What are worms? Worms are scientifically called helminths. Helminths are all worms that parasitize in the organisms of people, animals, plants. Consequently, worms are not a specific type of parasite, but a whole group of different worms, three of which are the most common.
Some scientists claim that almost the entire population of the Earth is infected with one or another parasitic worm. However, in this case, helminth infestations should be the most common types of diseases in the world, moreover, a number of serious studies show that in reality not everything is so bad. But the thought that helminths are still present in a person immediately prompts him to seek an answer to the question of how to get rid of worms.
It should also be understood that helminth invasion is not yet something rare and insignificant. There are more than three hundred species of them, the larvae in a person not only enter the intestine and continue to develop there, gradually poisoning the body. Let's find out what the symptoms of parasites are in humans, because the warned, as you know, is armed. And then we will learn how to get rid of the worms effectively and what is needed to prevent them from returning.
What is the danger of being unaware?
It is actually very easy to determine the presence of parasites in the body of any person - you just need to pass a stool exam. The problem, however, is that most people don't even think they're tested. The problem is that helminths in adults and children manifest themselves, masquerading as a huge number of diseases, and at first do not betray their presence at all. A person can heal the intestines, liver, kidneys, stomach, gallbladder for years, and the root of the evil will be helminthiasis and parasites, which feel great when not fought.
Often, the helminthic invasion causes the development of diseases that have nothing to do with the helminths themselves. And in this case, you can be treated indefinitely if you don't understand in time what the problem is.
All this proves that worms are not just an unpleasant phenomenon. And given the presence of a huge number of ways of infection, it is vital to know the signs of worms in humans.
Paths of Infection
How do parasites enter the human body? Worms in an adult, we will consider their symptoms a little later, starting from four main sources. Their list looks like this:
- Geohelminthiasis- in this case, helminth eggs are transmitted through the soil. This happens in a circle. First, the waste products of a person, animal or bird infected with mature eggs appear in the soil. Then they end up in our hands, the food. The next destination is the mouth and then the intestine, where the worms hatch and begin to develop. Insects also play an active role in the transfer of eggs (for example, flies, with them the eggs of parasites can fly long distances) and pets, of which we iron the dirty wool. Moreover, everything is extremely simple.
- Contact helminthiasisis a route of transmission from one person to another, as the name suggests, through various contacts. In this way, for example, pinworms move.
- Biohelminthiasis- despite people's love of delicious food, situations often arise in which meat or fish is not fully cooked. For example, we all love kebabs; now Japanese cuisine, which uses raw fish, has gained immense popularity. These products, if infected with parasites, become their suppliers to the human body. As a result, we get helminthiasis, the symptoms of which will be discussed below.
- Insects: This route of infection is the rarest of those listed, but it should not be excluded or discounted.
No treatment for worms will be effective enough if a persistent source of infection is not ruled out. The fact is that in order for new individuals to appear in the human body, it must somehow swallow them. Otherwise, the parasite eggs that came out with the feces will remain there, unable to return.
Why do worms appear? They are unable to reproduce inside the body, the eggs have to leave it temporarily for maturation to occur. At the same time, the worms themselves in humans, the symptoms of which are very important to know, do not live long, some - only a few weeks.
If everything is clear about how soil worms get into a person, then I would like to talk in more detail about infection through contact. Pinworms usually spread this way. At night, the female leaves the intestines and lays thousands of eggs near the anus. They soon begin to cause annoying itching, so the person unknowingly scratches the area. As a result, the eggs fall under the nails, on clothes, on the bed and then everywhere. So, how to determine if a person has worms? Watch her behavior carefully. This will help notice the first signs of worms and start surgical treatment of helminthiasis. This method of infection is especially common in children.
Water is another medium that contributes to the spread of helminths. Everything here is similar to the ground. The eggs of the worms, which we will talk about later, fall into the water and the person drinks it. Therefore, never ingest liquids while swimming in open water. Germicidal filters must be used, especially in villages without running water.
Signs
The symptoms of parasites in an adult can vary. As mentioned above, they are often easy to confuse with the signs of other diseases. In some cases, everything happens according to the classic scenario of massive infection. In this case, the signs of worms in an adult and a child will be similar, most likely in children - more pronounced.
Obvious symptoms of worm infestation:
- Itching in the anus, especially at night;
- sudden weight loss or vice versa;
- anemia, manifested externally in the pallor of the skin;
- I look tired and haggard.
If you or your children start experiencing such phenomena, it is imperative to visit a doctor and insist on being tested for the presence of parasite eggs in the stool. Of course, it might not be about them. Symptoms of helminth invasion are not always to blame for malaise, but communication with a doctor will still be helpful, because ailments in the body are noticeable.
