When you think of infections, you probably imagine colds, flu, or maybe even COVID-19. But there’s another group of infections hiding in plain sight-parasitic infections. Two of the most common ones you’ve never heard of until you’re stuck with them: giardia and pinworms. They’re not glamorous, they don’t make headlines, but they’re everywhere. And if you’ve ever had weeks of stomach cramps, diarrhea, or nighttime itching that won’t quit, you might be dealing with one of them.
What Is Giardia, and How Do You Get It?
Giardia is a tiny, pear-shaped parasite called Giardia lamblia. It doesn’t just live in dirty water-it lives in cold water, clean-looking water, even water that’s been treated. You can swallow it by drinking from a stream, eating food washed with contaminated water, or touching a surface someone with giardia touched and then putting your fingers in your mouth. It only takes 10 to 25 cysts to make you sick.
The symptoms hit after 1 to 14 days-usually around day 7. You get watery, foul-smelling diarrhea that can last for weeks. Belly pain, bloating, gas, nausea, and extreme tiredness follow. Some people lose weight because their gut can’t absorb nutrients properly. In rare cases, the infection becomes chronic, lasting months. And here’s the kicker: up to half the people infected show no symptoms at all. That’s why it spreads so easily.
Giardia cysts are tough. They survive chlorine in swimming pools. They hang around in river water for months. That’s why hikers, campers, and travelers to developing countries are at higher risk. But it’s not just about travel. Outbreaks happen in daycare centers, nursing homes, and even households where one person brings it home and no one realizes it’s contagious.
What About Pinworms? Why Does It Itch So Bad at Night?
Pinworms are small, white worms-about the length of a staple. They live in your colon and rectum. The female worm crawls out of your anus at night to lay eggs on the skin around it. That’s when the itching starts. Not during the day. Not when you’re busy. At night. When you’re trying to sleep. And it’s intense.
Children are the most common hosts, but adults get them too, especially parents and caregivers. The eggs stick to fingers, underwear, bedding, toys, even dust in the air. You touch something contaminated, then touch your mouth. The eggs hatch in your intestine, grow into adults in 2 to 6 weeks, and the cycle repeats. One person infected means the whole household is at risk. Studies show 75% of household members get infected when one person has it.
Most people with pinworms don’t feel sick beyond the itching. But if left alone, scratching can lead to skin infections. And because the eggs survive for weeks on surfaces, reinfection is common-unless you clean everything.
How Are These Infections Diagnosed?
For giardia, doctors don’t just look at your symptoms. They test your stool. The best test? Stool antigen testing. It catches 95% of cases. Old-school microscopy (looking under a microscope) only catches about 70%. That’s why so many people are misdiagnosed as having IBS or food poisoning.
For pinworms, the go-to test is the “scotch tape test.” You press a piece of clear tape against the skin around the anus first thing in the morning-before bathing or using the toilet. The eggs stick to the tape. A lab checks it under a microscope. One test catches about half the cases. Three tests in a row catch 90%.
Both tests are simple, cheap, and non-invasive. But if your doctor doesn’t ask about travel, daycare exposure, or nighttime itching, you might go months without a diagnosis.
How Do You Treat Giardia?
There are three main drugs used to treat giardia:
- Metronidazole (250 mg three times a day for 5-7 days)
- Tinidazole (a single 2-gram dose)
- Nitazoxanide (500 mg twice a day for 3 days)
Cure rates are high-80% to 95%-but side effects are real. Metronidazole gives you a strong metallic taste in your mouth (78% of people report it) and nausea (65%). You can’t drink alcohol while taking it-it causes vomiting and flushing. Tinidazole has fewer side effects and is easier to take because it’s just one pill. Nitazoxanide is often used for kids because it’s approved for children as young as 1 year old.
But here’s what most people don’t tell you: treatment doesn’t always work the first time. In Southeast Asia, up to 15% of giardia cases don’t respond to metronidazole anymore. In North America, it’s closer to 5%. If symptoms come back, your doctor may switch drugs or give a second course.
And you can’t just take the medicine and call it done. You need to avoid spreading it. The CDC recommends staying out of childcare, schools, or food-handling jobs for at least 2 weeks after symptoms stop-even if you feel fine. Cysts can still be in your stool.
How Do You Treat Pinworms?
Pinworm treatment is simpler, but it’s also more about timing and cleanliness.
- Mebendazole: 100 mg single dose, repeat after 2 weeks
- Albendazole: 400 mg single dose, repeat after 2 weeks
- Pyrantel pamoate: 11 mg per kg (max 1 gram), single dose, repeat after 2 weeks
All of these are over-the-counter in many countries. But here’s the secret: treating just one person isn’t enough. Everyone in the house needs to be treated at the same time-even if they have no symptoms. Otherwise, you’re just playing ping-pong with the eggs.
