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Digestive Health

Pesky Parasites

Parasite Symptoms

Parasites are difficult to diagnose. Symptoms can be similar to the physical symptoms of other illnesses. Parasites are pesky critters that live in your body for unimaginable lengths of time.

Definition of a Parasite: organisms that live inside a host.

The human body is a host to certain parasites. Parasites cause parasitic infections that lead to a long list of serious symptoms and health issues.

  • Long-term digestive issues like diarrhea, gas or constipation
  • Chronic body odour
  • Progressive weight loss or weight gain
  • Constant hunger and not feeling full, even after eating a big meal
  • Rashes and hives around the vagina and anus
  • Muscle and joint aches
  • Chronic headache / migraine
  • Bouts of nausea
  • Unusual exhaustion
  • Teeth grinding 
  • Recurring yeast infections

How do you get parasites?

Parasites enter your body through exposure to contaminated food, contaminated water, pets, mosquitos, fleas, daycare centers, sexual transmission, to name just a few. If you travel a lot internationally to regions with contaminated water and food, your risk of parasitic infections is higher.

Poor sleep, poor diet, antibiotic use, chronic stress, and poor lifestyle habits can compromise your immune health and body’s resistance and may increase your risk of parasite infections and/or make your symptoms worse. Limit your intake of pork, shellfish, and scavenger fish. These are highly parasitic foods.

Known human parasites (Dr. Jockers.com)

Here are some actual parasites seen through colon irrigation releases at Vitalife.

Client parasites released at Vitalife in 2021

What is a parasite cleanse?

A diet, supplement, or other detox product intended to eliminate pesky parasites from the body without using prescription medications.

Contracting and diagnosis

Most people contract parasites by eating or handling contaminated meat, fruit, and vegetables. Touching and kissing pets, through fecal contamination, or contact with unclean water. Other popular sources are unclean shower floors, improperly sanitized tools in nail salons, and going barefoot in public places!

The World Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that tens of millions of people worldwide have parasites living in their bodies. Diagnosing parasite infections is difficult in Canada, as most medical doctors don’t recognize parasitic infections exist here.

Worms and protozoa are two of the most common forms of parasites that feed on a host organism and cause a variety of symptoms that affect the digestive system and skin. Parasites are ingested as eggs, and hatchlings eat the nutrients in your intestinal tract. They love to feed on sugar, fat, and junk food! Other common parasites are liver flukes. We see lots of them through liver cleanses here at the clinic. If you’ve never done a liver cleanse, you probably should. A clean liver is the key to keeping good health.

Dietary restrictions

Important! Avoid ALL meat and processed meat products, simple carbohydrates, like those found in refined foods, juices, dairy products, and all sugars, except honey. Essentially, consider a plant-based diet.

Having trouble purging your parasites?

Stay away from fruit, or limit it at the every least. Fruit has no added sugar, but you still have sugar uptake from naturally occurring sugars. If you must eat fruit, stick to enzymatic fruits like pineapple and papaya. These are not as “fruitful” for pesky, little parasites.

Eat more raw garlic, pumpkin seeds, pomegranates, beets, and carrots, all of which have been used traditionally to kill parasites.

NOTE: Keep a shopping list handy to avoid buying “no no” foods. Parasites, yeast, and mucus (all living things) thrive off foods high in fat, and high sugar. Getting off track and eating the wrong foods can be counterproductive. Click here for an easy to use shopping list!

Exceptions to the rule

Papaya, pineapple and berries are okay in small quantities.

If Candida is present – avoid ALL fruit! A discussion for another time.

Food prepping

Cleaning your produce – organic or not – is extremely important. We highly recommend eating organic foods while on a parasite cleanse.

  • Hydrogen peroxide (HP) – one of the best choices. Effective on germs and disease pathogens. Mix 50/50 mixture of water and 3 percent HP right out of the bottle from the grocery store. Spray or soak the produce in the mix, rinse, and dry.
  • Baking Soda option – Use 1 tablespoon of baking soda per cup of water. Spray or soak produce. Let sit for a few minutes, and rinse.
  • Alternative – Shake baking soda onto the surface of hard-skinned fruits or vegetables and rub in with a bit of water. Abrasion helps remove wax and other residue.

Herb and moon cycles

The good news is, you can kill parasites with the help of some powerful herbs and other natural support strategies. A fascinating fact – use the power of the moon to influence parasite activity in your body during the full moon cycle.

During the full moon cycle, parasite activity is higher. You can use this to your advantage by doing a Full Moon Parasite Protocol to support your recovery.

If you suspect you have parasites, consider some dietary changes for a few months, book a few colon cleanses to confirm your suspicions, and talk to your naturopath about your symptoms.