According to the WHO, more than 10 million people worldwide are infected with helminths every year.Helminth infestation is extremely dangerous for the body due to the extensive damage - mechanical and toxic.Helminths destroy tissues of the intestines and other organs of the body (even the heart and brain), poison people with phenol, formaldehyde poisons and other dangerous waste products, absorb vital macro- and microelements;Prevention of helminthiasis is important for adults and children.
One of the main difficulties in combating worms is their removal from the body.Most medications only affect adults and cause a severe chemical “blow” to health (so they should not be taken frequently).The cystic forms remaining in the body, the larvae, continue to multiply and destroy the body, reducing its resistance to infections and chronic diseases and provoking the appearance of dangerous pathologies.
Therefore, the main task is comprehensive prevention of worms, aimed at preventing their penetration into the body and creating your own protective barrier - normal, healthy microflora in the intestines, a well-functioning immune system, etc. For this you need:
- takes care of hygiene, especially if you belong to a risk group - this includes children attending kindergarten and school, employees of sewage treatment plants, plumbers, summer residents and gardeners, agricultural workers and other workers;
- pay attention to the quality of food and water;
- Take additional protective measures, since compliance with the first two rules is not enough - take preventive courses with anthelmintics, use natural remedies, special treatment and rehabilitation complexes.
The difficulty in preventing helminthiasis lies in the fact that they enter the body not only through raw, contaminated water and unwashed hands, but also through the air, through which eggs and cysts are transported, seemingly safe foods and other sources.Just two to four weeks after infection, patients develop acute helminthiasis, then it becomes chronic, with varying but always dangerous symptoms.However, prevention must begin with controlling hygiene and lifestyle.
Hygienic prevention of helminthiasis
Infection with helminths very often occurs through the skin and contact with contaminated objects - structures in public places, toilets, even banknotes.Therefore, in everyday life it is necessary:
- Wash your hands thoroughly after using the toilet, going outside, before eating and personal hygiene, cut your nails in a timely manner (long manicure is an additional danger factor);
- Regularly carry out wet antiseptic cleaning at home.
- monitor the cleanliness of underwear and utensils used;
- If you have pets, carry out regular examinations, scheduled deworming and therapy, prevent pets from coming into contact with stray dogs and cats, and walk only in special places.
- Fight mechanical vectors of helminths - flies, cockroaches, etc.
Particular caution should be exercised when visiting public places.You can become infected while swimming in open water, in a swimming pool, coming into contact with birds and animals, playing on the beach, in the sandpit or on the lawn in a park.Small children are particularly susceptible to worms, as they explore the world around them “by touch” and try to put everything they see in their mouths.It is impossible for parents to monitor the quality of sand in the sandbox and protect playgrounds and parks from street animals and rodents.Therefore, the question of anthelmintic prophylaxis for children is very acute.The most unpleasant thing is that you can get parasites from the air simply by walking and not touching the ground.
Food control
You must be just as responsible as you are with hygiene when it comes to the quality of the products and their processing.Vegetables, fruits, and herbs are most commonly washed in cold water, but this is not enough to kill parasites.It is necessary to at least pour boiling water over them.Meat, fish and seafood require long-term heat treatment at high temperatures and prior storage in the freezer for several days.
A few more recommendations:
- exclude rare steaks and raw fish, even sea fish, from your diet - worm larvae can stay there for a very long time;
- Do not eat raw sausages - due to their production technology, helminths are not completely killed in them;
- Do not picnic near livestock and poultry farms, open water, and other hazardous areas.
However, even long-term cooking of meat and the exclusive use of vegetables from your own garden does not offer a 100% guarantee that you will be protected from helminth infestation.Additional measures must be taken to remove worms from the body and prevent reinfection.
Preparations and natural remedies for anthelmintic prophylaxis
There are many medications that doctors prescribe to combat helminthiasis.Due to their high toxicity, they are usually taken once or twice, but can destroy the metabolism of worms and remove them from the body.Therefore, people who are worried about their health take such drugs even without a diagnosis - as a preventive measure.
Broad-spectrum medications are most often used for prevention.The drugs differ in the type of active ingredient, they help with various forms of helminthiasis and should not be taken without prior diagnosis and a doctor's prescription.This can cause even more damage due to “drug shock”.
Another preventive treatment option are natural remedies.Among the most famous:
- Pumpkin seeds (necessarily with a green shell);
- garlic, onion and ginger;
- tincture of walnut kernels;
- Herbal teas with tansy, wormwood, celandine and other natural bitter substances.
The effectiveness of natural remedies is not very high, the dose required for prevention is difficult to calculate, and few people regularly and conscientiously eat raw garlic and pumpkin seeds.For complete prevention, “folk recipes” are clearly not enough.
In order to provide omnidirectional protection against helminth infestation, create a constantly “active” barrier and support the body in fighting parasites on its own, special complexes are required.These products include several drugs that eliminate existing worms, restore the nutritional balance disturbed by them and gently restore the normal state of the internal environment.
Natural-based preparations contain natural bitter substances, vital microelements that absorb helminths (zinc, iodine, selenium, magnesium, copper, etc.) and do not cause side effects.Complex:
- eliminates and protects against 150 types of worms in all forms – cysts, eggs, larvae, adults;
- improves the enzymatic activity of the intestine, eliminates dysbiosis, restores the functions of the gastrointestinal tract and liver;
- compensates for the lack of micro and macro elements, promotes the removal of heavy metals from the body;
- improves external and internal condition and helps fight a variety of chronic diseases.
To prevent helminthic infection, it is recommended to take a special complex and medications for a period of three months (a break of a week is taken between them).The antiparasitic and health program takes place once or twice a year, or three to four times a year for at-risk groups.