Creepy Crawlers... Inside of Me??
Sep 19, 2019Being the month of Halloween, I couldn’t help but write about the monsters that are living inside of us....a.k.a. Parasites. Yes, as much as our culture has pushed this topic under the rug, we all DO have parasites to some extent in our bodies. It’s gross, I know.
Many cultures and our ancestors would do semi-annual parasite cleanses to keep those critters at bay, but we have lost that practice and are paying the price. We can get them anywhere, but some of the most common places we are exposed are through foreign travel, our lovely pets (have you seen where they lick??), public toilets, food, the soil, swimming pools, rivers and lakes, mosquitoes and ticks....and the list goes on.
Parasites can live virtually anywhere in the body, where they rob us of our nutrients, cause damage to tissues and deposit their waste inside of us to cause further inflammation and distress. Symptoms are amazingly broad, but some typical ones are fatigue, lowered immunity, intestinal distress (diarrhea/constipation/gas/belching/bloating/gurgling/distention), allergies, skin rashes/itching, depression/anxiety, memory/focus issues, grinding teeth, lung conditions (asthma/cough), autoimmune issues, inability to lose/gain weight, anemia, insomnia, irritability and much more).
Some things you can do to help prevent parasites from damaging your health are doing semi-annual parasite cleanses, ensuring you have optimal stomach acid levels (stomach acid is our first line of defense), eating anti-parasitic foods (pumpkin seeds, garlic, onion, wasabi (especially if you eat sushi), cloves, pineapple, turmeric, papaya seeds and sunflower seeds), and keeping your gut microbiome healthy with probiotics from fermented foods and potent probiotics.
Parasite cleanses can be very effective (with shocking results). Usually, the first cleanse will take a few months, but, thereafter, they are short and sweet - just enough to keep things at bay. We have several options for addressing parasites, so ask your practitioner if she thinks a parasite cleanse could help you. We have a special this month to help you get on the right track for clearing parasites.