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Spotting the signs of tapeworm, pinworm, hookworm, and more
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This article was co-authored by Muhammad Khan, MD, MPH. Dr. Muhammad Khan is a Gastroenterologist, with over 10 years of experience. Dr. Khan specializes in Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, and has a special focus in Therapeutic Endoscopy. He received his Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctorate of Medicine degrees from The University of Utah. Dr. Khan completed his residency training at Eastern Virginia Medical School, where he was inducted into the prestigious Alpha Omega Alpha honor society. He then completed his fellowship training at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford University. He is a Fellow of both the American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition (NASPGHAN).
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You’re feeling a bit under the weather but aren’t totally sure why. Could worms be the culprit? Don’t panic—intestinal worms are pretty easy to detect on your own. We’ll help you recognize some of the most common symptoms of a worm infestation, as well as the typical warning signs for tapeworms, pinworms, hookworms, whipworms, and roundworms. Once you know which variety you’re dealing with, you’ll be one step closer to getting rid of these pesky parasites once and for all.
Easiest Way to Tell If You Have Worms
You may have worms if you experience unexplained diarrhea or constipation, extreme hunger, or unusual fatigue. If you have a tapeworm infection, you’ll be able to see the worms in your stool.
Steps
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Keep track of any unexplained weight loss. When you have worms in your body, you get less nutrients than you are used to because the worm is consuming these nutrients. You may therefore begin to lose weight because while you are eating like normal, your body is not absorbing the calories and nutrients that it should because the worm is taking them from you.[1]
- If you start to lose weight without trying to, keep track of the weight you lose. If you continue to shed pounds, talk to your doctor.[2]
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Monitor any unexplained constipation. If you have constipation that doesn’t seem to be caused by anything, you may have worms. Worms can cause irritation in your gut that interferes with your digestion. This can cause less water to be absorbed into your body, making you constipated.
- For example, if you have eaten foods high in fiber, drank a lot of water, or done other things that normally help you to go to the bathroom, and you still can’t go, you may have a worm.
- Diarrhea is another common symptom of worms.[3]
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Pay attention to gaseous discomfort you feel after traveling to a new place. If you have recently traveled to a new place that is known to have worm problems, and you suddenly develop serious gaseous discomfort, you may have picked up a worm. This gaseous discomfort can be accompanied by abdominal pain.[5]
- If you were traveling through a foreign country and were dealing with diarrhea, but took an anti-diarrhea pill, you should monitor your gaseous discomfort. Continuing to have discomfort after taking an anti-diarrhea pill can sometimes mean that you have picked up a worm.
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Be aware that worms can make you feel like you are never full or like you are never hungry. Having worms can make you feel extreme hunger just after eating, or extreme fullness when you haven’t eaten anything.[5]
- This is because the worms feed on the food that you have eaten, leaving you hungry, but can also cause you to feel nauseous or gaseous, which can make you feel full.
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Keep track of exhaustion or fatigue that won’t go away. When you have a worm, the worm takes all of the nutrients out of the food you have eaten, leaving you feeling hungry. At the same time, this lack of nutrients can make your energy levels decrease, leaving you easily exhausted.[7] This may cause you to:[7]
- Feel tired all the time.
- Feel exhausted after exerting a slight amount of energy.
- Wanting to sleep rather than do anything else.
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Be aware that some people will have no symptoms. Having a worm in your system can affect you differently than others experiencing the same problem. Keep in mind that it is a good idea to visit the doctor after you travel to a foreign country that is known to have a worm problem. It is generally better to be safe than sorry, especially when it comes to having a worm in your body.[8]
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Check your stool for tapeworms. If you have a tapeworm infection, you may see the worms in the bathroom after a bowel action or on the inner part of your underwear. If you find tapeworms in either of these areas, contact a doctor right away.[9] Tapeworms look like:
- Small pieces of thread.
- Whitish color.
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Look to see if your eyes and skin have become pale. If you are concerned that you have tapeworms, look at your eyes and skin in the mirror. Tapeworms can cause you to have an iron deficiency because they feed on your blood, which in turn lowers your blood levels. When your blood levels get reduced, you make notice that your skin and coloring of your eyes has become paler.[10]
- Because tapeworms can lower your blood levels, you can also become anemic. Signs of anemia include an unusually rapid heartbeat, fatigue, shortness of breath, dizziness, and challenges with concentration.[11]
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Keep track of abdominal pain that is accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Tapeworms can obstruct the openings and tubes in your intestines, and in the intestinal wall. When your intestines become blocked, you can begin to feel abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting.[12]
- The abdominal pain is normally felt just above the stomach.
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Keep track of diarrhea. Tapeworms can make invade and inflame the lining of your small intestine, which in turn stimulates the intestine’s lining to secrete fluid. When excess fluid is secreted, your body has a harder time absorbing the extra fluid, which can lead to you having diarrhea.[13]
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Keep track of any dizziness you experience. This condition is very rare and generally only occurs in people who have been infected by fish tapeworms. Fish tapeworms consume so much vitamin B12 from your body that they can induce a condition known as megaloblastic anemia.[14] The resulting low red blood cell count can cause:
- Dizziness.
