Chapter 6

Parasites: the uninvited guests!

It always amuses me when I tell a patient that they are a suspect for parasites, based on their symptomatology and other screening tests. They are usually aghast with disgust at how ‘dirty’ they must be! Little do they know that they are in the majority, as it is estimated that about 80% of most populations in the Western world have some sort of parasites. So, what about you? To check whether you may have parasites, answer the questionnaire found in Appendix A at the end of the book.

I am including this chapter here as parasites can cause a lot of health problems and appear to be one of the underlying causes of many chronic degenerative diseases, including cancers. My intention is not to discuss the details of parasitology, as that would require a book in itself – but to touch on the subject with some examples of the more common parasites, and end with some natural remedies that will help to clear these parasites from the body. There are combinations of natural remedies that can remove literally hundreds of parasites concomitantly – these are powerful combinations that have been tried and tested in clinical practice by many practitioners around the world.

What is a parasite?

The word parasite comes from the Greek word para meaning ‘beside’ and sitos meaning ‘food.’ A parasite is any organism that derives its food, nutrition and shelter by living in or on another organism.[1]

Circulated worldwide, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) reported in 1984 that more than one-half of the 8.3 billion people on Earth were infected with parasitic disease. Parasites generally live and breed in the mucous layers of the body – there are over 100 kinds of parasites that can live in the human body.

All parasites generally prevent the absorption of nutrients from food and irritate the intestinal lining while entering the bloodstream, and causing toxicity in the body tissues.

In November 1993 the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) reported that parasites in the US affect millions of Americans. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that between 100,000 and 1,000.000 cases of Giardia lamblia occur each year. In the Spring of 1993, 100 people died and 400,000 became seriously ill because of contamination of the water supply in Milwaukee by the parasite Cryptosporidium. A nationwide survey by the CDC in 1976 estimated that one in every six people, selected at random, had one or more parasites.

One person can pass millions of Giardia lamblia cysts each day, and most infections probably result from ingestion of water or food contaminated with human sewage. Open sewers in city streets and contamination of drinking water with this sewage undoubtedly results in many infections.

Many cases of ‘travelers’ diarrhoea’ are caused by Giardia. Even in developed countries potable (drinking) water can be contaminated with small amounts of sewage, especially when septic systems are built too close to wells. Thus, it is not surprising that G. lamblia is found throughout the world. 

Parasitic infections cause a tremendous burden of disease in both the tropics and subtropics as well as in more temperate climates. Of all parasitic diseases, malaria causes the most deaths globally. Malaria[2] kills approximately 1 million people each year, most of them young children in sub-Saharan Africa.

Nasty consequences!

Some parasitic worms have the ability to fool our bodies into thinking that they are a normal part of the tissues and organs – this tricks the immune system and prevents it from attacking these intruders. When parasites are established in our bodies, they do several things:[3]

Some worm infections can cause physical trauma by perforating (burrowing) into the intestines, the circulatory system, the lungs, the liver and many other organs – this will make organs and tissues look like Emmental Cheese!

They can block and damage certain organs by lumping together into balls – which can be mistaken for cancer tumours – they will travel into the brain, heart, lungs and other organs.

They absorb nutrients such as vitamins and minerals; and amino acids needed for digestion. This can often lead to anaemia and cause drowsiness after meals.

They excrete metabolic waste products (toxic waste) that poison our bodies. This particular condition is called Verminous Intoxification. This can overburden our detoxification systems leading to an accumulation of toxins that could open the door to more serious disease.

Parasites can severely depress the immune system, opening more doors to the development of further degeneration, fatigue and illness.

Parasites can destroy tissues and organs much faster than they can regenerate, leading to degeneration.

So who are these uninvited ‘guests?’

Just briefly, let us examine some of the more common parasites found in humans in order to get some idea of what we are up against. By no means is this a comprehensive coverage of the subject, just a brief glimpse into this fascinating world that lives inside most of us.

Parasites that live inside the body of the host are called endoparasites (e.g. hookworms, that live in the host's gut), and those that live on the outside are called ectoparasites (e.g. fleas and mites).

Categories of parasites

Parasites are generally separated into different categories or groups as follows:

1. Nematodes (Nematoda) include roundworms, pinworms and hookworms.
2. Protozoa are single-celled organisms that include Toxoplasma, Giardia, Cryptosporidium and amoeba.
3. Tapeworms (Cestoda).
4. Flukes (Trematoda).

The most common gastrointestinal parasites are roundworms, pinworms and tapeworms.

WORMS

Roundworms (Ascaris lumbricoides)

Roundworms[4] are the most common intestinal parasites in the world – they are more prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas, especially in Asian countries which practice crop fertilization with ‘night soil’ (raw human sewage). About 1 billion people are currently infected with this organism. This creature is spread directly

to humans from soil or from food contaminated with faeces. Children are very prone to roundworm infection. These worms are mobile and can travel up into the liver, heart and lungs, growing up to 35 cm in length.[5] People with this infection suffer from malnutrition due to competition for food and the inhibition of absorption of proteins, fats and carbohydrates; as well as diseases such as pneumonia, jaundice and seizures. Roundworms are diagnosed when their eggs are found in a stool specimen.[6]

Pinworms  (Enterobius vermicularis)

This is one of the most common parasitic worms found in the Western, Industrialized World, and is particularly common in children. It is estimated that pinworms infect more than 10% of the population of North America and Europe.  Pinworm infestation is picked up through contact with contaminated food, water, house dust, as well as through human contact.

Adult pinworms live in the large intestine (colon) and after copulation the male dies. The female moves outside the anus and lays her eggs on the perianal skin (a single female can produce more than 10,000 eggs), and they are then transferred from the itching anal area to the mouth. After laying the eggs the female also dies. In one month the egg has grown to a sexually mature worm.    

Pinworms can quickly transmit to the entire family through the bathtub, toilet and bed clothes. Perianal itching is the most common symptom. A ten-year study of 2,000 cases of pinworm in children linked seemingly unrelated symptoms, i.e. epilepsy, hyperactivity and visual problems. The conventional treatment for pinworms is the prescription drug, Vermox, which is chewable.

People infected with pinworms:

1. can be asymptomatic
2. can have mild gastrointestinal upsets
3. suffer from perianal itching
4. may have behavioural changes
5. can be restless and irritable
6. can suffer with insomnia
7. in women the pinworms can enter the vagina and cause additional irritation.

Pinworms are HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS. The eggs are infective within a few hours of being laid and can infest bed linen, clothing, carpets, hands and can cause nail biting.

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