Worms– the popular name for helminths, parasitic worms that can live in the human body. Diseases caused by worms are called helminthiasis. The symptoms of helminth infections are very diverse, similar to the manifestations of many common diseases: renal colic, pneumonia, hepatitis, pancreatitis, intestinal dysfunction, indigestion. There are many varieties of worms that can infect the human body - more than two hundred species, of which at least twenty are common in Europe.
Worms are thought to be a problem inherent in countries with low social security and poorly developed medicine. It is said that only poverty, the poor, and also people who remain outside of society, who have fallen out of it, suffer from worms. Nothing of the kind! Any resident of any country can become infected with worms, regardless of the degree of prosperity. We cannot speak of any exclusivity in this case. Another thing is that developed societies are protected from diseases of this kind not only by advanced medicine, but also by their culture, in which from the moment of their birth, people have acquired knowledge about the methods of combating, treating and preventing helminthiasis. In this article, we will get acquainted with the most effective of them.
Prevention of helminthiasis in folk medicine
In order to prevent helminthiasis, traditional medicine recommends maintaining hand hygiene, thoroughly washing fruits and vegetables with clean water, eating well-cooked meat and disinfecting insects in food storage rooms. Keep residential areas clean, not only where people live, but also where pets and livestock live. Water should be drunk, if possible, boiled and drinking raw water from natural sources should be avoided in areas where livestock are grazing. When relaxing in nature, it is important to monitor the cleanliness of the water in the reservoirs and its smell. Even running water can carry the threat of helminth infection if livestock have swum upstream. It is necessary to be suspicious of any stray animal, no matter how cute it looks, and not allow contact with it. It is important to eat well, eat foods rich in vitamins and trace elements. A healthy body has a strong immune system, which means that the threat of infection becomes less.
Food of plant origin as an anthelmintic
Treatment of worms with folk remedies includes a number of food products, the role of which in the treatment of helminthiasis is of great importance.
Onion, garlic, horseradish
These are time-tested anthelmintic products; their constant use will help avoid the risk of infection. If it is a matter of treatment, then onions and garlic will also come to the rescue. During treatment, onions can be consumed by both children and adults, but it is not recommended to give garlic to small children. The method of using onions as an anthelmintic is simple. Half a cup of finely grated onion should be poured with boiling water. Let it brew and then take it before breakfast for ten days. It is also easy to prepare an anthelmintic medicine from garlic. Crush four large cloves of garlic to a pulp and pour fresh (preferably homemade) milk. The mixture should boil and stand overnight. The resulting medicine should be taken in a sip before meals. Onions and garlic help with enterobiasis (a disease caused by pinworms, parasites of the roundworm family). Reviews of the benefits of onion and garlic are positive, but most of those who have recovered agree that garlic is more effective, especially if you not only take the milk-garlic mixture internally, but also do 100 ml enemas with it eachday.
Often in collections of folk remedies there are tips to combine horseradish with garlic to fight worms. Six cloves of garlic are ground into a fine paste, to which a medium-sized crushed horseradish root is added. Half a liter of vodka is poured into the resulting mixture. The tincture is aged for ten days. The product should be consumed one tablespoon before a meal. Experts claim that the drug helps not only with enterobiosis, but also with ascariasis (helminthiasis caused by roundworms). An indisputable advantage of alcohol tinctures is the possibility of long-term storage at home.
Sour cabbage
Recognized folk remedy for worms. Rich in vitamin C, sauerkraut significantly improves immunity and strengthens the body, reducing the risk of infection with worms. This tasty and healthy product serves not only for the prevention, but also for the treatment of helminthiasis. The treatment method is as follows: you need to eat a bowl of sauerkraut half an hour before a meal and wash it down with brine. Within twenty days the worms will leave the infected body. I think both children and adults will be pleased with such a tasty treat. Reviews of people who have used this method note its effectiveness against sedges.
