Keep Your Septic System Serviced to Avoid this Gross Parasite
In rural East Texas, having a septic system to dispose of your household waste is sometimes unavoidable. That also means that additional steps need to be taken to keep that tank from over flowing. If it does over flow, it creates all kinds of havoc on your yard. An over flow of your septic tank can also create a pretty gross invader to yourself or your family, the parasite known as Strongyloides.
Yeah, Strongyloides (pronounced stron-ji-LOY-dees) is a pretty gross parasite. This invader can live inside of us, or even wild animals, and leaves our body when we, or the animals, go number two. If there is a sewage leak, or the excrement is not picked up, the larvae that is excreted from our, or the animal's, body can contaminate the soil and thrive for up to three weeks.
Here's the really gross part, if you are walking bare foot in the grass, those larvae can borrow through the skin of your feet and enter your bloodstream. From there, they go to your lungs, go up the wind pipe to be coughed up and could be swallowed back into the body if the gunk isn't spit out.
Yeah, this thing is some nasty stuff.
This parasite has even caused a problem for an entire community. That community is Rancho Vista, located around the San Marcos area. This community has some serious sanitary issues manly because it is an unincorporated area. There are not as many regulations that need to be followed, there is no garbage collection and each home uses a septic system. Over time, this septic system can backup and contaminate the ground.
For the most part, as gross as this parasite is, it is mostly harmless to humans. The problem lies in if a host takes a drug that lowers the immune system, such as steroid, or has a weekend immune system, the parasite can multiply and can eventually cause death.
Bottom line, if you have a septic system, keep it serviced so it doesn't over flow and contaminate the area around you. It could turn into a deadly situation.