parasites(from the Greek parasitos - parasite, parasite) - lower plant and animal organisms that live outside or inside another organism (host) and feed on it.
parasitesarose from free living forms in the process of historical development of organisms.
Their adaptation to certain living conditions led to the simplification of their organization, the development of special fixation organs, enhanced development of genital organs and anoxybiotic respiration, which makes it possible to exist in an oxygen-free environment.
Many parasites include:
- Helminths;
- mushrooms;
- viruses;
- protozoa;
- worms;
- crustaceans;
- arachnids;
- insects.
Hosts of parasites can be:
- bacteria;
- protozoa;
- plants;
- animals;
- human.
Parasites go through a complex cycle of development: sometimes they need to change 2-3 hosts, whose organism is intermediate (the helminth passes through the larval stages) or final (the helminth becomes sexually mature, invasive).
Classification of parasites
According to their distribution, parasites are divided into:
- universal- It is found everywhere.
- tropical- Widespread in tropical climate zones.
According to biological and epidemiological characteristics, parasitoses are divided into:
- Geohelminthosis- a disease in which parasites (helminths) first develop in the human body, and then on a non-living substrate, often in the soil.
- Biohelminthosesis a disease in which the biological development cycle of a parasite (helminth) necessarily takes place in the body of other living beings besides humans.There are definitive hosts in whose body helminths develop to the stage of sexual maturity, as well as intermediate hosts, where the parasite is in the larval stage or reproduces asexually.Humans are often the definitive host, less often the intermediate host.
- Contact with helminths- a disease in which mature or almost mature parasites are released from the human body, as a result of which it is possible to infect another person or re-infect him (autoinfection, reinfection).
According to the location of the parasite in the human body:
- luminal parasites- lives in the intestinal cavity and other cavities of the human body (for example, roundworms, tapeworms).
- tissue parasites- living in human body tissues (schistomatosis, echinococcosis).
According to the place of residence of the owner (person):
- External parasites(mosquitoes, horseflies, leeches, lice).
- internal parasites(helminthiasis):
- Roundworms (nematodes - roundworms, filaria, whipworms, pinworms, strongyloides, hookworms, trichinella);
- Flatworms:
- trematodes (flukes - cat fluke (opisthorchid), clonorchid, fasciola, schistosoma);
- Cestodes (tapeworms - cattle and pig worms, dwarf tapeworm, broad tapeworm, echinococcus).
- Bacteriosis(leptospira, staphylococcus, streptococcus, shigella).
- Protozoa or Protozoa(Amoebae, Lamblia, Trichomonas, often hosts of chlamydia and AIDS virus).
- Mycoses(fungal diseases) - candidiasis, cryptococcus, penicillium.
How parasites get into the human body
You can be infected with parasitosis not only by dirty hands.Animal fur is a carrier of worm eggs (Ascaris and Toxocara), Giardia.
Woolworm eggs remain viable for up to 6 months and enter the food tract through dust, toys, carpets, underwear, bedding and hands.
a dogWith moist breath, it distributes eggs up to 5 meters away (cat - up to 3 meters).
fleasDogs also carry worm eggs.Ascaris eggs enter the human body through poorly washed vegetables, fruits, berries, greens, dirty hands, and are also spread by flies.
And improperly prepared kebab or homemade lard is a way of trichinosis infection;Badly salted fish, caviar or "stroganina" - opisthorchiasis and tapeworm.
Thus, there are several ways for parasites to enter the human body:
- food(through contaminated food, water, dirty hands);
- contact-household(through household items, infected family members, pets);
- transfer(through blood-sucking insects);
- subcutaneous,or active (during which the larva enters the skin or mucous membrane of the human body during contact with contaminated soil, while swimming in open water).
