Hello all

Some time back I recall a number of postings regarding the safety of
mebendazole for lactating mothers. I have been wondering about its safety
for repeated use on children, so I have tried an alternative treatment.

I understand that:
- Worms tend to emerge to lay eggs during periods of inactivity of the
hosts, generally when they go to bed.
- The eggs need to remain next to the skin for about twenty four hours
before ingestion to hatch.
- The hatched worms take about 10 days to mature and start laying eggs.
- The eggs remain viable for up to six weeks, and may be transferred to
bathroom surfaces and house dust.
- Bedwetting may be caused by the irritation caused by the worms.

Recently I have tried the following regime and it seemed to work in just a
couple of weeks.

I wipe my children's bottoms with baby wipes just before I go to bed. If
there are any worms or eggs these seem to adhere to the baby wipe. I tell
them beforehand what I am going to do, and they do not wake up.( The
children that is, not the worms!) I also wipe their bottoms before they
change their underwear first thing in the morning. (A daily bath should
work, but most children sit and play and do not wash that area
effectively.) The kids are expected to wash their hands thoroughly in the
morning, and use the nail brush, and their fingernails should be kept
fairly short. This seemed to have worked within two weeks, but I shall be
continuing the morning routine to prevent recurrence.

I read somewhere that putting sticky tape across the child's  is effective,
as the worms adhere to that, but I don't like the idea of that at all! Even
wiping their bottoms while they sleep feels like an invasion of their
privacy.

Linda Cairns
National Childbirth Trust Breastfeeding Counsellor and Egnell Breastpump
Hire Agent
Tilehurst, Reading UK