It is difficult for a normal person to even imagine how many parasites can threaten their health. These "colonists" can live for years in the human body, literally sucking the life out of it and poisoning it with their poison.
Types of parasites
From a medical point of view, parasites include unicellular and protozoa. Depending on their habitat, they are divided into exoparasites (lice, insects and others) and endoparasites.
Endoparasites have their own subspecies:
- Larvae laid by insects.
- Protozoa (amoeba, lamblia).
- Helminths (worms or worms).
Paths of Infection
Each parasite has its own path of penetration into the human body. The most common way is food, that is, with the help of water or food. Many insects can carry parasite larvae, contaminating the environment. By consuming raw water, unwashed and not well cooked foods, a person becomes infected with parasites.
Some species are transmitted directly through person-to-person contact - this path is called family-contact. For infection it is not necessary to have direct contact with the distributor, it is enough to use household items. This is how enterobiasis and some other parasitic forms are transmitted.
An equally popular vector-borne route of infection. In this case, the parasites are carried by blood-sucking insects. Therefore, they can be obtained after being bitten by a mosquito or other insect.
The last way the parasites enter is the percutaneous way, the second name is active. Infection occurs through the penetration of the larvae through the mucous membranes and skin. This occurs due to contact with contaminated soil or water in a body of water.
Symptoms
Parasites in the human body can live for a long time and not manifest themselves. The symptoms, of course, will be, but they are masked by other diseases. That is why a person for a long time may not be aware that he is infected.
Symptoms occur very often depending on the location of the larvae, but the body can signal infections and other manifestations. The most common are:
- Flatulence,and constant, indicates the presence of worms in the small intestine;
- Diarrhea.Caused by the absorption of sodium chloride by parasites;
- Constipation.Tangles of worms can clog some organs;
- Pain in the joints and muscles.These pains are caused by the migration of the larvae through the human body, to which the immune system reacts in this way;
- Allergy.Parasites themselves are an allergen to the body and damage to the stomach walls contributes to indigestion and the entry of food molecules into the blood;
- The appearance of granulomas.This is a kind of neoplasm resulting from the wrapping of the body cells of the destroyed eggs of the parasites;
- Dermatological manifestations;
- Anemia.People often suffer from anemia precisely because of the activity of parasitic forms;
- Strong fluctuations in weight;
- Mental disorders. In the process of vital activity, parasites release toxins that negatively affect the host's nervous system. The consequence of poisoning the body can be neurosis, depression, anxiety;
- Bruxism.This is teeth grinding while sleeping. This is the response of the nervous system to the appearance of foreign bodies. But this fact is not definitively proven by science;
- Sleep disturbance.As a rule, it occurs due to unpleasant sensations. An example would be their pinworms here, which lay eggs at night. Upon leaving the rectum, the pinworm secretes a toxin that causes severe itching;
- Dysbacteriosis;
- Oncological diseases;
- Chronic fatigue.It occurs due to a lack of nutrients, which adversely affects the state of the body;
- Respiratory tract diseases.A number of parasites can live in the respiratory tract, causing disease. Other parasites cause colds by moving through the respiratory system;
- Immunity disorders.Absorption of most vitamins by parasites leads to a weakening of the body's barrier functions and an increased likelihood of contracting diseases.
But there are also symptoms characteristic of the presence of parasites in a particular human organ. For example, papillomas, the appearance of bald spots on the head, cracked heels, etc. , They can indicate the life of parasites in the liver. Furthermore, the presence of certain types of parasitic forms can cause a certain type of disease in humans.
Detection of the disease
Unfortunately, some doctors deny their duties and do not send a person to special studies to identify parasites in the body. The most common analysis is the delivery of feces for worm eggs. The fact is that parasites can inhabit various organs.
There have been cases where worms have been found in a person's brain and eyes. Are their brain eggs likely to end up in the stool? Probably not. Even if there are worms in the intestines, the parasite eggs may not be found.
First of all, the doctor must perform a visual examination of the patient. Externally, the presence of human parasites can be suspected. The easiest way to detect them is to do a blood test to detect special antibodies against worms.
Description of human parasites
There are several dozen types of parasites that inhabit the human body.
Worms or helminths are a kind of worms.Their size depends on the species, for example, nematode females reach 40 centimeters. Some species can exceed 10 meters in length. A favorite habitat for worms is the intestines, but they are often found in other organs, including the brain.
For example, nematode larvae circulate in the body, gathering nutrients and return to the intestine, where they grow and reproduce. They often live in the respiratory organs. The presence of ascaris in the human body is accompanied by a disturbance of the work of internal organs, intoxication of the body, allergic manifestations and even an increase in temperature.
Among the tapeworms is the pig tapeworm, which migrates to the brain through the blood. 
This parasite enters the body through poorly processed meat products. This worm lives up to 20 years.
Pinworms develop more often in children, but are quite common in adults. These worms are small in size and reach 1 centimeter in length. The spread of pinworm eggs occurs in a homemade way. The female exits the rectum and lays eggs in the outer folds of the anus. The toxin released by the female causes severe itching, which causes the eggs to fall on human hands and transfer them to all surrounding objects.
The second name of enterobiasis is the disease of dirty hands. Anyone who comes into contact with the carrier is likely infected. Therefore, when pinworms are found, it is recommended to treat the whole family.
Toxocarais a type of parasite that lives in dogs. They enter the human body and develop well in it as well. Unlike these worms in the dog's body, human toxocars do not come out, but they affect many organs and cause some diseases. You can get infected with toxocar through the soil, as the larvae of these worms come out with the dog's feces. But the parasite's eggs can also spread from the dog's wet breath.
Alveococcus and Echinococcusinfects the body in many ways. Their danger lies in the fact that the larvae turn into cysts, which can be found in various internal organs.
Giardia is the simplest.Like pinworms, Giardia is the most common infection in children.
Not only reduce the immunity of the child, but also cause a delay in the mental and physical development of children.
This list is far from complete. The main danger of parasites is that no one is immune to infection. Their secrecy leads to the fact that a person feeds parasites for years without suspecting it. Compliance with personal hygiene, constant wet cleaning of housing and compliance with the rules on heat treatment of meat products are not bad prevention of infections. It will be useful to undergo a medical examination and pass the necessary tests every six months, in order to prevent the spread of parasites.