Human faeces used as fertiliser on farms is being blamed for a breakout of Third World parasites causing a serious stomach illness across Sydney.

The symptoms sound exactly like what I have just been through except no diarrhoea.

Doctors fear the Sydney Water Biosolids Strategy which turns 180000 tonnes of human waste into fertiliser yearly could be behind the emergence of stomach bug Blastocystis hominis usually found in dirty water in Third World countries and spread via faeces and a second parasite which often accompanies it D. fragilis. Both cause cramps extreme pain distended stomach diarrhoea weight loss and fatigue.

From a public health point of view it appears to be a significant problem.

Switzerland and Austria have banned the use of sewerage sludge as fertiliser while in Sweden and parts of Germany supermarkets do not stock products treated with biosolids.

If we are going to be using foods grown on crops which use these biosolids it would be good to have a certain level of assurance that they are not carrying pathogens.

Apart from parasites faecal matter transmits viruses that give you diarrhoea. There is also worry about the sporadic cases of Hepatitis B and C when you do not know how it has been caught. Some people have never used needles.

The question was raised: If we were to use this material would it be safe for people to play on those fields given that people do sustain injuries and grazes? The advice is not to use biosolids on sports ovals because it is not safe around children.

NSW Health’s spokesman said if EPA guidelines were adhered to the use of biosolids was unlikely to present a risk to public health. They state that if biosolids are used on agricultural land crops – from potatoes to lettuce and turf – should not be grown for between 18 months and five years. There is also a 30-day harvesting rule for animal feed and fibre crops. Where there is a high potential for public exposure access should be restricted by fencing and signing for one year after biosolids application.

Sydney Water does not conduct testing on its biosolids for the two parasites and would not reveal which pathogens if any it does test for.

One story:

A Sydney resident was told repeatedly by doctors that the cause of her distended stomach extreme pain cramping and fatigue was irritable bowel syndrome.

For 4 years she spent thousands of dollars visiting leading gastroenterologists naturopaths dieticians and GPs.

“I’d look six months pregnant. I couldn’t wear normal clothes” she said. “It was gradually getting worse and worse and affecting my life more. I’d get a little bit of pain and I felt lethargic and irritable.”

As a last resort she went to a specialist clinic the Centre for Digestive Diseases in January. Tests revealed she had two parasites dientamoeba fragilis and blastocystitis hominis in her gut.

It took two infusions of anti-parasitic treatment to kill the pathogens.

“The doctor said it was transferred through the faecal-oral route from eating contaminated food or drinking water that hasn’t been treated properly in Third World countries but I haven’t been travelling to any Third World countries” she said.

Other points:
My friend died only last week after being in NSW. She died within days of returning from what they are saying is Gastro. Is is possible that the use of this stuff contributed to her death.

All food imports from China should be bannedall their food is grown using human waste as fertilizer.

Even if they stop this practice here it won’t solve the problem as more and more of our food is coming in from Asia where they also fertilise food crops with human waste. In some parts of Asia they don’t even treat the waste before using it.

I’ve had no responses from Sydney Water or NSW govt to my numerous queries about the human health ramifications of pumping even more treated sewage into our drinking water. If you fill a bottle with water from the tap you don’t want to drink it the next day because it stinks.