By Lindsey Bever Lindsey Bever General assignment reporter covering national and breaking news Email Bio Follow May 29 at 12:57 PM Hawaii public health authorities are urging both islanders and tourists to take precautions against rat lungworm, a parasitic worm that has infected five people in the state this year.
Those who have been infected this year are adults, but the cases last year included three toddlers and one adolescent, officials said. Certain animals such freshwater shrimp, crabs, or frogs, have been found to be infected with larvae of the parasite. It is possible that eating undercooked or raw animals that are infected could result in people becoming infected, though the evidence for this is not as clear as for eating infected snails and slugs. Of note, fish do not spread this parasite. Don’t eat raw or undercooked snails or slugs, frogs or shrimp/prawns. If you handle snails or slugs, wear gloves and wash your hands.
“It has had a long time to spread throughout the islands and make its way into native snail populations and Hawaii has several potential intermediate hosts for this parasite,” she wrote in an email to The Washington Post. “This puts it in closer proximity to humans and accidental consumption.”
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