What Are Parasite Cleanses?
A parasite cleanse is a diet, herbal supplement, or other product that claims to get rid of parasites in your body. People who promote these cleanses claim that parasites are the cause of digestive symptoms like diarrhea, gas, and bloating. They say a cleanse can get rid of parasitic infections and their symptoms.
While some of the ingredients in these cleanses may work against parasites, there's no way to know if you have an infection without seeing a doctor, and there's no evidence that these cleanses treat parasitic infections. It's safer to see a doctor for a diagnosis and treatment if you think you have a parasitic infection.
What are parasites?
A parasite is an organism that lives on or inside your body and gets its nutrition from you. Parasites live in and feed on human blood, tissues, and intestines. As they multiply and lay eggs, they can harm your health.
Parasites pick up infections like malaria, toxoplasmosis, and trichomoniasis while feeding on animals or other humans. They can spread those infections to you. As the parasite feeds and grows, it causes damage and symptoms like diarrhea, vomiting, belly pain, and weight loss.
Parasite cleanse vs. parasite treatment
Parasite cleanses use herbal supplements to "detox" or rid the body of parasites. Usually, cleanses recommend that you also eat a healthy diet of natural, whole foods and cut out processed and greasy foods.
Parasite treatment uses medicines to kill parasites or their eggs, stop parasites from growing, or paralyze them so they can't latch on to your body.
What ingredients are in a parasite cleanse?
If you're wondering how to do a parasite cleanse, it really depends. Each cleanse is different. They usually involve taking herbal supplements, eating herbs and spices like apple cider vinegar and turmeric that reduce inflammation in the body, and making changes to your diet.
The herbal supplements in parasite cleanses contain ingredients like:
- Anise
- Grapeseed
- Clove
- Goldenseal
- Wormwood
Are Parasite Cleanses Safe?
While eating a healthy diet is safe and good for you in general, no diet or cleanse has been proven to treat parasitic infections. As for the supplements, it's hard to know whether the ingredients you're putting into your body are safe.
"There is no universal definition of what comprises a parasite cleanse, and none have undergone adequate testing to obtain approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)," says Sarah E. Hochman, MD, a hospital epidemiologist and section chief of infectious diseases at NYU Langone Health Tisch Hospital in New York City.
Some parasite cleanses might not cause harm, but there's also no evidence to show they'll help. Plus, you can't know if you have a parasite infection without seeing a doctor for tests. Many other conditions also cause symptoms like diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and weight loss.
Parasite Cleanse Side Effects
Some parasite cleanses contain harmful ingredients that cause side effects like these:
- Diarrhea
- Vitamin and nutrient deficiencies
- Malnutrition
- Kidney and liver problems
- Dehydration
How Do You Get a Parasite Infection?
Parasitic infections are real, and some cause serious health problems. An estimated 3.5 billion people worldwide get these infections, and more than 200,000 die from them each year. The most common parasitic infection is ascariasis, spread by the ascaris intestinal worm.
You're most likely to encounter parasites in tropical and subtropical developing countries. They thrive in warm and humid climates like sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Latin America. You could catch a parasitic infection if you're exposed to contaminated food or water, or you travel to one of the countries where these infections spread. But there's no evidence that a natural parasite cleanse will do anything to treat the infection, and it might cause you harm.
You can get a parasite infection if you:
- Eat food that contains parasites
- Drink or swim in water that is contaminated with parasites
- Walk barefoot on contaminated dirt
- Come in contact with blood or poop that contains parasites
- Have sex, especially anal sex, with someone who has a parasitic infection
- Don't wash your hands before you eat, or don't bathe often
- Are bitten by a bug that has parasites
- Have a weak immune system
Types of parasites
Certain parasites are more harmful to humans than others. "Some, such as malaria, can be deadly without prompt diagnosis and treatment," Hochman says. "Others, such as parasites that reside in our digestive system, can cause digestive problems, anemia, diarrhea, bloating, or unintentional weight loss. And some parasites, such as head lice or pinworms, are a nuisance but not life-threatening."
There are three main types of parasites: ectoparasites, helminths, and protozoans.
Ectoparasites like these live on the outside of your body and feed on your blood:
- Fleas
- Ticks
- Head lice and pubic lice (crabs)
- Mites
Helminths are parasitic worms that live in your gastrointestinal (GI) tract – your stomach, small intestine, and large intestine. They lay eggs that exit your body in your poop. If other people come in contact with those eggs, they can get infected too.
Examples of helminths are:
- Flukes
- Roundworms
- Tapeworms
- Flatworms
- Pinworms
- Whipworms
- Hookworms
Protozoans are made up of a single cell. They're so tiny that you can only see them under a microscope. Protozoans live in your blood, tissues, or intestines.