The CDC updated its guidelines in January 2024. For stubborn cases, they now recommend a triple-dose regimen: albendazole 400 mg on day 1, day 8, and day 15. That’s 98% effective in recent trials.
But medicine alone won’t fix it. You have to clean. Wash all bedding, pajamas, and towels in hot water. Vacuum carpets and wipe down surfaces. Don’t shake out clothes or bedding-it sends eggs flying. Cut fingernails short. Wash hands after using the bathroom and before eating. And don’t let kids suck their thumbs or bite their nails.
Why Do These Infections Keep Coming Back?
Reinfection is the biggest reason treatment fails. People treat themselves, feel better, and go back to life without cleaning their environment. A Reddit user in March 2024 described how his family treated twice-still no relief. Only after hiring a professional cleaner to deep-clean the house did the itching stop.
Giardia spreads through water. If you’re using a well, a campsite, or a water filter that doesn’t have a 1-micron pore size, you’re still at risk. Boiling water for one minute kills giardia cysts. So does using a filter labeled for “cyst removal.”
Pinworm eggs survive on surfaces for weeks. If you don’t wash your sheets, your kid’s stuffed animals, or the bathroom sink, you’re just re-exposing yourself. That’s why the success rate jumps from 50% to 92% when families do both medicine AND cleaning.
Who’s Most at Risk?
Giardia hits:
- Travelers to countries with poor water sanitation
- Children in daycare centers
- Hikers and campers who drink untreated water
- People with weakened immune systems (like those with HIV)
Pinworms hit:
- Children aged 5 to 10
- Parents and caregivers of young children
- Residents of long-term care facilities
- People living in crowded homes
Both infections are more common in places with poor hygiene-but they’re not limited to them. In the U.S., there are still over 1 million giardia cases a year and 40 to 80 million pinworm cases. That’s not rare. That’s everyday.
How to Prevent Them for Good
Prevention isn’t about being paranoid. It’s about being smart.
- Wash hands with soap and water after using the bathroom, changing diapers, and before eating. It cuts transmission by 30-50%.
- Don’t drink untreated water. If you’re hiking, boil it or use a filter with a 1-micron or smaller pore size.
- Wash all clothes and bedding in hot water after treatment for pinworms.
- Keep fingernails short and avoid nail-biting.
- Treat the whole household at once if one person is infected.
- Teach kids handwashing like they brush their teeth-daily, every time.
The WHO’s 2023 guidelines say point-of-use water filters in high-risk areas reduce giardia cases by 42%. That’s not magic. That’s science.
What’s Next? Vaccines and Climate Change
There’s no vaccine yet-but there’s progress. A giardia vaccine called GID1 showed 70% seroconversion in early trials in 2023. That means the body started making antibodies. It’s not ready for public use, but it’s a start.
Climate change is making things worse. Warmer temperatures and more flooding mean more water contamination. Experts predict giardia could spread into 20-30% more temperate regions by 2040. That means even people in places like Perth, Sydney, or Toronto might see more cases in the next decade.
Drug resistance is also growing. In some parts of Asia, metronidazole is failing more often. That’s why doctors are starting to use tinidazole or nitazoxanide as first-line options.
The bottom line? These infections are treatable. But they’re not gone. They’re waiting-for the next hiker, the next daycare, the next family who didn’t wash their sheets.
Can you get giardia from swimming pools?
Yes. Giardia cysts survive chlorine in pools for days. If someone with giardia has a bowel movement in the water, others can swallow the cysts. That’s why it’s one of the most common causes of outbreaks in public pools.
Do pinworms go away on their own?
Sometimes, yes-but it takes months, and you risk spreading it to others. The worms live 4 to 6 weeks, but eggs survive for weeks longer. Without treatment, the cycle continues. Most people need medication to break it.
Is giardia dangerous for kids?
It can be. Chronic giardia in children leads to malnutrition, delayed growth, and poor school performance because the gut can’t absorb nutrients. Early treatment is critical. Nitazoxanide is safe for kids as young as 1.
Can you get pinworms from pets?
No. Pinworms only infect humans. Dogs and cats have their own worms, but not the same kind. You can’t catch pinworms from your dog or cat.
How do you know if treatment worked?
For giardia, symptoms should improve within a few days. If diarrhea returns after finishing the medicine, you may need a second round. For pinworms, if the nighttime itching stops and doesn’t come back after 2-3 weeks, you’re likely cleared. If it returns, repeat treatment and clean again.
