Tapeworms in humans aren't an odd sight, unless of course they measure
in at 16ft. 45-year-old Chen from Guangxi, south China who loves to eat
raw beef and fish complained of stomach problems to doctors. Tests were
carried out by his city's Gastroenterology department which revealed the
tapeworm and even then, it took five days to extract.
Doctors
determined the parasite had come from contaminated raw food and studied
it to discover how it grew so long in its host. Tapeworms - or taenia
saginata as they are known scientifically - has eggs which hatch in
cattle and are carried through the body by the animal's circulatory
system. The egges hatch three months after human consumption and develop
into adults in the small intestine which according to scientists have a
life expectancy of 60years. To think someone could carry it around
almost all their life.
Doctors have advised that meat and fish fans should be wary when eating
unregulated and under cooked-produce - and that if raw beef is consumed,
it should be chilled well beforehand.
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