WHEN people think of parasites their thoughts are often limited to a summer deworming of their children as part of the back-to-school routine. Somehow, we choose to ignore the fact that we, too, may have parasites — perhaps even in greater numbers and in more diverse parts of our bodies than in our children.

According to a recent United States study, 85 per cent of Americans have parasites. In a third-world country like Jamaica, our number may be even greater. It is surprisingly easy to get parasites as they may enter our bodies through drinking water, by eating raw or uncooked meats, or swimming in fresh water containing them.

Some people may acquire parasites when they are bitten by insects such as fleas, mosquito’s or sandflies. Walking on the ground in areas where animals frequent may also be a source of parasites, and this includes walking barefooted on a beach where stray animals are found.

Surgeons have removed roundworms which were blocking the pancreatic ducts leading to the recovery of patients with acute pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas), according to recently published data.

In my practice, I have seen parasites under the skin and even in a patient’s lip.

PARASITES IN THE BRAIN

Parasites have also been linked to insomnia, the biting of fingernails and other obsessive behaviours. In fact, certain mental illnesses in some patients have been found to resolve when certain parasitic infections (for example giardiasis, borrelia and ascaris) are properly treated.

A certain parasite called toxoplasma has been linked to schizophrenia. Some medication used to treat schizophrenia actually inhibit the reproduction of this parasite, though they do not kill it.

Parasites, such as tapeworms, have also been linked to seizures, and killing tapeworms has been linked to reductions in seizures in patients in certain studies.

PARASITES AND ASTHMA

According to many studies, a roundworm called ascaris is linked with childhood and even adult onset asthma or wheezing of unknown cause.

A chronic cough is often helped by a parasite cleanse. It is possible that because medically it is difficult to detect parasites, their larvae and their eggs anywhere else but in the gut, we find it difficult to prove them as the cause for disease.

Science is now catching up and in Jamaica, we are able to detect them using their unique energetic patterns or frequencies. We have been using those frequency patterns to safely show us where in the body they are, and cut their numbers to undetectable levels.

PARASITES AND AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES

I find it very interesting that one of the best drugs for lupus is an anti-parasitic drug. Rheumatoid arthritis, another autoimmune disease, has been linked to increased levels of immune antibodies to particular parasites.

It may be that immune complexes, from the body’s attempt to remove these parasites, enter the bloodstream and lodge in the joints. Whatever the true cause may be, we have been able to bring people into remission from rheumatoid arthritis by finding and eliminating parasites using biofeedback. We then used pulsed electromagnetic field therapy to kill them in cases where medication was not working.

Hard to treat conditions, such as endometriosis, chronic fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, and other chronic disorders, have been linked to parasites and also respond to effective anti-parasitic measures.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

Many of you may be planning to rush out and buy an over-the-counter worm medicine. Although this may help kill some, it won’t stop the eggs from hatching. Some of them only paralyse the parasites so they can be flushed out with a “wash out” or colonic purgative afterwards. They also may not get to the parts of your body where some of the parasites may be hiding.

It may be wise for us to consume foods regularly that discourage the growth of, or kill parasites. These include pumpkin seeds, cloves, black walnuts, wormwood, thyme, coconut meat, carrots, garlic, and a raw pawpaw with few pawpaw seeds, which can be consumed daily.

A good way to keep parasite levels at a minimum would be to eat coconut meat on an empty stomach in the mornings before all food. If you can consume the dried coconut meat instead of fresh, it is even more effective. Please bear in mind that when parasites begin to die, waste products and toxins are released, so you may need to drink a lot of water to flush your body of these. After that, you may notice more energy and improved health.

If you believe you may have a severe infestation or stubborn medical condition and want to eliminate parasites in other parts of your body safely, you may need to find a medical centre which uses alternative methods of killing them wherever in your body they are.

This only begins to scratch the surface of what parasites do in our bodies and what we can do about them. It is my hope that you will use this knowledge to start to make choices that can give you and your family a brighter more healthy future.

Dr Arlene Rose is the head physician and proprietor of the Jamaica Centre for Advanced Medicine (JCAM). A graduate of the University of the West Indies’ Medical Faculty, she received a master’s (with Distinction) in dermatology at Wales College of Medicine and completed further studies in the US and Europe in cosmetic surgery and laser therapy. Visit JCAM’s website at: www.jcamhealth.com.