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VOkxm 31 NunD* » 4 ?. KOI 
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walks barefoot on clamp soil, the 
young worms may enter through the 
skin Hookworms may damage 
body organs as they travel through 
the blood stream, or consume 
enough blood to cause anaemia. To 
prevent hookworm, use latrines and 
do not walk barefoot in dirty places. 
Treat the infection with medicines, 
and eat plenty of protein food. 
Trichina worms .ire parasites of 
meat-eating animals. The young 
worm forms a resting stage called a 
cyst. People or animals become 
infected if they eat meat with cysts, 
which are too small to see with the 
unaided eye. The young worms then 
hatch, burrow into the body and 
cause severe symptoms. Control is 
very simple — c<x>k pork thoroughlv 
(especially meat front wild pigs). 
The Guinea worm is one of the 
largest nematodes. Guinea worms 
have two hosts and a free-living 
stage First, a tiny copcpod in the 
water swallows the young worms. 
Then, people who drink the water 
swallow the small copepods 
infected with the worms. The 
worms live in the person's body 
cavity, grow, and mate. The female 
migrates to the person’s arm or 
foot, while the eggs develop into 
young inside her body. The female 
worm produces a blister on the 
host's skin, which bursts, leaving a 
hole When the person puts the f«x»t 
or arm in the water, the female 
worm hangs out and releases young 
worms into the water. Filtering 
water before drinking it can break 
the cycle. Guinea worm is rare in 
Fast Africa, and there is an active- 
control programme 
Filaria worms or filarids are 
parasites in the lymph system. 
Lymph is a fluid inside our bodies, 
anti contains certain cells that fight 
diseases. Filaria worms may be up 
to 10 cm long, but so thin that they 
are difficult to see. They are spread 
from one person to another by 
biting insects such as mosquitoes, 
whic h are the tittcmuxlhuc hosts. 'Hie 
young worms, called microfilaria, 
trav el from the lymph system to the 
blood system, where a mosquito 
sucks them with the blood. Inside 
the mosquito they go through a 
stage of their life cycle, then move 
to the insect's piercing mouth pa ns. 
When the insect bites another 
person, the microfilaria move to .1 
new host, and travel to the lymph 
system to grow and mate. Some 
species of filaria worms may 
lx:come so numerous in the lymph 
that they block the lymph passages. 
The lymph fluid then collects in 
one place, and the body tissues 
enlarge This is the disease called 
filariasis or elephantiasis A pan of 
the body, usually the legs, swells 
enormously. Filariasis is not 
common in Kenya, but occurs in 
some parts of the coast. The 
disease is controlled by controlling 
the insect hosts or using mosquito 
nets. 
