Parasite is a nasty word that conjures up horrible images in third world countries. The worrying news is that they are also all too common within the United States today. In this article, we look at everything you need to know about avoiding these infections, including eight reasons to avoid them and treatment if you do contract one.

Eight Reasons to Avoid Parasitic Infections

1. Parasites are organisms that live off of their hosts in order to survive - If this sounds horrible, it is. You the host consume food and liquids that then go on to feed the parasite living in and feeding off of your intestines. This will not improve your life in any way, but it will negatively impact it in a variety of unpleasant ways.

2. Many parasites will invade, grow, and then reproduce in organ systems - the end result of this infestation is what is known as a parasitic infection. To put it mildly, it will make you the host horribly sick at best. If left untreated, this will dramatically diminish your life. The worst part is that this is not something that your body will likely recover from on its own. It will require intensive and often prolonged medical intervention and serious medications.

3. They can produce terrible symptoms that do not kill you but greatly impact your life and lifestyle just the same - Each parasitic host comes with its own unpleasant set of side effects and symptoms. We will look at the four most common parasites in the U.S. and what symptoms you can expect to suffer from if one succeeds in invading your body.

4. Trichomoniasis will dramatically impact your sex life - you are probably familiar with or at least aware of the dreaded sexually transmitted diseases. The average person has no idea of the risks and dangers of a sexually transmitted parasite though. Trichomoniasis is such a parasitic-induced sexually transmitted infection. It is hard to diagnose because it does not necessarily produce any symptoms. Yet in other cases it leads to following highly unpleasant ones:

• Redness and irritation
• Itching or burning
• A genital area-based unusual discharge

5. Giardiasis will dramatically impact your gastro-intestinal system - this unpleasant parasite leads to gas, diarrhea, unsettled stomach, dehydration, and greasy stools. It would keep you from going anywhere that is far from a bathroom or on long trips, making it difficult if not impossible to go out for school, work, or social occasions.

6. Cryptosporidiosis causes nasty stomach problems and vomiting - those who suffer from a Cryptosporidiosis parasitic infection can look forward to stomach pain and cramps, feeling nauseous, throwing up, struggling with and from dehydration, fevers, and loss of weight. Dehydration can ultimately kill you, but in the meanwhile, it leads to insomnia, mental fog and confusion, and a slow breakdown of all your body processes.

7. Toxoplasmosis is like a never-ending flu infection - If you have the misfortune to fall prey to Toxoplasmosis, then you will be looking at remarkably flu-like symptoms. These include muscle pains and aches and swelling in your lymph nodes around your body. Unlike with the flu though, these can hold for longer than a month at a time.

8. Malaria is one of the deadliest parasitic diseases - Malaria is another of these parasitic infections, though it is more unusual in the United States and more prevalent in the tropics. This disease kills hundreds of thousands of people every year. There are treatments available, but they are not quick or easy.

What Causes Parasitic Infections?

There are three kinds of organisms that cause parasitic infections. You want to watch out for protozoa, helminths, and ectoparasites. These protozoa are one-celled organisms. They are able to live within and reproduce rapidly once in your body. Among the many infections that protozoa cause is giardiasis. This severe infection can get you simply when you drink water that is infected by the Giardia protozoa.

Helminths prove to be multiple celled organisms. They are able to live either within or outside of the human body. People commonly refer to these organisms in layman's terms of worms. Among the many worms lurking out there are tapeworms, flatworms, roundworms, and thorny-headed worms.

Ectoparasites turn out to be multiple celled organisms that feed from and live in your skin. Some arachnids and insects are included in this category. Examples include fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, and mites.

These various parasites can spread through a range of means. Helminths and protozoa travel through contaminated food, water, soil, waste, and blood. Others pass through sexual intercourse and contact. Insects spread more in their role as a disease carrier. Malaria itself is commonly carried in protozoa who transmit to people from mosquitoes when they bite people. You can go to https://microbeformulas.com/blogs/microbe-formulas/top-tips-for-parasite-prevention-what-to-avoid-and-where-not-to-go for more tips on avoiding these unpleasant parasites.

Treating Parasitic Infections

The treatment plan for your parasitic infection entirely depends on your particular diagnosis. Your doctor is the one who will diagnose you and then prescribe medicines. He can order medications in order to treat giardiasis, trichomoniasis, or cryptosporidiosis as examples. Usually, with toxoplasmosis, he will not prescribe a medication, and you will have to wait out the infection. The exceptions are if you are not generally healthy or if you are pregnant, or if your specific infection proves to be really serious and lengthy.

There are other treatments that your doctor might choose to provide in order to alleviate your serious symptoms. As diarrhea leads to dehydration, they may give you something to help with these issues. The doctor will also strongly recommend that you drink a lot of fluids to replenish depleted ones.

The good news is that there are things you can do to significantly decrease your risk of coming down with one of these terrible parasitic infections. This starts with regularly washing your hands, particularly after touching feces or uncooked meats. You should always thoroughly cook meats as well. Drinking clean water is essential, as is staying clear of drinking any water from a pond, stream, or lake. Finally, always utilize condoms for safe sex. All of these actions will help you not to contract or spread any of these infections to others around you.