12 Signs You Might Have A Parasite In Your Body
Hold onto your stomach and let's open this can of worms...
WARNING: If you're eating, or about to eat, stop reading. Come back later. What you're about to learn is really, really gross, but very important. Why? Because you might not hear this from anyone else, especially your doctor. The odds are, you probably have a parasite living, growing, and potentially hatching more parasites inside of you.
Unresolved Health Issues
I know it sounds crazy to suggest that your declining health or unresolved health issues may be due to the presence of parasites. But is this concept really far-fetched?
"Make no mistake about it, worms are the most toxic agents in the human body. They are one of the primary underlying causes of disease and are the most basic cause of a compromised immune system."
-Dr. Hazel Parcells, D.C., N.D., Ph.D.
Why Are Parasites Overlooked?
People and the medical community alike hold a misconception: parasites only afflict people who live in Developing Countries, Third World Countries, or where there are malnutrition and lack of hygiene.
Since parasites do not always cause immediate problems, they often go undetected. Effects can be postponed for weeks or months later because of the varied life cycles. Because of this, they're usually not suspected as the culprit.
In her book "Guess What Came to Dinner" Anne Louise Gittleman writes: "Physicians in the United States typically lack thorough education in parasitology. If classes are offered at all by certain universities, they are usually offered within the Department of Tropical medicine as a specialty. Usually, medical students, who do not anticipate encountering problems of the tropical medical nature in the United States, decline these courses."
Physicians in the United States typically lack thorough education in parasitology.
What results is a lack of both familiarity and experience in recognizing the clinical symptoms of parasitic infection. No wonder this condition is regularly undiagnosed.
If, on the other hand, an initial diagnosis of parasites is made in the affirmative, the very tests performed may override the physician's conclusion. This is because most parasites do not hang out in the lower intestines where test samples are taken.
In My Body? How?!
Parasites are indifferent to income brackets. They are freeloaders who will hitch a ride (and hatch an egg) anywhere and anyway. These eggs have a strong shell that protects them against a range of environmental conditions and can survive for many months, even years, outside their hosts.
Travel
Souvenirs aren't the only things people can bring when they travel abroad. Any country abroad can host a parasite. Water quality is suspect. The risk is high eating foreign food grown on soils, which use human waste, sewage sludge, or wastewater as fertilizer, such as in South America, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
They can also hitch a free ride into our intestines or other organs right here in the USA - in your home, gyms, schools, stores, campsites, resorts, hotels, amusement parks, and any other public place.
Contaminated Water
Dr. Steven Rochlitz states, "Over 50% of our water supply is contaminated with giardia, which, unlike bacteria, is not killed by chlorination." (Notice how public water fountains are often between the Men's and Women's Bathrooms).
Day Care Centers
Giardia can be pass during diaper-changes. Toddlers who touch the dirty diapers can then contaminate themselves with hand-to-mouth contact, others, toys, or drinking faucets.
Food
Raw sushi, poke', or undercooked fish, beef, and pork have high incidences of tapeworm.
Food Handlers
Food handlers in restaurants or at the local fast food joint may not exhibit signs of infection, but still be a carrier.
Pets
Puppies and kittens are born with roundworm. Years ago, our vet became involved in a conversation with me about parasites. After sharing with him my involvement in natural health and the rising incidents of such infections in my clients, I asked him bluntly: "How long do dog de-wormers actually work?" He stared at me and leaning over said, "Ma'am, your dog would have to take a de-wormer every day to be free of parasites."
Sexual Practices
An increasing number of sexual partners increases risk. Engaging in anal/oral sex practices opens a port of entry to parasitic infections. Via fecal contamination, spreading occurs to the mouth, hands, and body.
Walking Barefoot
Parasites can slither up into your bloodstream through the bottom of the foot and migrate anywhere throughout the body. This can happen when you walk barefoot on ground contaminated by animals laced with parasites or if you wade through contaminated waters.
What Are the Possible Signs?
Anemia (Certain parasites thrive off of blood)
Allergies (Intestinal lining can sometimes get pierced by parasites, causing the bowel to leak)
Bloating (Inflammation due to the irritating presence of parasites)
Chronic Fatigue (Malnutrition caused by parasites absorbing your nutrients)
Constipation (Organs can get obstructed due to the size and shape of worms.)
Diarrhea or Chronic Gas
Immune Dysfunction
Inability to Gain Weight (Certain parasites leech nutrients, making you feel hungry, even if you had eaten recently.)
Joint Pain (Parasites can become encased in a sac of joint fluid.)
Irritable Bowel Syndrome or Teeth Grinding (Due to internal agitation in the nervous system from the parasite)
Skin Problems
Sleep Disturbances (According to Traditional Chines Medicine, awakening between 2-3 AM could be a sign of the liver attempting to remove toxic waste. Certain parasites stimulate or exit the anus at night, causing intense itching)
Think you might have parasites in your body? Read how to get rid of them below...