Ahh, the beloved parasitic gut worm, bane to dogs and humans. We humans have done the world the service of eradicating much of the globe of this parasite, at least among human populations. But there is one population that still suffers from this worm: Vietnam, where 2 in 3 school children are thus afflicted.
But here's the interesting part: children who are treated for gut worm infections have a resulting increased likelihood of developing a variety of allergies and asthma. But in Vietnam, these same allergies are extremely rare. One working theory: being afflicted with the parasitic gut worm gives you resistance to allergies.
Well, I'm signing off. Gotta go pack up the kids and make our way to Vietnam. We'll pick up some tasty ph and Bánh cun, maybe some balut, and hopefully a healthy infestation of gut worms. Hello parasites, goodbye allergies.