Ayurvedic tips to prevent parasites
Worms are creeping inside us!
Just the thought of worms gives us chills, but imagine them actually crawling inside our bodies. Now that is one creepy thought. Back in India, I witnessed many cases involving various worms and parasites. Once, a four-year-old girl was brought to me with projectile vomiting. She had been vomiting continuously for three days and just the day before; she was hospitalized due to dehydration from vomiting but was sent home after being given IV fluids. The vomiting of course started up again. As I was doing the physical examination, I saw a snake-like creature creeping out of her mouth and wondered what it was. I looked again and saw a 9-10 inch long roundworm stuck in her esophagus (food pipe). The worm was causing constant irritation, which in turn caused her to vomit. I grasped the round worm with artery forceps and pulled it out and girl felt relief immediately.

Living in America, we think that our food is very clean and we are not exposed to these parasites, which is quite wrong. Even though Americans catch many bugs while traveling to countries such as India, Thailand, Mexico etc., they do not have to go outside the country to get parasites.

Trichinosis: Caused by Trichinella spiralis, trichinosis develops after ingestion of infected meat (usually pork, beef or meat of wild bears, walrus, horse and boars). Trichinella spiralis is found in carnivorous animals worldwide except in Australia and Pacific Islands. Transmission occurs due to ingestion of meat containing encysted larvae. The protozoans are unicellular (one cell organism) amoeba, for example: Giardia and Shigella. Helminthic parasites, on the other hand are multi-cellular organisms and posses different organ systems. Examples of these are hookworms, roundworms, pinworms and Tapeworms and many others.

Most helminthic parasites do not replicate in the human host, but develop up to certain stage and mature further in another host or as free-living parasites. One very important aspect of helminthic infection is to extract eosinophilia (increased eosinophils or allergic cells in human blood). This phenomenon, however, is not common in protozoan infections.

Anisakiasis is an infection that develops in a person who consumes fish infected with anisakine or other related parasites. Infection with anisakine is present in mackerel, herring, salmon, and codfish. Also, another infection with pseudoterranova has been shown to be in Codfish, Pollack, halibut, flatfish, greenling, pacific rockfish, and squid. Clinical symptoms usually appear after eating sushi or any other raw fish dish. It is not unusual to get appendicitis after eating sushi and as the surgeon operates, he finds the fish larvae to be the cause of appendicitis. Traditionally, the sushi is served with raw ginger slices, and in many studies ginger has shown to have detrimental effects on fish larvae. So if you like your sushi, do not forget to eat fresh ginger with it.

One of the biggest ways to pick up worms is through contaminated water. Most commonly, people will pick up amoebas and Giardia. Another source is food, which includes root vegetables and meat. Some of the parasitic infections we get are through insect bites. A simple mosquito bite can give you malarial parasite. Very often people living in an already polluted environment will not get infections with parasites because they are immune to Amoebas, whereas people visiting from different countries will get infected very easy. Prevention can be done by avoiding contaminated water, food and preventing bug bites.

Ayurvedic medicine contains a full arsenal of anti-parasitic herbs. Many of the Ayurvedic herbs are used in combinations or alone for various parasitic conditions. The most common herbs used are Embelia Ribes, Neem, Artemisia, Ocimum sanctum (Holy basil), Mallotus Philippinensis (Kamala), berberis aristata (Daru haridra), bitter melon (Karela) and Butea Monosperma (Palash).

APMAG™ from Ayush Herbs Inc. is a preparation that has all these herbs in a synergistic combination. It has shown wonderful results with hookworms, pinworms and roundworms. One capsule three times a day with some sweetener is given to attract the worms. Butea Monosperma contains Palasonin; an active principle that is toxic to all these worms. Dosage for that is 3000 to 6000 mg for three to four days, and purgative is given to drive out the worms. Artemisia tincture in the doses of 5-10 milliliter is given 2-3 times per day for 7-8 days. Artemisia is toxic, so don’t use for long time unless you are under the care of a physician.

Generally used as a vegetable in oriental and Indian cooking, Bitter Melon can also be used for these worms. While practicing in India, I saw many patients who came to me after eating bitter melon the night before. They had a horrifying experience of passing worms in their stool, the morning after. Terrified at the sight of these worms, the patients didn’t realize that bitter melon had actually killed them and flushed them out of the body. This herb has worked so well against the worms that eventually, I would guess what my patients ate the night before. I was always right on target.

Ayurvedic treatment of Lymphatic Filariasis, Loiasis and Fluke infection
Artemisia, Neem and Berberine have all shown great responses. Neem Plus™ one to two capsules thrice a day are recommended for three months. APMAG™ from Ayush Herbs already contains a combination. The dosage for that are 1-2 capsules three times a day for three months. Fluke infection has responded well to a combination of Artemisia and Black-Walnut tinctures along with APMAG™. Both Artemisia and Black-Walnut tinctures can be taken in doses of 5 to 10 milliliters, three times a day for one month. I usually don’t prescribe these tinctures for an extended period of time due to toxic effects.

Ayurvedic treatment of different Tapeworms:
APMAG™ is again a better choice for all kinds of Tapeworms when taken in doses of 1-2 capsules three times per day for three months. I have added Beetle Nut (Areca catechu) powder in the doses of 3000 milligram given on empty stomach with APMAG™. I usually prescribe this powder for 2-3 weeks only because its long-term actions are shown to be carcinogenic. Macuna Plus™ can also be added along with APMAG™ for Tapeworm infections in the doses of one capsule three times per day.

Ayurvedic treatment of Amoebas, Giardia, Shiegella:
APMAG™ one capsule three times per day in combination with Pippli 250 mg three times a day has shown remarkable results.

For more information about Dr. Virender Sodhi and the Ayurvedic Clinic, please visit
http://www.ayurvedicscience.com.
For the herbs listed above, please visit
http://www.ayush.com.


Disclaimer: This article is purely informative and should not replace the guidance of your physician. If you suffer from an illness, you should consult a physician before taking any herbs, vitamins, minerals or enzymes. Even at the peak of health, it is best to consult a qualified practitioner before taking any dietary supplement