Cabbage is often fermented together with another excellent anthelmintic - carrots, which are used in folk medicine to fight pinworms. It can be consumed separately in the form of juices (for children) and raw (for adults). Combining cabbage and carrots will only enhance the effect of treatment of helminthiasis.
pumpkin
In the arsenal of folk remedies for the treatment of worms in humans, pumpkin occupies a significant place. It is true that in this case the vegetable itself is not used, but its seeds. They contain substances that cause paralysis of the locomotor apparatus of parasitic roundworms (sedges and roundworms). Pumpkin seeds and the oil obtained from them are recognized by academic medicine as a remedy for worms. Pumpkin seeds are a wonderful and very healthy delicacy, so they are great for preventing helminthiasis in children. But simply gnawing the seeds is not enough for treatment; To prepare it, you need to take two hundred grams of peeled pumpkin seeds and a glass of medical alcohol. The seeds should be infused in alcohol for three days. The tincture should be taken one tablespoon before each meal. The treatment lasts one week.
Helminthiasis is also treated with pumpkin oil. Treatment and prevention with pumpkin oil is suitable for very young children who cannot yet eat a handful of hard seeds. A teaspoon of pumpkin oil is an excellent means of preventing helminthiasis, and also helps with constipation and indigestion.
Alcohol tincture is a folk remedy for worms for adults. In its other forms (seeds and oil from them), pumpkin is useful for both adults and children.
In conclusion, it should be added that during treatment it is important to follow a diet and not to eat coarse and heavy foods (fatty pork, legumes, raw cabbage).
Other herbal anthelmintics
If the previous section was about food, this one will focus on plant products that people don't eat. This includes medicinal herbs, leaves, bark and inedible parts of tree fruits.
Walnut
It became known as an anthelmintic in the time of Hippocrates. It was popularized here by the Kuban Cossacks. For the preparation of decoction, dried partitions of nuts are used, and for infusion - freshly picked green leaves. Sheets and partitions can be combined with each other, the effectiveness of the product will only increase. The decoction is prepared quickly - crushed walnut leaves are poured with a glass of boiling water, left to stand for two hours, strained and taken one tablespoon before meals. The treatment lasts three days. When preparing the decoction, the following proportions are observed: for two glasses of water - one crushed leaf and a dozen dried walnut partitions. Cook for fifteen to twenty minutes and that's it - the broth is ready. Use in the same way as the infusion.
Reviews of the use of this anthelmintic show its effectiveness against all intestinal parasites. you just need to remember that walnut infusions and decoctions, as well as other natural remedies, cannot be used if you have an individual intolerance.
Aspen
Tinctures of the bark of this tree help in the treatment of opisthorchosis (a disease caused by cat fluke - a parasite of the flatworm genus - and mainly affects the liver, gall bladder and pancreas). Prepare the infusion as follows:
- the bark of young aspens is collected in spring;
- slightly dry the bark and then grind it in any convenient way;
- pour vodka into the bark in a ratio of one to five;
- insist for ten days;
- separate the liquid from the pulp by filtering through gauze or a coarse cloth;
- New skins are added to the resulting liquid and the process is repeated;
- Let the product stand until a precipitate appears, which must be carefully separated from the liquid part.
Judging by the reviews, there is no drug in folk medicine that is more effective than aspen bark against flat parasites. The infusion should be used after consultation with a parasitologist, who will determine the dosage and duration of treatment. Contraindicated for children.
Herbs
In folk practice, herbs such as wormwood, tansy, chamomile, St. John's wort, immortelle, wormwood, cloves and celandine are used to treat helminthiasis. Each of these herbs deserves special attention, but in this article we have considered only the most effective means, and therefore we will focus on the "troika".
Trochatka is a method of treating helminthiasis with a combination of three herbs: wormwood (heads), wormwood and cloves (fruits). To start treatment with this method, you must grind all the herbs into powder and, using a pharmacy scale, strictly observe the dosage. The resulting powders are drunk three times a day half an hour before meals in the following dosage: tansy - 1 gram, clove - 0. 5 grams, wormwood - 0. 3 grams. Reviews show the highest effectiveness of the method.
Contraindicated for children, as well as for adults, if they suffer from peptic ulcer, gastritis or hypertension. The product should not be used by women during pregnancy and menstruation.
Traditional medicine has wide possibilities for the treatment of helminthiasis. But it is important to remember that even natural remedies can cause side effects or allergic reactions. That is why it is recommended to consult a doctor before using this or that folk remedy.