Intestinal Parasites - Worms by Sharon Moran - Butterfly Expressions, llc The human intestinal tract plays host to an enormous variety of bacteria, fungi and various other organisms.  Most of these are harmless – some are even beneficial.  Other not-so-welcome invaders that can take up residence are called intestinal parasites or parasitic worms.  The main type of intestinal parasitic worm in this country are the helminths.  These are commonly known as tapeworms, pinworms, hookworms and roundworms.  They are transmitted in their egg form through contact with infected feces, contaminated soil, food and water.  Worm eggs, shed in the stool of humans and animals infected with adult worms, can contaminate the soil or water.  These can infest a host by eating with soil-contaminated hands or by eating raw, unwashed vegetables.  Another source of intestinal worms is through undercooked infected meat.  Children playing in sandboxes contaminated with pets’ stool and walking around outside barefoot are other ways for intestinal parasites to find a way into the human host.  Certain parameters make a person more susceptible to intestinal worms.  Some of these are:  international travel (especially to countries with poor hygiene), poor personal hygiene habits, age (children and the elderly are more likely to become infested), having a weakened immune system (HIV/AIDS) and swimming in recreational water. Once ingested, the eggs generally grow to maturity in the intestinal tract.  These parasites can be as small as a few millimeters or as large as several meters in length.  They thrive consuming the bowel content or by sucking the blood from the host’s intestinal wall.  The life span of some of these worms has been documented to be up to 20 years.  Parasites can live in the intestinal tract for years without causing any symptoms of imbalance in the host.  If the parasitic infestation begins to unbalance the host enough a myriad of problems can occur. Parastic problems may include:     Abdominal /Stomach pain Diarrhea/dysentery Nausea/vomiting Gas/bloating Rash or itching around the rectum or vulva Feeling tired Weight loss Passing a worm in the stool Nutritional habits which can limit the growth of these parasites include:     Avoiding simple carbohydrates and sugars. Eating more raw garlic, pumpkin seeds, pomegranates, beets and carrots. Adding more fiber to the diet to avoid constipation and to keep the intestinal tract moving. Probiotics are useful to keep the intestinal tract healthy and to create an unfriendly environment for parasites. Drinking  plenty of water to flush the system. Digestive enzymes such as papain are beneficial in keeping the digestive tract healthy. Supporting the immune system, specifically with vitamin C and zinc, is beneficial in keeping the body healthy and resistant to infestation. Generally speaking, herbal remedies for intestinal cleansing are fairly toxic. Herbs and herbal remedies for treating intestinal worms include - garlic, barberry, goldenseal, Oregon grape, aniseed, wormwood, black walnuts, curled mint, and olive leaf. All of these have been used historically to cleanse intestinal parasites.   It is the berberine found in these herbs which is helpful to rid the intestinal tract of these unwanted worms. Butterfly Miracles with Herbal Remedies, by LaRee Westover, talks about parasites and how to do a cleanse correctly. The developers of the Miracle II products have a parasite cleanse protocol using both the Miracle II neutralizer and the Miracle II soap.  This cleanse is gentle on the system.  It creates a “soapy, slippery” environment within the intestinal tract which allows the parasites to be expelled.   Resting and repeating the protocol several times allows for the cleansing of both worms and eggs. Mix  1 ounce of neutralizer with 1 – 3 drops of soap and drink.  Repeat this process several times a day.  Repeat this protocol for 4 consecutive days.  After 4 days, stop and wait for 2 days.  After the 2 day waiting period, resume the neutralizer/soap protocol for 4 more days. This process takes 10 days. Day 1 – 4: Neutralizer and soap once a day Day 5 - 6:  Waiting period Day 7 – 10: Neutralizer and soap once a day Butterfly Express sells some essential oils which help with many of the symptoms that an infestation of parasitic worms might produce.  LaRee’s Butterfly Miracles with Essential Oils book lists many different oils including:  LeInside Out, LeRevitalize, LeSafeGuard, bergamot and turmeric. Butterfly Express sells some blessed water remedies to help fight intestinal parasites.   LaRee’s  Butterfly Miracles with Homeopathic Remedies II lists several.  Try reading about  Intestinal Cleanse, Parasites #1, Parasites #2, and Parasites #3. One more important note regarding intestinal cleansing:  Be very careful that re-infestation does not occur.  Constant diligence is necessary to avoid recontamination from the same pathways as the original infestation. For instancce, if you got the parisites from your free range chickens and you cleared up the parisites but kept the free range chickens, reinfestations is likely to occur.