Objective: To investigate the distribution of common food-borne parasitic diseases and dietary habits in Guangxi.
Methods: In the survey from 2002 to 2005, questionnairing, fecal examination, ELISA or skin test were applied in the endemic areas of clonorchiasis, taeniasis, cysticercosis, trichinelliasis or paragonimiasis in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. 13 990 residents at 27 sites in 9 counties were examined for clonorchiasis, 22772 residents at 22 sites in 10 counties for taeniasis, 9 638 residents at 20 sites in 10 counties for trichinelliasis and 9 347 residents at 18 sites in 6 counties for paragonimiasis.
Results: Among 109 counties, residents in 64 counties (59.8%) were found with local habit of eating raw meat, covering Han and other 6 ethnic groups (Zhuang, Yao, Miao, Maonan, Dong and Buyi) . Various animal food such as fish, pork, pork liver, swine blood, beef, ox blood, chicken blood, goat blood, crab, shrimp, clamworm, snail, oyster, and duck meat were consumed in raw with or without seasonings, or by ways of hot-pot, pickle, dipping in boiling water or wine-soaked. Food-borne diseases such as clonorchiasis, taeniasis, cysticercosis, trichinelliasis and paragonimiasis were prevalent in the Region. The survey showed that clonorchiasis is prevalent mainly in the river basins of Yongjiang, Zuojiang and Youjiang in the middle-west and southern part of the Region with a prevalence of 9.8%, taeniasis and cysticercosis in the north and middle-north such as Rongshui prevalence of 43.3% and 2.1% respectively, Bingyang (2.1% and 1.0%) and Tianlin (1.6% and 1.1%) counties. Sporadical cases of trichinelliasis were found in the counties of Debao, Baise, Luzhai and Nandan with positive rate 9.8%, 6.4%, 5.3% and 3.1% by serological test. Skin test on paragonimiasis among residents in sampled areas revealed a positive rate of 2.6% and the cases mainly distributed in Rongshui, Longsheng and Quanzhou counties.
Conclusion: Consumption of raw or undercooked meat is popular in the local residents especially the ethnics, which is an important factor in the prevalence of food-borne parasitic diseases.