Unfortunately, things aren't always that simple. Next, we will talk about the symptoms of helminthiasis in adults and children, which are not obvious.
Gastrointestinal tract
How do you know if a person has worms or not, if they are in the intestine? The signs of the appearance of parasites in this case are as follows:
- diarrhea;
- constipation;
- flatulence;
- nausea;
- vomiting;
- abdominal pain, often localized to the navel;
- painful right hypochondrium.
These human worm symptoms naturally do not appear at the same time. However, constipation can easily be replaced by diarrhea within a few days, so you should monitor your health closely. Also, with parasites, health doesn't always have to be bad. There are days when a person appears to be completely healthy.
Nervous system
Parasites in humans, about the symptoms and treatment we are talking about, in the course of their life, like all living things, release waste. These are toxic substances that gradually infect our body. As a result, a worm infestation often develops. But even if this does not happen, the person's condition can only worsen due to the constant presence of toxins. Above all, in this case, the nervous system suffers, which is sensitive to general intoxication of the body. Symptoms become more pronounced the more parasites are present.
The signs of the presence of worms from the nervous system are as follows:
- headache (even so severe it looks like a migraine);
- nausea;
- long-term low-grade fever;
- chronic fatigue;
- sleepiness;
- irritability;
- anemia;
- sleep disturbances, insomnia, nightmares.
Oddly, but the signs of worms in adults are even problems at work, resulting from lack of sleep, deterioration in concentration, outbursts of aggression or apathy. Children can have poor school performance.
Skin reactions, allergies
How to identify worms in a person by the condition of his skin? It would seem, what kind of connection can there be? Can you somehow find out if a person has worms? In fact, given the development of a person's intoxication, his appearance is also affected. The following are signs of infection:
- presence of skin rashes;
- itching;
- urticaria;
- allergic rhinitis;
- peeling the nails;
- brittle hair;
- dry cough.
Many people have noticed that these signs of helminth infection disappeared without a trace, as soon as they began to be removed from the body by various means.
If you are unsuccessfully drinking ultra-modern vitamins, and not a single negative manifestation from the above list has disappeared, it's time to pass a stool test. You may need to buy completely different drugs from the pharmacy.
Immune system
Given the severe intoxication of the body, the immune system cannot but suffer. What signs indicate a weakening of the body's defenses? Of course, first of all, this is a person's susceptibility to various infectious diseases, as well as a sudden exacerbation of chronic ailments. Sufferers of helminthiasis often have stomatitis, also note various inflammations in the nasopharynx. Many inflammatory processes in the female reproductive system are also believed to be caused by parasites.
After all of the above, it becomes more than clear that the timely identification of a problem will help save a person from very unpleasant consequences. How to find out if there are worms with one hundred percent accuracy? Contact a specialist and pass the simplest analysis. This won't take long, but it will rule out or confirm the diagnosis.
Treatment
Parasites are easily eliminated from the body. There is a small list of drugs that affect them. The difficulty here is determining which parasite is being treated. Unfortunately, it is impossible to do this on your own, so you will need to see a doctor.
The purpose of treating worms for adults and children is to take anthelmintic drugs. They need to be dosed carefully as they are toxic in themselves. Overdose is especially dangerous for children.
How to get rid of worms in humans without resorting to drugs? There are a number of folk remedies that have long established themselves as effective pest fighters. One of the most famous are pumpkin seeds. It is very important to buy them raw and raw. The fact is that a great milking advantage lies in the thin films that are removed along with the peel. Worm treatment involves prolonged and regular use of the seeds. You need to eat at least 300 grams every morning.
How to get rid of worms with carrot juice? It must be drunk freshly squeezed and on an empty stomach - one glass every day. For greater efficiency, you can add a little minced garlic. The treatment lasts up to a month. However, doctors believe that it will not give the desired result without simultaneous drug therapy.
It is believed that the treatment of worms with garlic gives good results. You can make a special broth with milk. A glass of the latter will require two large cloves. Milk must be boiled for 15 minutes, then drink a spoonful once a day. The treatment lasts about two weeks.
Much has been written about treating worms with hemp oil. This is a great remedy for babies that is simply given with bread.
You can also read how to get rid of worms by performing medicinal enemas. However, doctors do not recognize this method. The enema simply does not affect those areas of the intestine where most parasites live.
Before treating worms with folk methods, you need to visit a doctor and find out which plan to deal with them is better to choose. Most likely, the specialist will advise you on drugs that can be combined with the above methods. In general, folk remedies are indispensable for prevention.
You can write as much as you like about how to cure worms, but none of the methods will give a result if you don't follow basic hygiene standards, in which case they will appear stably again. After all, protecting yourself from parasites is actually very simple. So, we figured out how to get rid of worms in adults and children.