Tapeworms
By lilaclady
@lilaclady (28207)
Australia
May 18, 2008 7:14pm CST
I was watching a documentary on television yesterday and they were counting down the biggest pests to the human race and I was very surprised to see the No.1 and becoming a big problem was the tapeworm in humans, I only thought this was a problem in animals but not so, they actually gave a percentage of 80% plus I think it was of humans walking around with tape worms and this is not getting them from their pets but from eating meat...they showed the cycle, the tape worm has nothing to do but make babies when in the human body, they make millions and this is released into the sewage system, a lot of sewage that goes into the sea is them picked my the scavengers of the sea the seagulls and other birds, the birds fly around distributing the tape worm eggs which is being eaten by cattle once it gets into their system it apparantly gets into the meat that people are eating...they actually had a huge tape worm taken from the sytem of a person and it was enormous..a bit scary for thos who eat meat...
4 people like this
17 responses
@shymurl (2765)
• United States
19 May 08
I knew a guy that had to have one removed. he was losing weight really fast and couldn't figure out why. not even the doctors, until they scanned his body and saw it. I think in the guinness book of world records, the longest tapeworm ever found in a human was maybe 10 ft. (i think, i'll have to look it up.) it is quite scary. I guess thats why I don't eat red meat.
2 people like this
@lilaclady (28207)
• Australia
19 May 08
hmmm, it would be good to lose some weight but I don't think I would like to lose it that way...it is a bit scary as it is becoming a big problem as on this documentary it said the tapewor has a nice warm spot in the human body with lots of food and the only thing it has to do is produce more tapeworms by the millions...very scary...
1 person likes this
@mikeysmom (2088)
• United States
19 May 08
this is just beyond gross. a good argument for giving up meat too. oh bleck. i am so grossed out right now!
1 person likes this
@stephcjh (38473)
• United States
19 May 08
Ewwwww. that makes me sick to my stomach just thinking about that. That almost makes me not want to eat anymore meat at all. I think if I was ever told that I had tape worms, I would totally stop eating meat. That just makes me so sick. There have been alot of issues with meat lately.
1 person likes this
@walnutbrownie (745)
• India
19 May 08
yes..i get a creepy feeling thinking of worms, snakes n all...these creepy creatures gives me a ....feelin i can't explain.I cant stand them actually.Well i am a meat eater n i take a deworming tablet every 6 months..just to be sure im ok and that i can continue eating meat lol
1 person likes this
@liquorice (3887)
•
19 May 08
Well, that's really horrible! That figure sounds really high. I eat no red meat and hardly any other meat so I'm relieved, but it's shocking that so many people are walking around with this thing inside of them and I bet most of them never find out about it. I think I'd want to know if there was one inside me so that I could do something to get rid of it! (Did they say how to get rid of it??) I know that it affected humans but I was thinking that it affected a much lower percentage of people, like 20% or something. Thanks for sharing this with us!
1 person likes this
@schizo28 (25)
• Philippines
19 May 08
It is okey to eat meat as long as it is well cooked.Tapeworms inside our body are opportunist. They eat all the nutrients in our body. They would also proliferate so fast thats why people with tapeworms in their body manifested a protuberant abdomen. Sometimes tapeworms would com out in the nose and mouth if it is severe.
@mytwo_daughters (2663)
• United States
11 Aug 08
Yes, but I thought it was rare that these tape worms happened. I wish I could blame one on my appetite. I thought if you cooked the meet well enough, it killed everything.
@shantiquarian (146)
• United States
9 Aug 08
Now you know why food should be properly cooked. Veggies and fruits should be throughly washed because you can even pick up the eggs you can't see from them as well.
@scapula (760)
• Jordan
12 Jun 08
yeah that's true, most of tapeworms com from raw food , undercooked, you don't imagine the problem that it could do, it can also damage the human liver and cause many problem, it is very bad health issue related to food, my best advice to all type of infection and tapeworm: every time wash your hand and make food well-done, never eat salad at restaurant because it is not cooked, these simple three rules keep you in safe side.
@urbandekay (18278)
•
11 Aug 08
Maybe they could give them to people that wanted to loose weight, then a quick does of worming tablets once they had lost enough excess tissue!
all the best urban
@urbandekay (18278)
•
11 Aug 08
A contributory factor may be the rise in popularity of eating sushi, raw fish is a prime candidate for spread of infection.
all the best urban
@aseretdd (13730)
• Philippines
19 May 08
Just reading about tapeworms and how they spread makes me shiver in fear... i don't like living things that don't have legs... and the number one that i fear are worms... and the thought of them living inside my body freaks me out...
This just goes to show that we have to be extra careful with what we eat... especially meat... we need to really cook our food better so that we will not be inflicted with such parasites...
@bfarrier1 (2082)
• United States
7 Jun 08
I will have to think about it before I eat meat again,thanks for the information and have a great evening.
@thebeaddoodler (4262)
• Lubbock, Texas
19 May 08
I think the biggest contributing factor to the wide spread occurrence of parasites is the medical community! They, for some reason don't consider it a problem in industrialized nations, pointing fingers to third world countries. Since they don't believe it is a problem, it's not something they routinely check for, and the infestation has to be nearly life threatening before it's recognized.
@mytwo_daughters (2663)
• United States
11 Aug 08
Wowwow! That's quite an accusation and assertion with nothing to back it up what so ever. What parasite are you talking about. What is it that the medical community is blowing off in your mind. I am a health care worker and take great offense at your generalizations.
@jwfarrimond (4473)
•
19 May 08
I remember reading somewhere that tapeworm infestation was a problem in rural communities in China because the farmers used human waste as fertiliser on the fields. The waste contained tapeworm eggs and so the fields and the food grown in them was also contaminated and of course back infected the people and continued the cycle of infection.
@marchgale (260)
• United States
20 May 08
oh my I do eat meat.And I'm real skinny too.No matter what I do I can't gain weight.When I was young I knew this real skinny guy,who claimed to have a tapeworm.Maybe he really did.
