[yang (OP)]

Is it true that certain parasites residing in tropical waters can enter the human body, during a swim?
please sent the answer to my E-Mail[]

May you live in interesting times

[Andrew K Fletcher]

a very nasty one that swims up the male penis, has barbs so it cant be pulled out apparently, happy holliday. There is another much larger one called the saltwater crocodile which resides in many of these waters which is a little to large to swim up your penis.

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites/schistosomiasis/factsht_schistosomiasis.htm

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=tropical+waterborne+diseases&spell=1

Waterborne parasites

There are more than 70 recognized parasites that may infest/infect
humans who bathe in or consume fresh-/seawater and seafood animals.
These include, but are not limited to: nematodes(roundworms), cestodes(tapeworms), trematodes(flatworms, flukes), and smaller but no less harmful protozoan parasites such as Cryptosporidium, Entamoeba, and Giardia.

Needless to say, avoidance or prevention is always the best course of
action. Ingestion of some of these organisms can be painful and even
possibly a fatal experience. Some parasites, like swimmers itch, are more nuisance than potentially harmful. In North America most bathers will not encounter many of the nightmarish parasites common to the tropics; but visitors to these idyllic vacation destinations may discover these paradises come with real hazards. In any case, one should take care to ingest only water that has been purified in some acceptable manner and food items properly prepared and thoroughly cooked. Vigorously boiling questionable water for a full 3 minutes will kill virtually all these organisms. Filtering devices work well for larger protozoans; but harmful, non-filterable viruses and bacteria require supplemental chemical treatment.[:p]

        Specific illness, parasite, and pathogen information:
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites/listing.htm


"The explanation requiring the fewest assumptions is most likely to be correct."
K.I.S. "Keep it simple!"

[DoctorBeaver]

When I lived in Uganda there were areas of Lake Victoria that were a big no-no for swimming. This was due to the number of water snails in the reeds. The snails are incubators for a parasitic worm that causes bilharzia. The worms get into your body and produce thousands of eggs that clog the small veins in your liver & kidneys.

On TV a few months ago there was an excellent series about the Amazon, and in that they came across a small worm that enters the body through the penis. [xx(]

[DoctorBeaver]

Slight change of subject.
When I went to Lake Turkana in northern Kenya I was told about a tribe that is allegedly the smallest in the world - about 30 people. The official line is that there are so few because they run off and join the Samburu. However, when I was there I found out the real reason for their demise. The daft sods go into the reeds, which are almost head-high, armed with nothing more than a thin, wooden spear to hunt crocodiles.

[Ray hinton]

you can swim in pirana infested waters and come to no harm,pee in the water and a tiny barbed fish will swim up the pee(true) into mr wiggly and bloody ruin your day.

[ukmicky]

quote:The daft sods go into the reeds, which are almost head-high, armed with nothing more than a thin, wooden spear to hunt crocodiles

.

 Daft sods more like  Dumb f**kers []

Michael                 HAPPY NEW YEAR                    

[ukmicky]

The worst form of tropical parasitic infection has got to be Elephantiasis caused by filarial worms.

Michael                 HAPPY NEW YEAR                    

[neilep]

I think it's high time the swimming-species-fraternity got paid back for swimming up the entrance to our meat and two veg !!

We should all swim up a whales donger !![][]

Men are the same as women.... just inside out !!

[Ray hinton]

The worst form of parasitic infection is politicians caused by mis-informed voters.

every village has one !

[DoctorBeaver]

Yang - "May you live in interesting times" is not a nice thing to say. Although that is the literal translation from the Chinese, it has a rather sinister meaning. "Uninteresting times" are when everything is going smoothly; therefore "interesting times" are when things are not going well. Specifically, it refers to the era of Chinese warlords when murder & mayhem were rife.