to make sure to eliminate the larvae and eggs that are still waiting to be hatched in the intestinal lining. That’s why I recommend a minimum of 60 days with a rest period in between, according to instructions.

Last but not least, consider a series of colonic irrigations. Investigate colon hydrotherapy by visiting the IACT website (www.i-act.org) to find a certified colon hydrotherapist in your area.

Sources:
http://online.wsj.com/article/sb12509339313750961

http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/364/1530/2749

Tags: anemia, bloating, chronic fatigue, colon, cryptospordium, diarrhea, digestion, fever, fiber, gallbladder, gas, giardia, immunity, liver, lymph, parasites, parasites from pets, probiotics, roundworms, toxins, toxoplasma, vitamin A, zinc

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 8th, 2009 at 4:40 pm and is filed under Cleansing/Parasites. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.