Adaptive properties of parasites:
- life span (helminths live in the human body for years, and sometimes as long as the owner of the parasite lives);
- the ability to suppress or change the immune response of the host organism (a state of immunodeficiency is created, conditions are created for the penetration of pathogenic agents from the outside, as well as "disinhibition" of internal foci of infection);
- Many types of helminths release anti-enzymes when they enter the digestive tract, which causes their death;The digestion process is disturbed, toxic-allergic reactions of various severity appear: urticaria, bronchial asthma, atopic dermatitis;
- developmental stages (egg, larva, host change);
- the ability of eggs to survive in the external environment for years;
- sexual reproduction, during which genetic information is exchanged, and this is the highest stage of development, which leads to the growth of a heterogeneous population, that is, parasites become less vulnerable;
- lack of immunoprophylaxis methods, since the immune response is weak and unstable;
- Wide distribution of helminths, many habitats (water, soil, air, plants and animals).
Epidemiology of parasites
Due to increasing migratory processes, the variety of helminths that parasitize the human body increases significantly.Currently, 70 species of parasites are common out of more than 260 existing ones.There is a tendency to increase infection with enterobiasis, giardiasis, toxocariasis, opisthorchiasis, diphyllobothriasis, tenidosis and echinococcosis.Schistosomiasis and filariasis are common in Southeast Asian, African and Latin American countries.
"Healthy" people...Many people with a healthy lifestyle have health problems due to the presence of parasites in the body.Improving the health of the body (proper nutrition, physical exercise, hardening procedures) without cleansing the body of parasites does not give a pronounced positive effect.
They are everywhere...According to the World Health Organization (WHO), helminths and other types of parasites are localized not only in the gastrointestinal tract, but also in vital organs: brain, heart, lungs, liver, kidneys.
causing many diseases
During their lifetime, helminths release special substances - toxoids, which are strong poisons and allergens.These are parasites (protozoa, fungi and helminths) that cause many chronic diseases:
- cholecystitis;
- cholelithiasis;
- pancreatitis;
- Colitis
- diabetes mellitus;
- bronchial asthma;
- Atopic dermatitis.
Chronic fatigue, irritability and anxiety, hyperactivity in children, anemia, brittle nails and hair, problematic skin, headache, loss of appetite, decreased immunity - these can be signals of ongoing parasitosis.
If not treated...When parasites stay in the human body for a long time, the immune system suffers a lot.In the process of constant struggle with foreign antibodies, it happens until exhaustion, that is, before the development of secondary immunodeficiency.
Parasitosis causes:
- in case of hypovitaminosis and reduction of trace elements: potassium, copper, manganese, selenium, zinc, magnesium, silicon;
- on disorders of hematopoiesis;
- hormonal imbalance;
- vascular permeability is disturbed;
- The body's anti-cancer protection is affected.
How did you save it before?For thousands of years, people who ate mainly plant foods took with them natural antimicrobial, anti-parasitic and antiviral active substances.Reducing the consumption of wild plants, fruits, berries, replacing them with cultivated vegetables and fruits, thermal and industrial processing has led to a decrease in the use of natural phytoncides and antibiotics.As a result, humans have become easy prey for many microorganisms.The intensive development of the antibiotic drug industry has led to a decline in antiparasitic immunity.
Traditional medicine for the elimination of parasites in the human body
Medicinal synthetic anthelmintic drugs have their advantages and disadvantages.There are three main negative factors:
- Often they affect only the gastrointestinal forms of parasites;
- It is very toxic to the human body;
- cause many adverse reactions.
Science does not stand still!All over the world, intensive scientific research is being done on the antibiotic properties of plants.In terms of effectiveness, they are not inferior to synthetic antibiotics, but they do not cause the side effects that are characteristic of synthetic drugs.Medicinal components of plants are complex natural phytoncide complexes that can rid the human body of many parasites at different stages of their development.
Nature!This is what will help us!Herbal preparations are much less toxic;If necessary, they can be prescribed for long courses;They activate antiparasitic immunity and effectively suppress the vital activity and reproduction of parasites in the human body.
Parasitoses are widespread diseases that have toxic and harmful effects on the human body.Since treatment with chemical drugs has a negative effect on the body, the optimal solution to the problem of fighting parasitism is herbal products.