ABSTRACT
A parasite is a living organism that lives on or inside a host in order to find the conditions and resources necessary for its own growth and reproduction. The purpose of this study was to find out how often vegetables from Efehi Street, New Benin Market, Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria, were contaminated with parasites. Among the vegetables examined were Curry leaves (Ocimum africanum), Evbewiewia (Piper auritum), Scent leaves (Ocimum gratissimum), Shoko leaves (Celosia argentia) and Uziza leaves (Piper guineense). The overall prevalence of parasites contamination recorded in this study was 81.54%. Parasitic contamination was highest in Curry leaves (Ocimum africanum) as all 10 (100%) samples examined were contaminated. The helminths recovered from the vegetables were Ascaris lumbricoides, Enterobius vermicularis, Ancylostoma duodenale, Diphyllobothrium diminuta, Trichuris trichuria, Fasciola spp, Taenia spp., unidentified cysts, nematodes and trematodes (eggs, larvae and adult) and unidentified insect larva. Ascaris lumbricoides was the most prevalent parasite as it was recovered from 72.30% vegetable samples. There was no significant difference (P>0.05) in the parasites and their prevalence of contamination in the vegetable leaves from New Benin Market, Edo State, Nigeria. Most leafy vegetables get contaminated with these parasites when they get in contact with the soil or during transportation. Reducing food-borne parasitic infections can still be accomplished by preventing contamination. This can be accomplished by farmers, vendors, and consumers practising better personal hygiene, washing their produce properly, and improving the sanitary environment around markets where these vegetables are sold.
