I have been using helminthic therapy since 2006. Since starting helminthic therapy I no longer suffer from crohn's disease. It has saved my life when no medical treatment has worked.
Look at the research and see for yourself. The research clearly proves that helminth therapy works. Weinstock’s and Summer’s research from the US, and conclusive research from England and Canadian have concluded that helminthes play a symbiotic roll with human immune systems. We have evolved with them over thousands of years. Helminthes modulate and temper the human immune system, which reduces the inflammatory responses. Helminthic therapy works against autoimmune diseases; there is no doubt in the results of the research. The hygiene hypothesis is correct.
The FDA does not want to use helminthes to cure disease because it would reduce the bottom line of their drug stocks and investors profits. The medical system is corrupt and has no ethics. Thank god for Ovamed and Autoimmune Therapies. I would not be alive today without helminthic therapy.

I have tried absolutely everything... I'm desperate. barring a trip to africa, I need to know how to get ahold of this treatment... please?

The woman chose him over her kids. Sick.

Does anybody know where i can buy Hookworms , my girlfriend has a very debilitating autoimmune disease and we want to try them. Any help wpould be very appreciated.

The studies have been done. In fact this information is decades old. This treatment isn't available in the US, like many treatments that work, and I would like to know why.

I have yet to find actual FDA website proof that Jasper was contacted.

It was a really great show, but the Jasper piece was irresponsible. Just go get any parasite from Africa? Yeah, that'll do. And then to go sell them to others as a cure all is just awful and clueless. God knows what it could do to people. I was very surprised that the show gave him this platform without a balance report that what he did is really really stupid.

My daughter has asthma. My family tells me all I need to do is get a chihuahua. The dog sits on a person's chest, and "takes the asthma away." I have heard this from more than one source. If chihuahuas, why not hookworms? I would try it (on myself, not my 8 year old).

It is possible, the FDA did this at the direct behest of someone in a pharmaceutical company. Some Phama would be negatively impacted financially by the loss of allergy proscriptions and asthma treatments so the incentive is there. Wonder who exactly made this decision in the FDA. From the description it was not the inspectors that came to Jaspers house.

The FDA serves an important role. I enjoyed reading A Question of Intent by David Kessler who was the head of the FDA under Bush then Clinton. I bristle at conservatives attacking the FDA as big government regulation.

But, the members of the FDA work with folks in pharmaceutical companies all the time to get drugs approved and such. It's normal and it's their job. These working relationships could inadvertently become influential. Corruption is a subtle gray thing and the line can be blurry. It is totally conceivable you have stumbled apron
some excellent reporting while doing your science education.

I was really disappointed to hear that the FDA shut Jasper down. There are human clinical trials going on to assess the safety and effectiveness fof using hookworm for various illnesses (see PubMed). Hopefully these will eventually change the situation for Jasper.

To the commenter above--the price tag doesn't seem unreasonable, given that Jasper has to foot the bill for all the equipment, etc. to do this and make enough money to live on. I really think it's a matter of perspective.

I have serious allergies, food allergies, and asthma which limit my life. The allergist has recommended Xolair at a cost of around $10,000 a year, none of which insurance will pay for. This injectable medication does not come without significant risks. This is in addition to the hundreds of dollars I already pay per year for medications that are doing God knows what to my body over time.

On the other hand, I could pay $2,900 for some hookworm that will last for several years and has relatively few risks when given in small doses. Personally, I'd prefer the hookworm.

Did anyone actually check out Jasper's website? It's perverse how much money he was charging. 3k for a single dose??!! Helping people? Give me a break...This story was sadly very one-sided. I'm disgusted and not by the worms. I would eat them with hardly a moment's hesitation. Why this generally excellent show would give this guy so much free publicity is beyond me.

This was such a good and gross story. Reminded me of another fabulous radio lab bug story. As we come into allergy season in my 2nd grade class I want all the families to just get some hookworm- their children will feel great. How strange!

I loved the parasite show when I first heard it. I went around telling people about Jasper and his allergies and his hookworms. Shortly after that I discovered that I had hookworms, along with a few other intestinal parasites. I wonder how many people are harboring parasites even in our hygienic country.

I was kind of excited about the hookworms when I first found out I had them, but my naturopath convinced me to try to kill them, using naturopathic means. I must say, I feel better than I have in years, now that they are mostly gone. I suppose if I had terrible allergies I would choose the hookworms, but over all I don't think they were doing me too many favors.

Alternative treatments like this report are essential to increased awareness of the world in which we live. If the use of hookworms can help some live more comfortable lives, it should be available. If hookworms present a danger to others at the same time...then the risk should be studied and scientific research is a must. The FDA must already have the data on hookworm but unwilling to be forthcoming. The FDA should not scare people out of the country...but should monitor and assess the work...like they have done with FETAL TISSUE research and HEART VALVE (bovine) examples. The FDA did not shut down these businesses .....why the scare tactics? It must be known that there are hookworm benefits....

I was telling colleagues about the hookwork stuff and one colleague sent me this link about an asthma cure in India involving ingesting a small, live fish which has been treated with a medication. . .http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2974810.stm

They said goodbye to the children? I hope they were all grown up. Last I looked, his web site was still running.

Yeah - the Federal level of government often hampers progress and solutions - they see themselves as protecting consumers. The beauracratic way in which it operated often stiffles alternative (natural) approaches. Why don't you do a graduate and post grad. degree study, pick up a degree in the subject matter or get other students to perform formal research and start documenting the results in a way that the Feds can accept it. This might open the way for other alternative methods to be integrated into our medical practices. I hope they leave you alone and let people continue to get cured.

The 'American Life' piece on parasites was both the coolest and creepiest story I've heard in a while; loved your segment of the story on Jasper. There's so much we just don't know about the natural world and our place in it -- fascinating.

As interesting as Jasper's own experiences are, the fact is there is a right way and a wrong way to introduce pharmaceuticals and biologics into the market place. The FDA and CBER have established procedures for drug/biologic evaluation for safety, efficacy, applicability, labeling, the claims that can or cannot be made about any compound or organism or medical device.

These procedures exist for a reason. Think about Thalidomide babies as a nearly worst-case scenario.

Instead of running away, Jasper needs to get a grip and start clinical trials.

Jasper's passion for helping people is so simple to him. That simplicity alone is inspiring. I do hope that he can continue to help people - and that some research emerges that can back up what he's doing.

Thank you for finding the story in the first place and for giving a follow-up. I've wondered what happened to him.

Not fair.