Parasites

Ascaris is a parasitic roundworm known as the "giant intestinal roundworm". A. lumbricoides species is the largest intestinal roundworm and is the most common helminth infection of humans worldwide. This infection is known as ascariasis. You can see the worms inside of a human large intestine in the photo. Perhaps as many as one quarter of the world's people are infected, with rates of 45% in Latin America and 95% in parts of Africa. Ascariasis is particularly prevalent in tropical regions and in areas of poor hygiene. Other species of the genus Ascaris are parasitic and can cause disease in domestic animals.

Infection occurs through ingestion of food contaminated with feces containing Ascaris eggs. The larvae hatch, burrow through the intestine, travel to the lungs, and finally migrate up the respiratory tract. From there they are re-swallowed and mature in the intestine, growing up to 30 cm (12 in.) in length and anchoring themselves to the intestinal wall.

People can remain asymptomatic for very long periods of time. As larval stages travel through the body, they may cause visceral damage, peritonitis and inflammation, enlargement of the liver or spleen, toxicity, and pneumonia. A heavy worm infestation may cause nutritional deficiency. Additional complications, sometimes fatal, include obstruction of the bowel by a bolus (big ball) of worms (observed particularly in children) and obstruction of the bile or pancreatic duct. More than 796 Ascaris lumbricoides worms weighing up to 550 g [19 ounces] were recovered at an autopsy of a 2-year-old South African girl. The worms had caused torsion and gangrene of the ileum, which were determined to be the cause of death.

Ascaris takes most of its nutrients from the partially digested host food in the intestine. There is limited evidence that it can also pierce the intestinal mucous membrane and feed on blood, but this is not its usual source of nutrition. As a result, Ascaris infection does not tend to produce the anemia associated with some other roundworm infections.

Acanthamoeba are found in soil, water (including treated water), air, and dust. Although most people have been exposed to this organism during their lifetime, the good news is that the majority of healthy people have serum antibodies to fight it. For the few people whose antibodies do not kick in, Acanthamoeba can cause three known diseases.

Acanthamoeba keratitis is an infection of the eye. Most cases occur in people who wear contact lenses. Keratitis has been associated with wearing non-disposable contact lenses, using homemade sodium chloride solution to clean the lenses, and wearing lenses while swimming. Early corneal infection manifests as epithelial involvement, including elevated epithelial lines that may appear as dendritic, punctuate epithelial erosions, microcysts, and epithelial haze. Stromal findings, which occur later, include single or multiple stromal infiltrates and nummular keratitis. In advanced stages, ring infiltrates or satellite lesions can develop. It may sound very complicated, so the photo shows the details.

Acanthamoeba can cause Granulomatous Amebic Encephalitis (GAE), a serious infection of the brain and spinal cord. Acanthamoeba gets into the body either through the skin or up the nose. It then travels through the nervous system to the brain. Once there, it eats brain cells. After feeding, it divides rapidly which causes sudden and massive inflammation, killing the human host in just a few days. GAE typically occurs in persons with a compromised immune system. This includes people with AIDS, transplant recipients (eg, bone marrow transplants), patients with cancer receiving chemotherapy, and those with systemic lupus erythematosus, steroid use, diabetes mellitus, malnutrition, or liver disease. Although cases of GAE are rare worldwide, survival rate is only 2-3%.

Acanthamoeba can also cause disseminated infection, which is a widespread infection that can affect the skin, sinuses, lungs, and other organs independently or in combination.

One expert says, "It isn't a matter of IF you have parasites, just a matter of what kinds and how many of them you have". The most common symptoms of a parasite infection include: constipation, diarrhea, gas and bloating, irritable bowel syndrome, joint and muscle aches, anemia, allergies, skin conditions, tumors, nervousness, sleep disorders, teeth grinding, chronic fatigue, and immune dysfunction. These symptoms are listed as the most common, but a wide range of health complaints have been medically linked to parasites, making it difficult to compile a list of the "most common ailments". If a comprehensive list were to be made, it would contain almost every medical condition in the medical library! However, symptoms of parasite infection may not always be obvious. One of the top 10 parasites commonly acquired are tapeworms, yet infestation often causes no symptoms at all! How creepy is that!

There are more than 1000 parasites that infect more than two billion people every year. You might say that parasites are the modern day equivalent of the Black Plague from old. Malaria alone, spread by a mosquito, is found in millions of people. It kills a child every 30 seconds! The tse tse fly spreads parasites that cause Chagas and infect 60 million people. The bite of the sand fly causes Leishmania, infecting over 2 million people annually. As many as one billion people are thought to have round worms! The common belief that visiting a third world country is the primary way to contract parasites is not true at all. International import and export of people and merchandise have brought parasites of every kind to the most civilized nations. It is true that the majority of parasite infestation is found in unindustrialized parts of the world, as well as areas with more poverty and less sanitation. These parasites need other living hosts to survive, and they are equal opportunity critters. They don't care if you are rich, poor, tall, short, black or white.

How Did I Get That Parasite?
We can get parasites from contaminated food or water, but don't assume it only occurs from undercooked pork or low-grade sushi. The very healthy fruits and vegetables you eat may have parasite eggs lurking on them. Did you know certain parasites can lay as many as 200,000 eggs in one day? You can also acquire parasites from sexual contact. Parasites, or their eggs, usually enter the body through the mouth, nose and eyes, but can also enter through abrasions in the skin and will even burrow into your skin! Other risks for parasite infestation include: walking with bare feet, improper disposal of feces, lack of hygiene, physical contact with an infected person, or playing with your favorite pet. We all love furry, little puppies, but approximately 240 diseases can be spread from animals to humans through parasites.

Detoxification of Parasites
It is commonly believed that special herbal detox programs and various natural treatments like the famous zappers will get rid of any acquired parasites. The issue with these types of treatments is that parasites are not a simple object in the intestine that can be flushed out. They are living organisms that will fight to survive extermination. Dr. DeHaan has tried every cleanse, combination and gadget created for parasite detox looking for the single best cure. Over the years he discovered that while these parasite cleansing programs and techniques do help pass worms and parasites, they generally do not RID the body of them. When you see parasites in the toilet or moving down the colonic tube, it means you did eliminate some parasites. However, if it leaves a few eggs behind, your problem will be back. In addition, Dr. DeHaan frequently found parasites in the glands and deep tissues of the body, even the nervous system where they aren't supposed to be, according to the CDC. Thus using a detox like our Quantum Remedies can be much more effective because the vibration reaches all tissues, not just the intestine, and it essentially gives your body a set of instructions as a systemic cleanse rather than a cleanse that acts like a poison in the intestinal tract only.