This week, I want to speak on worms and parasites that invade our bodies and how to get rid of them. Almost everyone has parasites, it’s simply a fact of life. Even Dr. Oz says…”ninety percent of humans will have a problem with parasites in their lifetime.” The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies parasites as among the six most dangerous diseases that infect humans. Parasites outrank cancer as the number one global killer, and are the cause of many of the digestive woes that people suffer.
How We Get Them
The three major groups of parasites include protozoans (single-celled organisms), nematodes (roundworms), and cestodes (tapeworms). Getting parasites is easier than we may think. Here are a few ways in which we can become infested:
- Eating raw or rare meat
- Contact with cat feces
- Drinking contaminated water
- Swimming in Lakes or any contaminated water
- Contact with infected people
- Eating raw vegetables that have been contaminated
- Eating at restaurants where those who prepare the food are contaminated. (Fecal matter has been found in fingernails of workers in high-class restaurants.)
- Contact with most any animal
The CDC estimates that over sixty million people in the United States are likely infected with Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite associated with raw meat and contact with cat feces.
Although most of us are likely to have parasites, children are often the most infected. Only a minimal number of cases are detected and reported, some estimate that approximately fifty million American children are infected with worm parasites.
Symptoms of a Parasitic Infestation
Sometimes you can be infected without having symptoms; however, there are often signs, including:
- Allergies to different types of foods
- Nausea
- Anemia
- Flu-like symptoms, such as coughing, wheezing, and fever
- Bloating/abdominal swelling
- Bouts of diarrhea and inconsistent bowel habits
- Foul-smelling stools that get worse in the afternoon and evening
- Gas and cramping
- Itching around the anus, especially at night
- Vomiting
- Bloody stools
- Weight loss with a ravenous appetite
What to DO
Since it is hard and costly to detect parasites, it is best to be pro-active and prevent infestation. The main preventive measure we can do is to wash our hands often and thoroughly. Secondly, do not eat any raw or rare meat.
Because it is so easy to be infested with parasites, we all should do a periodic parasite cleanse once a year or more depending on the individual. Ridding the body of internal parasites needs to be a part of everyone’s health routine. Herbs4You Parasite Tincture is easy to take and the herbs in it are known to kill parasites. Unlike many other parasite formulas, ours is made while the black walnut hulls are still green. This is when the active properties to kill parasites are at their highest. While the walnut hulls and wormwood kill off the different stages of live parasites, cloves kill the larva. Again, we use freshly ground cloves, thus ensuring the active properties are still retained.
Ingredients in the Herbs4You Parasite Tincture are: Green black walnut hulls, wormwood and/or sage leaf, cloves, and garlic in a food grade alcohol base. It comes in tincture form. A 2 oz. bottle is $16.50.
For Your Health,
Amy Willis ~ Your Local Herbalist
May 8, 2013