Get rid of tapeworm with home remedies – is that possible?

Anyone who has a tapeworm in their intestines usually wants to get rid of the unpleasant “blackhead” as quickly as possible. Are there home remedies that help?

If a tapeworm egg gets into the digestive tract via the mouth, a meter-long tapeworm can grow in the intestine and survive there for years. In Germany, however, this rarely happens these days. A possible source of infection in this country is above all raw or not fully cooked beef.

It often takes some time before tapeworms are noticed. Because the parasites usually cause no or no clear symptoms. If symptoms do occur, they are often of a more general nature and are similar to those of gastrointestinal diseases.

However, some people experience a feeling of something moving in their abdomen (a kind of “chumming”), especially around the navel when they have a tapeworm. Other possible symptoms include an itchy anus, gastrointestinal upset, unusual weight loss, tiredness, or headaches. In the case of an infestation with a beef tapeworm, a few (usually twelve) weeks after infection, whitish and mobile worm segments, often up to two centimeters long, also appear.

Tapeworm infection: which home remedies work?

If you search the Internet for herbal remedies against tapeworms in humans, you will quickly come across various home remedies that are said to help. Videos on this topic are also circulating on platforms such as TikTok.

There are even scientific studies on some tapeworm home remedies. In some cases, they provide the first indications that certain natural substances could possibly act as anthelmintics. For example, the following were examined:

Berberine, a plant alkaloid found in barberries, among other things,
papaya seeds,
pumpkin seeds or
Wormwood.

Even if the study results for such herbal home remedies are occasionally positive, no treatment recommendation can be derived from them so far. The previous studies have various shortcomings.

For example, some of the studies are too small in terms of the number of subjects, or the effect was not tested on humans but on mice. It is therefore questionable whether the results can also be transferred to humans. Other studies have tested the home remedies against various parasitic worms, but not against tapeworms.

Tapeworm Infection: Home Remedies or Dewormers?

Based on the current study situation, it does not seem advisable to treat a tapeworm infection with home remedies instead of medication. Because so far there are no clinical studies that prove the effect of such home remedies.

In addition, it is unclear how long those affected would have to use the home remedies against tapeworm, let alone in what quantity. And even supposedly gentle natural remedies can have side effects – so far, however, these have not yet been investigated.

In general, anyone who suspects that they have caught a tapeworm should not try to treat it on their own. Because the symptoms that occur with a worm infestation could also have many other causes. It is therefore advisable to have the symptoms clarified by a doctor before self-diagnosis and therapy. In this way, any complications can be avoided.

If there is evidence of a tapeworm infestation, it can usually be treated well with anthelmintics. The active ingredient niclosamide is usually used. It is often enough to take the tablets as a single dose to get rid of the tapeworm. Alternatively, there are active ingredients such as mebendazole or praziquantel – these are usually taken over a period of three to four days.