• Parasites, are organisms that live in or on a host organism, deriving nutrients from the host.
• Although there are a few different families of parasites we are going to be talking specifically about endoparasites. The most common endoparasites live inside the digestive track of its mammal host.
• How are parasites spread? Ingesting water or food containing parasite eggs. Some parasites can live in soil or on other surfaces and penetrate through the skin, Physical contact with an infected person or animal.

Parasites are a part of life, especially if you live on a homestead or even if you have only a few animals like a house cat or dog. To live in denial of the existence of parasites in our lives simply because we can’t see them is like denying that mosquitos exist (also a type of parasites).

I grew up on a farm where animals and humans alike routinely got treated for parasites and was shocked when I learned, after leaving the old order Mennonite culture and joining modern American culture, that not only do very few people treat their families for parasites (even though they treat their animals) but even fewer people want to talk about parasites or admit that they or their children might have parasites.

Think about it this way, your house pet has parasites, because no mammals are completely free of parasites, the pet licks you or your baby on the face and those parasite or eggs now have a new host to derive nutrients from.

Or, your pet licks his feet, then walks on the floor, your family and you now walk on the same floor barefoot, and those parasites have found a new host.

A child with parasite overload goes to the bathroom and doesn’t wash their hands, touches the doorknob. You innocently come along and touch that same doorknob and are now host to a new family of parasites.

On the Homestead there are even more opportunities for parasites and their eggs to be spread.
But before we spiral with fear and start sanitizing everything (not that sanitizers kill parasites) let’s take a moment to acknowledge how amazing the human body is! Praise God!!

While all mammals are host to parasites, this doesn’t mean that all mammals are sick with parasites.

When parasites enter a healthy body, they are often deactivated by an amazing immune system and a healthy gut microbiome before they ever become a problem. It is only when there is a parasite overload that a body will start showing symptoms. These symptoms show up because the parasites are consuming too many of the nutrients and the body is stressed from trying to expel the parasites.