Parasites are organisms that live on or inside another living thing, and they place a great strain on the immune system – in a parasitic relationship, one organism benefits, one is harmed. The plant or animal on which a parasite lives, is called the host.

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Some parasites live inside the body of the host and some on the outside.

To get in, parasite eggs are eaten by the host in food: tapeworm eggs, for example, famously lurk in uncooked pork. From there they make their way to the digestive tract.

External parasites, such as leeches and lice attach themselves to the skin. Not all external parasites are visible to the naked eye – for instance the one that causes scabies only alerts the host when he/she starts itching.

(Susan Erasmus, Health24. April 2007)
 

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