Fact check: Herpes STD caused by viruses, not parasitic worm - USA TODAY

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The claim: Herpes is a parasitic worm, not a virus

A post on social media contends much of what you learned about herpes in sex ed is wrong.

"Herpes! Let's Talk About It," reads a Dec. 2 Facebook post, which received about 150 likes and 90 shares in six days. "It's not a virus. It's a parasitic worm ... a helminth!" 

The poster further asserts that herpes is not contracted via sex, but rather through food consumption and vaccination.

But experts say the post's claims are totally bunk. For starters, the sexually transmitted herpes is caused by two viruses, not a parasitic worm.

"That post is so, so wrong in many different ways," said Dr. Patrick Jackson, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Virginia.

Dr. William Schaffner, a professor in the infectious diseases division at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, agreed, writing in an email to USA TODAY that the information in the post is "ALL incorrect."

"I did not find a single correct assertion in the social media post," Schaffner said.

USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who shared the post for comment.

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Herpes is a virus

Herpes is a common STD caused by two viruses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2). The former typically causes oral herpes, while the latter usually causes genital herpes.

Almost one in six people age 14-49 in America have genital herpes, and more than half of Americans have oral herpes, according to Planned Parenthood. The virus stays in your body for life.

"After the first episode of infection during which the lesions tend to be most severe, the virus takes up residence in nerve cells," Jackson said. "People can have recurrences of these lesions, and repeated episodes can be triggered by physical or psychological stress."

HSV-1 is primarily transmitted via oral-to-oral contact, causing infection in or around the mouth, according to the World Health Organization. However, it can also be transmitted via oral-to-genital contact. HSV-2, on the other hand, is "almost exclusively" contracted via genital-to-genital contact during sex, the WHO says. That can cause infection in the genital or anal areas. 

"You cannot get herpes from vaccines, nor from food unless someone has chewed it for you first," Jackson said.

Herpes is not caused by helminths, which are worm-like parasites. Examples of helminths are tapeworms and roundworms. Jackson said there aren't many parasites that would cause symptoms similar to herpes.

More: Fact check: STD trichomoniasis spread by both men and women

There is some research that appears to show a helminth intestinal infection can worsen symptoms of herpes infections elsewhere in the body. But there's zero evidence the worms cause herpes or are the infection itself.  

"In sum, the disease we call 'herpes' is absolutely caused by infection with one of the two herpes simplex viruses and not by any kind of helminth parasite," Jackson said.

Our rating: False

Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that herpes is a parasitic worm, not a virus. The STD herpes is caused by two viruses, not a parasitic worm, experts say.

Our fact-check sources:

• Dr. Patrick Jackson, Dec. 8, email exchange with USA TODAY
• Dr. William Schaffner, Dec. 8, email exchange with USA TODAY
• CDC, retrieved Dec. 8, Genital Herpes – CDC Fact Sheet
• Planned Parenthood, retrieved Dec. 8, Oral & Genital Herpes
• WHO, May 1, 2020, Herpes simplex virus
• Medical Microbiology, published in 1996, Chapter 86, Helminths: Structure, Classification, Growth, and Development
• American Association of the Advancement of Science's EurekAlert, April 15, Worm infestation in intestine has a remote effect on viral defenses

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