Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Noah's Ark - parasites

If all the animals were on the Ark, then the human endo- and ecto-parasites must have been there, presumably inside or on members of Noah's family (in Christian tradition, they were the only humans on board). Must not have been a very pleasant cruise... fleas, ticks, tapeworms, lots of different roundworms (including the nasty Guinea worm). They were ridden with multiple diseases, such as schistosoma, filariasus, toxocara, and malaria. A bunch of these parasites would have been causing diarrhea, vomiting, fever, blood loss, and lots of itching. I'm guessing both Noah and his wife had crabs and scabies. They were probably more than ready to get back on solid land and start their long healing process.

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