“I vomited this animal”, writes this reader in her submission regarding the gray organism pictured below. She wrote to us in German, so the following is a rough translation: “Got little worms in me. They lay black eggs through the skin, these will fly. White coating comes out of my tongue and gums, and black eggs come out of it. If I touch meat with my hands, these things develop like in the mouth. Please answer quickly, nobody takes me seriously.” Right off the bat, we will unfortunately have to say that we will not be able to identify these “worms”, because this situation is clearly medical in nature.

“What do fluke eggs look like?” is all this reader asks in his submission. No photos are attached, but that would make sense, given that the answer to our reader’s question is that fluke eggs are microscopic.

“Is this a fluke?” asks this reader in Morriston, Florida, referring to the translucent, yellow-green organism pictured below. She states that the organism was “difficult to get off my finger and when I did he left a stain.”

“I’m guessing it’s fat” states this reader about the matter in the photo below which “rolled out on the knife” after cutting some ham. Despite this guess, our reader is unsure if it could be something else, and asks if we can confirm this as he has “a lot more meat from the same animal.”

“PLEASE HELP ME” begins this reader in her submission, in which she details a “form of infestation” she has been dealing with for three months. Our reader has been to see multiple medical professionals with no luck in treating what she suspects to be the real problem, and she asks for our help in identifying what that problem may be.

A man with a parasitic infection of giardia (a microscopic parasite that can cause diarrhea, cramps and nausea) has contacted us recently about finding some kind of organism all over his home, primarily in his meats. He wonders if we can tell him what they are.

“Liver and lung and skin flukes” have been plaguing this grandmother and her five-year old grandson. As both of the victims of this parasite are fighting this infection, the grandmother reports that her lungs are “not looking good” and that her grandson’s gall bladder is in need of surgery.

Blood flukes, which make up the genus Schistosoma, are a type of parasitic flatworm that cause schistosomiasis, an infection that afflicts tens of millions of people a year. Schistosomiasis is in fact the second most socioeconomically harmful parasitic disease in the world, according to the World Health Organization. (Only malaria is more harmful.) Below we provide a brief guide and overview of blood flukes that includes the most essential information about this parasitic disease. We will also provide links to some of the best sources for information about blood flukes online.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), one person in every four harbors parasitic worms.

Fortunately, flukes can be killed before they become a threat to potential hosts. All you have to do is thoroughly cook meats and vegetables taken from potentially harmful waters.