01-14-2018, 07:57 AM
eigoya: the thing about RLW is that the worms don't multiply inside you, so the severity depends on how many you ingest in the first place. They shed some in the slime, but not many. The worms are also relatively large (not really big enough to see, but much bigger than say bacteria; about half a millimeter long), so on a smooth surface like a fruit skin or your hands they should wash off. If one slips through on a fruit, or gets through your water filter, it probably won't be a big deal. The thing is that the Parmarion semislugs can carry thousands in a small body, and they can hide in leafy vegetables surprisingly easily.
I really wish they'd test the kind of water systems people have to figure out what the real threat is from catchment water. I have a 5 micron filter plus a high-intensity UV system. That should be enough to get rid of the worms, based on their size (they're about 25 microns wide; the filters are actually rated to catch only 90% of 5 micron debris, but 99.5% of 10 micron particles) and the vulnerability of other nematodes to UV radiation. But nobody has actually tested whether they're able to get through these filters in practice, and alternatively, what level of UV will kill them. Seems like a simple experiment to do with a couple hundred dollars worth of equipment and a couple of weeks of time. But no one is doing it now.
I really wish they'd test the kind of water systems people have to figure out what the real threat is from catchment water. I have a 5 micron filter plus a high-intensity UV system. That should be enough to get rid of the worms, based on their size (they're about 25 microns wide; the filters are actually rated to catch only 90% of 5 micron debris, but 99.5% of 10 micron particles) and the vulnerability of other nematodes to UV radiation. But nobody has actually tested whether they're able to get through these filters in practice, and alternatively, what level of UV will kill them. Seems like a simple experiment to do with a couple hundred dollars worth of equipment and a couple of weeks of time. But no one is doing it now.