For most people, worms fall into the category of crap. Especially if they also hang around undesirably in your body. The tapeworm is no exception. This long white worm can simply hitch a ride in your stomach without causing any complaints. Not a great idea, so how do you know if you have a tapeworm on board?
How do you get a tapeworm?
If you never eat meat, the chance of getting a tapeworm is extremely small. Because the eggs of this parasite are mainly found in raw meat. In the Netherlands even specifically on raw beef. So although you probably didn’t want to know this, you can get a tapeworm from a filet americain sandwich. By the way, that sandwich may also contain other unwanted residents.
In addition to the beef tapeworm, the pig variant is also found abroad. That is why it is extra important to be careful with raw meat on holiday. Because unlike the Dutch tapeworm, the pork tapeworm is dangerous. That foreign tapeworm has a tendency to send its eggs into its host via the bloodstream. As a result, the parasite settles in all kinds of strange places, like in the brain. Which can lead to failure or epilepsy. Another thing you probably would rather not have known.
What are the symptoms of tapeworms in humans?
Fortunately, the dangerous pork tapeworm does not occur in the Netherlands, but the beef variant does. But how do you know that you are carrying such a tapeworm: what are the symptoms? In any case, your weight says nothing about the presence of this parasite. It used to be thought that the pounds would fly off with such a long white guy. Pills containing tapeworm eggs were even sold as a diet.
Nowadays we know that you hardly lose weight from a tapeworm. He prefers to eat your poop. Only after you have enjoyed your steak and your body has converted everything into feces does the tapeworm start its meal. By then, most of the nutrients have already been absorbed and may be stuck on your buttocks as extra pounds. Weight loss is therefore usually not a symptom of a tapeworm.
But what are the symptoms of a tapeworm? An infection usually does not cause any complaints, except for sometimes a little stomach ache. The best indication of an uninvited stomach guest is spotting a piece of tapeworm. The parasites consist of connected segments that detach when the tapeworm grows. And you see these as white-yellow pieces in your stool. So always look around the pot before you flush.
Can a tapeworm go away on its own?
Fortunately, in the Netherlands the chance of contracting a tapeworm is very small. But did you spot any pieces of tapeworm in the jar? Then this abdominal resident will not go away on its own. Time to go to the doctor. And yes, take the pieces in a jar with you. The doctor examines the type of tapeworm and starts treatment. And before you know it, you’re going through life uninhabited again.
One more extremely disgusting fact for the enthusiast. Because although you cannot feel a tapeworm moving in your stomach, it can squeak out with its tail through the exit. For example, when you are pooping. And with this tasty image in mind, you’ll probably want to read up on how much poop you actually produce in your life.
2023-12-21 15:20:41
#lose #weight #tapeworm