- Memory loss.
- Dementia.
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Keep track of any skin irritation and itchiness you experience. Pinworms, which are also known as threadworms, can cause your skin to become irritated.[15] This is because pinworms leak toxins into your blood. When these toxins accumulate in your skin, they can cause itchiness that may resemble eczema.[19]
- Itchiness might be worse in the evening. This is because the worms tend to lay eggs at night.
- Itchiness could be worse around the anus because this is generally where pinworms lay their eggs.
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Monitor any trouble sleeping or mood swings you are experiencing. You may find that you have trouble falling asleep or that you are waking up in the night more often than is normal for you. This can be a sign that you have pinworms, as the eggs they lay can release toxins that can get into your bloodstream. When this happens, the toxin can be carried to your brain and may interfere with your normal brain functions.[17]
- This can also lead to you experiencing mood swings where you suddenly feel anxious, when you were feeling happy the moment before.
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Watch out for aches and pain in your muscles and joints. Like itchiness and trouble sleeping, the toxin released by pinworm eggs can also affect your muscles and joints. This is because the toxin from the eggs can be transported to your muscles and joints, which can cause:
- Inflammation of the muscles and joints.
- Dull or aching pain.
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Take note if you have started grinding your teeth when you sleep. If you have suddenly started grinding your teeth at night when you never have before, this could be a sign that you have a pinworm infection. The toxins that pinworms release can cause you to have simulated anxiety that may cause you to grind your teeth in the night.[18] Signs that you have been grinding your teeth include:[19]
- Your teeth becoming flatter or more worn down.
- Your teeth being more sensitive than normal.
- Jaw pain.
- Feeling like your jaw is tired.
- Ear or headache.
- Chewing marks on your tongue and the inside of your cheeks.
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Seek medical attention if you are concerned you had or are having a seizure. In severe cases, pinworm toxin can actually lead to seizures. The toxin can cause an interference in the brain that can cause you to have a seizure.[20] Signs of a seizure include:[21]
- Jerking movements of arms, legs, or other parts of the body.
- Feeling fuzzy or spacey.
- Losing control of your urine or bowel movements.
- Unexplained confusion, or memory loss.
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Keep track of when your skin suddenly becomes itchy and you notice a rash. If you have a hookworm infection, the first symptom you will notice is generally that your skin is itchier than normal. The itching begins with the hookworm larvae enter your skin. You may also notice the skin swelling and becoming red in the area where the itching sensation is the worst. This is also caused by the larvae entering your skin.[22]
- People commonly feel hookworm itch in their hands and feet.
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Keep track of nausea and diarrhea you experience. When the hookworm enters your intestines, it can aggravate your intestines, leading to nausea and diarrhea. The hookworm can also release toxins that disrupt your digestive system. The nausea may occur with or without vomiting.[23]
- Look for blood in your stool. The blood could be red or black.
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Keep track of cramps you experience. Hookworms can cause your colon to become inflamed. They can also irritate the lining of your intestine, which is comprised of the colon, cecum and rectum. When this occurs you might experience cramps in your abdomen.[24]
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Take note if you suddenly develop an iron deficiency. This symptom only occurs in severe hookworm infections. Hookworms feed directly on their hosts blood, which can lead to their host becoming iron deficient.[25] Signs that you are iron deficient include:[26]
- Extreme fatigue and overall weakness.
- Pale skin and eyes.
- Chest pain and headache.
- Shortness of breath.
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Take note if you constantly feel like you need to pass stools. This condition is called tenesmus. Your body’s immune system fights off an invading organism like worms, it can cause your digestive tract to become inflamed The inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract makes it harder for you to pass your stool normally, which can lead to tenesmus, or the feeling that you need to pass stools, even when your bowels are empty.[27] This can cause:
- Straining.
- Pain in the rectum.
- Cramping.
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Watch out for signs that the whipworms have blocked your intestines. Whipworms can obstruct or do damage to your intestinal wall and intestinal lumens (the passages through your intestines). When your intestines get blocked, you can develop:[28]
- Abdominal cramping.
- Nausea.
- Vomiting.
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Keep track of excessive diarrhea and dehydration. Whipworms tend to bury their heads into the intestinal wall. This can lead to increase fluid secretion and/or decreased fluid absorption in your colon. When your colon starts increasing fluid secretion, your body has a hard time reabsorbed the fluid, which can lead to:[29]
- Diarrhea.
- Dehydration or the feeling that you are always thirsty.
- Loss of electrolytes and nutrients.
