DoH dispels confusion over deworming side effects

THE Department of Health (DoH) dismissed on Friday misconceptions about the supposed serious side effects of deworming and encouraged parents to deworm their children, saying that the medicines it uses have been proven effective.

In Kapihan with the Media in celebration of National Deworming Month, the DoH raised awareness on deworming, highlighting the soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH) cause, symptoms and prevention.

«If you don't eat before taking the medicine, you will get a headache, feel dizzy, vomit or have diarrhea,» Rhomina Jhona Suan, senior health program officer of DoH's Disease Prevention and Control Bureau, said in Filipino, as she encouraged health care workers to assess the patients carefully before giving medicine.

Suan and medical technologist Dianne Aurora Delizo of the Food and Water-borne Disease and Integrated Helminth Control programs of the Center for Health Development-Cordillera Administrative Region led the discussion.

Suan assured the attendees that albendazole and mebendazole, the medicines they use, have long been proven effective.

«We believe that a healthy tummy leads to better brain development and a healthier body, especially for our children. Alongside good nutrition is being free from parasitic infection,» Delizo said.

According to the World Health Organization, STH infections are prevalent across the globe, primarily impacting the poorest and most underserved communities.

Dirty surroundings, handling dirty objects, lack of proper toilets, drinking dirty water, not washing hands, and vegetables and fruits that are not adequately washed are the causes of STH, the DoH said.

According to the DoH, redness of the buttocks, vomiting, presence of blood in stool, weakness of the body, weight loss and stomach pain are common symptoms of STH.

To prevent parasitic infection, focus on water, sanitation and hygiene: using proper toilets; following the «Oplan Goodbye Bulate» campaign every January and July; washing hands frequently; wearing footwear such as slippers or shoes regularly; drinking clean and safe water; eating well-washed or properly cooked fruits and vegetables and washing them with safe and clean water; trimming