The Importance of a Parasite Cleanse
A parasite cleanse is required if your body is overburdened with other toxins. A parasite is an organism that derives its food, nutrition and shelter by living in or on another organism. Therefore, by its very nature, it robs nutrients from its host and, by its very existence, it deflects the host’s immune system from warding off disease. Within the broad term “parasite”, a range of creatures can fall – worms, flukes, mites, yeast, bacteria and viruses, just to name a few. While your first reaction maybe one of disgust, keep in mind that your body does need certain beneficial bacteria in the digestive tract to keep your system in balance. Ever had a yeast infection? This is when the parasitic yeasts have overwhelmed the beneficial yeasts, most often with the assistance of what has become our annual dose of antibiotics.
For the most part, if your body is healthy, then your immune system can deal with the parasites. However, if your circulation is poor, or your organs and tissues are oxygen deprived, or your pH is out of balance, tissues begin to deteriorate. This sets up an environment suitable for parasites to invade your body. They will naturally migrate to those areas of the body where your body is not functioning optimally, because that is where they will have the best chance for survival. Therefore, they can be present in your blood, your joints, your organs, or any other body part. While parasites may not necessarily be the cause of a disease, they are extremely opportunistic and can make a disease worse.
There are many reasons to consider a parasite cleanse. It is estimated that parasites infect up to 80% of the world population. Amazingly enough, these infestations are not limited to developing nations with poor sanitation. Common lab tests screen for only forty of the hundreds of parasites that can live within the human body. In addition, most tests are performed on stool samples, but in reality only a few parasites inhabit the intestinal tract. Thus many people can test negative when in fact they do have parasites.
Possible Signs of Parasitic Infestation
Since parasites will naturally inhabit the weaker areas of your body, symptoms can manifest in many different ways.
- Stomach pain, indigestion, ulcers, constipation or colitis may indicate parasites in the digestive tract
- Uncontrollable movements, such as Parkinson’s disease, may indicate parasites in the nervous system
- Joint or muscle pain, such as arthritis, can be a sign that the presence of a parasite is irritating the joint or tissue and thereby causing inflammation
- Increased susceptibility to infections in lungs, sinuses, vagina, bladder or any mucous membrane may indicate the presence of a parasite
- Food and environmental allergies are often linked to parasites because as digested food is released into the intestines, it can seep through perforations caused by the parasites into the lymphatic system
- Dermatitis, itching, psoriasis, eczema, hives, swelling and rashes can indicate parasites in the skin
- Anemia, fatigue or drowsiness after meals may indicate that parasites are competing with the body for nutrients
How would I possibly get bad parasites?
Have you ever taken a hike into the mountains and been warned not to drink the water straight from the streams at the risk of getting diarrhea? Have you been warned away from the tap water in certain major cities, such as Mexico City, because it can give you the runs? When people grow up drinking this water, their bodies adapt to the parasites present in the water, so they do not develop diarrhea. However, foreign travelers not cautious about the water will succumb to the parasites, and often, never quite rid themselves of them. Increased international travel can cause these localized parasites, like malaria, giardia, and roundworm, to be spread from country to country.
Popularity of raw or undercooked foods, in particular meats and fish, can spread parasites. Until recently, the US government had banned the import of Italian prosciutto, for fear of parasite contamination, because the traditional method used to cure the pork does not involve heat of any kind. By their very nature, alcohol, vinegars, cheeses and yogurts contain yeasts and bacteria – usually beneficial, but sometimes harmful if not fermented or aged correctly. As consumers demand increases for specialties local to certain regions of the world, the risk of spreading parasites not usually found in other regions of the world increases too.
You know how certain beaches are closed to swimmers after heavy rains? This is because the bacterial and parasite levels are extremely high and create the risk of infection. If you live in high smog areas or, conversely, in wide-open agricultural areas where pesticides and fertilizers are spread by planes, you will be more susceptible to parasite invasion.
Probably the most common method of transmission is through pets. Even if you wash your hands after petting your furry, scaly or feathered family members, you can still get parasites by picking up their bedding or their food dish or when they come over and lick you. This is the reason why women are advised to stop emptying the cat litter box while they are pregnant.
So what are my options to minimize risk of parasite infection?
Some people would react to this risk by wearing a mask, putting their pets up for adoption, never going out to eat and using antibacterial quick-dry hand-wash after everything they touch. For the rest of us, these solutions are neither viable, practical, healthy nor appetizing when we consider the rest of our lives. So we assume that throughout our lives, we will have some amount of exposure to parasites. Nevertheless, we know that by detoxifying our major elimination organs, by increasing circulation and oxygenation through exercise, by eating natural and organic foods and by incorporating a routine parasite cleanse into our lives, we convert our bodies into an environment inhospitable to parasites.
More Information
Please refer to Body Cleansing / Detox and Natural Cures for more information on parasitic infestation in humans and for an easy-to-follow, herbal parasite cleanse.
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