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Seek medical help if you experience rectal prolapse. In a whipworm infection, the rectum loses its internal support because the worms bury their thin heads into the intestinal lining. This can cause the muscles surrounding your intestine to weaken, which in turn can lead to rectal prolapse.[30] This condition is when:
- The lower portion of your colon, which is located just inside the anal canal, turns inside out and can come a little ways out of your body.[31]
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Keep track of severe abdominal pain you experience. Roundworms can block your intestines because they are usually thick, and in some cases can grow to be the size of a pencil. When your intestines become blocked, you can develop extreme abdominal pain.[32] You may feel:
- A pain in your stomach, like that of a cramp that won’t seem to go away.
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Pay attention if you begin experiencing itchiness around your anus. Roundworms can lay eggs that leak toxins into your body. These toxins can release into your system and may cause your anus to become itchy.[33]
- This itchiness can get worse at night because the worms tend to lay their eggs at night while you are resting.
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Seek medical help if you see worms when you blow your nose or go to the bathroom. When roundworms multiply, they may start to leave your body to find a different host. This means they start to exit your body through different orifices. The most common ways for roundworm to exit is through the:[34]
- Mouth.
- Nose.
- Anus.
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Tips
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People with light whipworm infections generally do not show symptoms.[35]Thanks
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Warnings
- If you think you may have a worm, visit your doctor right away so that you can begin treatment.Thanks
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References
- ↑ Ridley, J. W. (2012). Parasitology for medical and clinical laboratory professionals. Clifton Park, N.Y: Delmar.
- ↑ https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/worms-in-humans/
- ↑ https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/worms-in-humans/
- ↑ Despommier, D. D. (2013). People, parasites, and plowshares: Learning from our body's most terrifying invaders.
- ↑ https://www.drugs.com/slideshow/always-hungry-1163#slide-6
- ↑ Ridley, J. W. (2012). Parasitology for medical and clinical laboratory professionals. Clifton Park, N.Y: Delmar.
- ↑ https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/worms-in-humans#symptoms
- ↑ https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/worms-in-humans#symptoms
- ↑ https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/786292-clinical
- ↑ https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/taeniasis/gen_info/faqs.html
- ↑ https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/3929-anemia
- ↑ https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/taeniasis/gen_info/faqs.html
- ↑ https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/taeniasis-cysticercosis
- ↑ http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001375.htm
- ↑ https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/pinworm/fact_sheet.htm
- ↑ Selendy, J. M. H. (2011). Water and sanitation-related diseases and the environment: Challenges, interventions, and preventive measures. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley-Blackwell.
- ↑ https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21137-pinworms
- ↑ https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/pinworm/disease.html
- ↑ https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/teeth-grinding/
- ↑ https://www.msdmanuals.com/en-nz/professional/infectious-diseases/nematodes-roundworms/pinworm-infestation
- ↑ https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/epilepsy/symptoms/
- ↑ http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/hookworm/gen_info/faqs.html
- ↑ https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/hookworm/gen_info/faqs.html
- ↑ https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/14072-hookworm-disease
- ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK546648/
- ↑ https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/22824-iron-deficiency-anemia
- ↑ http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003131.htm
- ↑ https://www.msdmanuals.com/home/infections/parasitic-infections-nematodes-roundworms/trichinosis
- ↑ https://www.msdmanuals.com/home/infections/parasitic-infections-nematodes-roundworms/trichinosis
- ↑ https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/whipworm/gen_info/faqs.html
- ↑ https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/14615-rectal-prolapse
- ↑ http://www.patient.info/health/roundworms-leaflet
- ↑ https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/15240-roundworms
- ↑ https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?ContentTypeID=160&ContentID=54
- ↑ https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/whipworm/index.html
About This Article
Board Certified Gastroenterologist
This article was co-authored by Muhammad Khan, MD, MPH. Dr. Muhammad Khan is a Gastroenterologist, with over 10 years of experience. Dr. Khan specializes in Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, and has a special focus in Therapeutic Endoscopy. He received his Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctorate of Medicine degrees from The University of Utah. Dr. Khan completed his residency training at Eastern Virginia Medical School, where he was inducted into the prestigious Alpha Omega Alpha honor society. He then completed his fellowship training at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford University. He is a Fellow of both the American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition (NASPGHAN). This article has been viewed 1,025,311 times.
Co-authors: 16
Updated: March 12, 2024
Views: 1,025,311
Categories: Worm Parasites in Humans
Medical Disclaimer
The content of this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, examination, diagnosis, or treatment. You should always contact your doctor or other qualified healthcare professional before starting, changing, or stopping any kind of health treatment.
Article SummaryX
One way to know if you have worms is by recognizing any unexplained weight loss. Even if you eat normally, you’ll be getting less calories and nutrients because the worm is taking them for itself. In addition to weight loss, keep track of any sudden constipation, since worms can cause irritation in the gut, which will cause less water to be absorbed into your body. For example, if you eat a lot of high-fiber foods and drink a lot of water, yet still can’t go to the bathroom, you might have a worm. You should also take note if you feel particularly gassy after traveling to a new place, especially any area that is known to have worm problems. If you notice any of these symptoms, see a doctor for an official diagnosis and treatment plan. For more help, including how to know if you have tapeworms, read on.
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