People all over the world have started swallowing worms , and not because anybody dared them to do it . Now , agree toDiscovermagazine , Germany may become one of the first countries tolegalizethis controversial discourse .
It ’s calledhelminthic therapy : an intentional parasite infection that ( theoretically ) suppress an overactive resistant system .
For reason scientist do n’t full understand , autoimmune and instigative status like asthma , lupus , andinflammatory intestine diseaseare on the rise . Yet despite their preponderance , treatment option for some of these condition are svelte . After year of unwellness , many people touch a dot where they ’re willing to seek anything ; one study estimates that more than 7000 people have purchased parasites online to seek at nursing home .
trial run of the treatment have had interracial results . Some studies found that helminthic therapy may help oneself people withCrohn ’s disease , coeliac disease , andmultiple sclerosis . Its efficaciousness in other conditions , like allergy , is less clear .
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has classified anthelmintic therapy as an Investigational New Drug ( IND ) . This imply it can only de jure be used by researchers in clinical trials . But just across the molding in Mexico , there are provider and clinics specializing in the parasite intervention . Thailand has legalized helminthic therapy , too . Elsewhere , would - be consumers are out of chance .
That may soon alter , as Germany ’s Federal Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety is currently weigh allowing the employment of a parasite calledTrichuris suis . If the certification is approved [ PDF ] , a liquid arrest the worm ’s eggs will be certify as a food fixings . This peculiar species ordinarily infect pigs , and is shortly - survive in human race , a fact that proponents say should slim or eliminate the risk of side effects .
Even if the government says helminthic therapy is safe , experts recommend using it like any other drug — that is , with aesculapian oversight .
“ Self - medicinal drug with any type of worm is not recommended , ” Helena Helmby of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical MedicinetoldNew Scientist , “ and it is crucial to remember they ’re not in any direction completely harmless , and may cause quite severe side upshot if not monitor very cautiously by a doctor . ”
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