Putting fingers into the mouth could lead to your child getting parasites.
Watch the video to learn more from Dr. Oz about how you can tell if your child has parasites.
Parasitic Infections
Parasitic infections begin when a person comes into contact with a disease-causing parasite like tapeworms, roundworms. You can contract these types of infections through contact with contaminated food, soil or water, often in tropical regions. Symptoms of parasitic infections can include digestive problems, irritability, chronic fatigue, acne, rashes, sleep problems, anemia, muscle cramps, allergies and headaches. While there is no vaccine, treatment for parasites can include medications or topical applications.
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Dr. Mehmet Oz, MD , Cardiology (Cardiovascular Disease), answered
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Dr. Kulreet K. Chaudhary, MD , Neurology, answeredLiving in the United States, we don’t often think about parasites, but you don’t have to leave the country in order to get them. Millions of Americans are unknowingly living with chronic parasitic infections. Parasites can be the cause of many common health problems. In addition to digestive problems, chronic parasitic infections can cause irritability, chronic fatigue, acne, rashes, sleep problems, anemia, muscle cramps, teeth grinding, post nasal drip, allergies, poor concentration, and headaches. -
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American Red Cross answeredYou are not eligible to donate blood if you have Chagas disease.
Guidelines on eligibility to give blood change from time to time. The most up-to-date eligibility information can be obtained by contacting the American Red Cross blood center nearest you. -
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Scripps Health answeredMosquito-borne illnesses, such as yellow fever, can be quite serious. Yellow fever immunization is required for travelers visiting certain parts of South America and Africa. -
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Reston Hospital Center answeredIn some cases, Demodex folliculorum can cause symptoms such as itchy eyelids or eyelashes that are marred together. However, for the most part the mites are harmless. People may experience irritation in the pores around their eyelashes, which can lead to infection.
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Reston Hospital Center answeredSee All 2 Answers
Parasitic infections are usually treated with drugs that kill the parasites and help eliminate them from the body. These drugs may be used alone or in combination with other medications. In some cases, surgery is also required to remove growths caused by the parasites.
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Reston Hospital Center answered
Parasitic infections are usually diagnosed through the symptoms most commonly associated with them. A person's exposure to areas or situations in which parasites thrive can aid that diagnosis. A sample of blood, feces, urine, skin, or phlegm can then be tested for signs of the presence of the parasite, its eggs, or the parasite itself to confirm the diagnosis.
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Dr. Mehmet Oz, MD , Cardiology (Cardiovascular Disease), answeredPinworms are not dangerous, but they do spread. What happens is the little eggs get in your mouth, they hatch, they become active worms in the colon, and then the mothers go out of your anus at night when you're sleeping. They secrete little eggs and a chemical that makes your bottom itch. So you itch your bottom, you get the eggs on your fingertips, you put it on the toys you're playing with or a dish, and then it gets converted to someone else.
If you think your child has pinworms, place a piece of tape over their anus at nighttime, and when the mother comes out and lays the eggs, you'll capture the eggs in the tape. Then take the tape to your doctor. It sounds spooky, but it's very effective. You catch the eggs, you make a diagnosis, and there's a simple treatment of oral pills without many side effects. It's not a big deal.
Parasites are incredibly common and not just found in children. Ninety percent of humans will have a problem with parasites in their lifetime. -
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American Red Cross answeredAbout 100,000 people in the United States are thought to be infected with Trypanosoma cruzi, the parasite that causes Chagas disease, mostly through immigration from high prevalence countries or maternal-fetal transmission. Although transfusion transmission is rare, isolated cases have been documented. During 2006, the first blood donor test for Chagas disease was approved by the FDA. The American Red Cross now tests each donor at least once for Chagas disease in order to ensure they don’t carry chronic infection.
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RealAge answeredSee All 2 AnswersThe "brain-eating amoeba" is a parasite called Naegleria fowleri. It typically is found in warm freshwater, such as lakes and rivers, most often in southern states. People can become infected when they get water containing the amoeba up their nose, usually while swimming. The amoeba then travels to the brain. You can't become infected from drinking water contaminated with Naegleria, and the infection isn't passed from person to person.
Infections are rare--around three cases per year in the U.S., on average--but are almost always fatal. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), only three people are known to have survived the infection since 1962. Experts aren't sure why some people become infected while millions of others who are exposed don't get sick.
Symptoms usually start suddenly five days after infection and include headache, fever and nausea, then progress to seizures, stiff neck, confusion and coma. People usually die within a week after symptoms appear. The CDC advises that anyone who shows these symptoms seek medical treatment right away. Bacterial meningitis, which is curable with prompt treatment, is much more common and causes similar symptoms.