These are some examples of protozoans and the infections they cause:
- Flagellates like Giardia intestinalis (giardiasis)
- Sporozoans like cryptosporidium (cryptosporidiosis) and plasmodium (malaria)
- Amoeba like Entamoeba histolytica (amebiasis)
- Ciliates like Balantidium coli (dysentery)
What to Do if You Think You Have a Parasite
First, you need to see a doctor to confirm that you have a parasitic infection. Don't try to diagnose yourself.
"If you're concerned that you have a parasitic infection, please see a doctor," Hochman says. They can test you to diagnose or rule out an infection. Many other diseases cause similar symptoms, and some parasitic infections don't cause any problems at all. Symptoms depend on the type of parasite and which part of your body it affects.
Intestinal parasites cause symptoms like these:
- Belly pain
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Gas
- Bloating
- Loose, bloody poop that contains mucus
- Rash or itching around the anus or vulva
- Tiredness
- Unexplained weight loss
- Worms that look like small grains of rice in your poop
Other possible symptoms of a parasite infection include:
- Muscle aches
- Fever
- Swollen glands
- Rash
- Itchy skin
- Severe headache
- Seizures
- Confusion
Doctors who treat parasitic infections include:
- Gastroenterologists treat diseases of the GI tract.
- Infectious disease specialists treat infections caused by bacteria, viruses, and parasites.
- Dermatologists treat skin diseases.
- Internal medicine specialists treat many different diseases.
- Travel medicine specialists treat illnesses that you pick up when traveling.
Some of the tests doctors use to diagnose parasite infections include:
Fecal exam. This test checks a sample of your poop for parasite eggs. Your doctor may ask you to collect three poop samples on different days. The samples will go to a lab, which will check them for parasites or their eggs.
Blood tests. Some blood tests check for proteins called antibodies that your immune system makes to fight off parasites. Others detect parasites in your blood. A low number of red blood cells (anemia) or too many white blood cells can also be signs of a parasitic infection.
Tape test. This test can help find pinworms. You place tape on your anus, and the parasite's eggs stick to the tape. Your doctor can see them by looking at the tape under a microscope.
Endoscopy and colonoscopy. These tests use a scope with a camera and light on the end to let your doctor see inside your GI tract. In an endoscopy, the scope goes through your mouth to your esophagus, stomach, and the top part of your small intestine. During a colonoscopy, the scope goes into your rectum to view the lower part of your intestines. These tests can show parasite eggs or the damage parasites cause.
Other tests look for parasites in a sample of your skin, mucus, or the fluid around your brain and spinal cord. Your doctor might also look for worms in your intestines or check for damage the parasites caused with imaging tests like an X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), or computed tomography (CT).
Treatments for parasite infections
Some parasitic infections clear up on their own. But most people will need medications, not a cleanse, to stop parasites from growing or multiplying, or treat a parasitic infection.
Each type of parasite – protozoa, helminths, and ectoparasites – has specific medicines that treat them and the infections they cause. These include:
- Medicines like metronidazole and tinidazole treat infections caused by protozoa.
- Vermicides kill parasitic worms.
- Vermifuges remove worms from the body.
- Permethrin and pyrethrins treat the ectoparasites head lice and pubic lice.
Some infections clear up with one dose of the medicine. Others need to be taken every day for a few days or weeks. Your doctor will tell you how often and for how long you need to take the medicine.
Sometimes doctors prescribe other medicines, like antibiotics or ointments, to treat parasitic infections. There are also medicines for symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting. Vitamins correct nutrient deficiencies parasites cause, and probiotics improve the balance of bacteria in your gut.
Your doctor will prescribe the medicine that is most likely to cure the type of parasitic infection you have.
Takeaways
Parasite cleanses claim that a combination of supplements and diet can rid your body of parasites. Yet there is no evidence that any of these cleanses work, and some might cause dangerous side effects. If you think you have a parasite, see a doctor for tests and proper medical treatment.
Parasite Cleanse FAQs
How do I deworm myself naturally?
No natural remedy has been scientifically proven to get rid of worms or other parasites. But some foods and supplements help to strengthen your immune system so it can remove parasites more quickly, including:
- Carrots
- Beets
- Raw garlic
- Pumpkin seeds
- Pure honey
- Fiber
- Vitamin C
- Zinc
- Probiotics
Can apple cider vinegar help with parasites?
Apple cider vinegar is an ingredient in some natural parasite cleanses. It does have some health benefits as a probiotic and antioxidant. But there's no evidence that apple cider vinegar helps with parasites.
Does lemon water kill parasites?
Lemon water is good for you. It improves digestion, provides your body with antioxidants, and prevents dehydration. In one study of mice, a concentrated lemon drink slowed the growth of parasites that cause malaria. But the authors stressed that lemons don't cure malaria. Plus there's no evidence lemon water works for humans with parasitic infections.
Do probiotics kill parasites?
Probiotics are live bacteria and other organisms with health benefits. They improve the balance of helpful and harmful germs in your gut. Probiotics might help fight off helminths and other parasites, but more research is needed to confirm whether they work.
