
One of our readers reached out to us because she fears there might be bloodworms living inside of her. She explained that she discovered bloodworms in her toilet water tank, but cleaned it and no longer sees them after flushing. However, after she uses the toilet she uses a water douche that is attached to the wall to clean herself, and after doing so she sees bloodworms in the toilet again. She asked, “Is there any chance that these worms moved from the toilet to inside of me, and if so, can they live inside me and reproduce?”
As far as we know, bloodworms are harmless if swallowed, and cannot live or reproduce inside a human body. However, we are not medical professionals and therefore don’t have the training or expertise to assure our reader that there are definitely not bloodworms living inside her body. We are fairly certain that these bloodworms are coming from her toilet water and water douche and not her body, but if she is truly worried about her health, we encourage her to visit a doctor ASAP!
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Bloodworms (a.k.a. midge fly larvae) are small larvae nicknamed for their bright red color, which is the result of hemoglobin (a red protein) in their bodies. These larvae thrive in polluted water with low oxygen levels. While our reader said that she cleaned her toilet water tank, if the larvae are appearing after she used the water douche, then they might be coming from somewhere else in her plumbing system. Before she calls a plumber or takes apart her pipes, we recommend she clean her toilet bowl and water tank again. She should use the cleaning agent of her choice (as long as it is designed to eliminate organic material) and a long pipe-cleaning brush. She should scrub out the toilet and tank, and pour hot water down the toilet to rinse. If she continues to find bloodworms in her toilet, they might be coming from somewhere deep within her plumbing system, which means she will need to contact a professional to find and eliminate them. She should also be sure to clean the water douche pipeline, in case it is the source of the bloodworms.
In conclusion, today we responded to a reader who was worried that the bloodworms she found in her toilet came from her own body. We are confident that these larvae are coming from her plumbing system, not her body. However, we can’t provide medical advice and we encourage our reader to see a doctor if she is concerned about her health or safety!
All About Worms is always free, always reader-supported, we don't subject you to ads or annoying video pop-ups. But it does cost us money out of our pocket to keep the site going (nearly 20 years so far!) So your tips via CashApp, Venmo, or Paypal are appreciated! Receipts will come from ISIPP Publishing.
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I had the same thing happened to me. I first noticed a tablespoon sized clump of tiny red worms after I took a shower at a place I was visiting out of state, I washed it down the drain. Several days later when I was home, I douched and when I looked in the toilet I noticed more red worms. It freaked me out! I do feed my fish blood worms and it looked exactly like one of the frozen clunks but fresh. The worms looked dead. I bought over the counter from Amazon worm killer pills and haven’t noticed anything since. If it was red worms living inside of me I either got them in Venezuela 35 years ago or from feeding my fish blood worms and sucking the tube to get it started to clean the tank, I possibly couldn’t swallowed one and it reproduced inside of me? Anyways I’m from/live in Central CA.
Yes even I observed the blood worm whether they stay in our stomach or comeing from the water pipes ? I am afraid please let me know the solution of it
Can the blood worm move fastly and swiftly on wet surfaces? As I have seen a red coloured long worm moving rapidly …