Background: Vegetables and fruits are an important part of human nutrition and are consumed daily. Consumption of contaminated vegetables and fruits can sometimes cause health problems and facilitate the transmission of many intestinal parasites. This study aimed to determine the presence and percentage of helminths in commonly consumed vegetables in Duhok city, Iraq.
Methods: Sample collection for this study was conducted from June 2021 to August 2021 in different parts of the city. A total of one hundred twenty-six samples of lettuce, coriander, pepper, dill, radish, and parsley were collected, and all samples were examined microscopically for the detection of parasites.
Results: In this study, 15.9% of vegetables were found to be contaminated with parasitic helminths, with no significant difference between contaminated and non-contaminated samples (P-value: 0.628). Three species of helminths were identified in the collected samples at different percentages, including 7.9% Ascaris lumbricoides, 6.3% Enterobius vermicularis, and 2.4% Hymenolepis nana. Parsley was recorded as the most contaminated vegetable (23.8%), followed by lettuce (20%), while pepper showed the lowest contamination rate (4.8%).
Conclusion: This study demonstrated that vegetables were contaminated with helminths at moderate levels, which may play an important role in human infection through the consumption of contaminated vegetables.
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