A study of the parasitic contamination of commonly consumed vegetables in Wasit Province, Iraq

Fresh, raw vegetables are a source of parasitic infections. This study aimed to investigate the vegetables that are most susceptible to parasitic infections, and the parasites are the most prevalent. A total of 300 samples of six raw vegetables were washed using physiological saline solution (0.9%) to remove parasites. The vegetables were leek, basil, radish, cucumbers, celery, and carrots. The overall contamination rate was 82.33% rate and this rate was 100, 96, 86, 76, 75, 40% for basil, leek, carrot, celery, radish, and cucumber, respectively. The twenty parasites were identified in the examined vegetables that radish had all parasites. Leek, celery, and basil showed a high infection rate in most types of parasites, while cucumber and carrot showed little infection. The most detected parasites were Strongyloides stercoralis (100), and the least one Hymenolepis nana, Balantidium coli, and Diphyllopotherium latum with infection rates of 8, 7, and 2, respectively.