Home Remedies for Intestinal Worm Treatment

What are Intestinal Worms?

Intestinal worms are parasites, that thrive in the intestines of other organism. Parasites enter the human body in one of the four ways, i.e., through food and water, through transmitting agents, such as mosquitoes and sexual contact, and also through the nose and skin. Soil transmitted helminth (STH) infection is the most important intestinal worm infection causing morbidity and mortality, though it is entirely preventable. Even though there are thousands of parasites that infect humans, only four are very harmful (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
A study of prevalence of intestinal worm infestation and efficacy of anthelminthic drugs

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They are:

• Roundworm (spreads through food and water)
• Pinworm (spreads from person to person)
• Whipworm (spreads through food and water)
• Tapeworm (spreads by eating raw or undercooked meats)

Symptoms of Intestinal Worms

Worms can live within our intestines for years without causing any symptoms. But they start troubling us with some of the following symptoms:

• Stomach pain
• Diarrhea
• Dysentery
• Weight loss
• Tiredness
• Passing a worm in stool
• Abdominal cramps
• Loss of appetite
• Malabsorption
• Itching around the rectum (where you excrete solid waste)

Common Causes of Intestinal Worms

Some of the common causes for intestinal worms include (2^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Prevalence, risk factors, challenges, and the currently available diagnostic tools for the determination of helminths infections in human

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Intestinal parasitic infection among household contacts of primary cases, a comparative cross-sectional study

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• Eating contaminated food
• Drinking contaminated water
• Poor sanitation
• Using human excretion as fertilizer
• Poor personal hygiene
• Eating raw and uncooked meat
• Contact with infected feces
• Contaminated soil
• Skin absorption

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Disclaimer: The home remedies suggested here are not a substitute for treatment by doctors. It is highly advisable to seek an expert’s opinion. All the remedies listed here may not be suitable for everyone. It is recommended to check for allergies or do a patch test before using the remedy.

Home Remedies for Intestinal Worms

Here are some home remedies which may help in treating intestinal worms

Carrots for Treating Intestinal Parasites:

Carrots may help in treating intestinal worms as they are rich in fiber. Munch 2 carrots on an empty stomach every morning. Doing this daily will not only help you get rid of parasites but also prevent parasite attacks in the future.

Raw Papaya Juice:

Papaya and its seeds have anti-helminthic and anti-amoebic properties. According to a study, papaya seeds are efficacious in treating intestinal worms without any significant side effects (4^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Effectiveness of dried Carica papaya seeds against human intestinal parasitosis: a pilot study

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1 tablespoon of raw papaya juice mixed with 1 teaspoon of honey needs to be taken, first thing in the morning. This should be followed by a glass of warm milk, to which 1 teaspoon of castor oil needs to be added. This treatment should be done for 2 days.

Pomegranate Bark

A mixture of pomegranate bark and water should be given thrice a day to adults and children suffering from worm infestation. The bark of the pomegranate tree contains punicine, which is highly toxic to intestinal worms. The pomegranate tree’s bark and root contain a chemical called alkaloid which may help in treating intestinal worm infections (5^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Potent health effects of pomegranate

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Pumpkin Seeds

A mixture of ground pumpkin seeds and water can help expel tapeworms. A published research article stated that the combination of pumpkin seeds and areca nut (betel nut) is found to be safe and effective against tapeworm infections (6^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Usefulness of pumpkin seeds combined with areca nut extract in community-based treatment of human taeniasis in northwest Sichuan Province, China

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Garlic:

Garlic has strong anti-fungal and antiseptic properties. Eating 3 cloves of raw garlic per day can help get rid of all types of intestinal worms. A scientific study suggests that garlic acts both as a preventive and as a therapeutic agent for intestinal worm infections (7^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Efficacy of Allium sativum (garlic) against experimental cryptosporidiosis

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Coconut:

Coconut is another home remedy for treating intestinal worms. Take a tablespoon of ground coconut during breakfast followed by 30ml of castor oil. Castor oil needs to be taken after two and a half hours. In a recent study, findings suggest that coconut extract eliminated target parasites and thus was found to be effective in treating tape worms (8^✔ ✔Trusted Source
The effects of different plant extracts on intestinal cestodes and on trematodes

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Wormwood and Olive Oil:

Wormwood is a powerful herb that has been used since ancient times to treat intestinal worms. Drink a mixture of wormwood oil and olive oil to get rid of worms.

Bitter Gourd Juice and Buttermilk:

Have a mixture of a tablespoon of bitter gourd juice with a glass of buttermilk once a day for three days consecutive days. According to a study, bitter gourd helps in expelling worms (9^✔ ✔Trusted Source
An Update Review on the Anthelmintic Activity of Bitter Gourd, Momordica charantia

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