{"id":2239900,"date":"2024-05-08T09:18:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-08T13:18:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rfk-jr-campaign-laughs-off-idea-parasite-that-ate-part-of-his-brain-has-lingering-effects-on-his-fitness\/"},"modified":"2024-05-08T09:21:51","modified_gmt":"2024-05-08T13:21:51","slug":"rfk-jr-campaign-laughs-off-idea-parasite-that-ate-part-of-his-brain-has-lingering-effects-on-his-fitness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rfk-jr-campaign-laughs-off-idea-parasite-that-ate-part-of-his-brain-has-lingering-effects-on-his-fitness\/","title":{"rendered":"RFK Jr.&#8217;s campaign dismisses notion of brain parasite impacting his fitness"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frfk-jr-campaign-laughs-off-idea-parasite-that-ate-part-of-his-brain-has-lingering-effects-on-his-fitness%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2239900&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed concerns about a\u200c brain parasite affecting \u2062his ability to serve \u200bas\u200d president. Following <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/out-of-staters-donate-here-to-help-texans\/\" title=\"Out-Of-Staters: Donate Here To Help Texans\">memory loss<\/a> and a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/erickson-thankfulness\/\" title=\"ERICKSON: Thankfulness\">scan showing<\/a> a suspicious spot mistaken for a tumor, \u200bit was revealed to be a dead parasite. It was believed to be a pork tapeworm larva causing issues, alongside mercury \u2064poisoning from a\u200c diet heavy in fish. Kennedy\u2064 has since recovered\u200c from these \u2062health scares.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/independents\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Independent<\/a> presidential candidate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/rfk-jr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Robert F. Kennedy Jr.<\/a> said the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/05\/08\/us\/rfk-jr-brain-health-memory-loss.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>parasite that ate<\/a> part of his brain would not affect his fitness to be president. <\/p>\n<p>After he reportedly experienced memory loss, a 2012 brain scan revealed a dark spot on Kennedy\u2019s brain, which was believed to be a tumor at the time. Upon further examination, one doctor offered a counterexplanation: a parasite that had gotten inside his head and died.  <\/p>\n<p>\u201c[The dark spot] was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died,\u201d Kennedy said in a 2012 deposition <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/05\/08\/us\/rfk-jr-brain-health-memory-loss.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>reviewed<\/a> by the <em>New York Times<\/em>. <\/p>\n<p>Kennedy said he might have contracted the parasite on a trip to South Asia but was not completely sure. Experts said the parasite was likely a pork tapeworm larva, which survives off nutrients in the human body. <\/p>\n<p>Following the parasite, Kennedy was also diagnosed with mercury poisoning, which is usually caused by eating too much fish that could contain mercury. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI loved tuna fish sandwiches,\u201d he said. \u201cI ate them all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Experts believe Kennedy likely experienced memory loss due to mercury poisoning, not the tapeworm. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have cognitive problems, clearly,\u201d Kennedy said in 2012. \u201cI have short-term memory loss, and I have longer-term memory loss that affects me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy has since said he has made a full recovery from the parasite and mercury poisoning. He said the parasite did not require treatment. Kennedy also said he has since changed his diet from eating so much fish and that he began traveling less. <\/p>\n<p>His campaign spokeswoman, Stefanie Spear, laughed off the idea that either diagnosis would have an effect on his health or fitness in this year\u2019s campaign. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is a hilarious suggestion, given the competition,\u201d Spear said. <\/p>\n<p>Kennedy, 70, has portrayed himself as an athletic, youthful candidate compared to the headline contestants: President Joe Biden, 81, and former President Donald Trump, 77. <\/p>\n<figure>\n<div>\n<p data-video_id=\"HogZlDi2tTE\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Robert F. Kennedy Jr Does Pushups\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HogZlDi2tTE?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The mercury poisoning and parasite are not Kennedy\u2019s only <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/aaron-carter-found-dead-at-age-34\/\" title=\"Aaron Carter Found Dead At Age 34\">health-related problems<\/a>. As a child, he was diagnosed with hepatitis C, which he said has been treated and that he had no lingering effects from. He also has a neurological condition,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2577547\/spasmodic-dysphonia-what-rfk-jr-s-voice-condition-means-for-his-campaign\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title> spasmodic dysphonia<\/a>, which affects his voice as his vocal cords are sometimes pushed together.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title><strong>CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>While he was in college, he said his heart began beating out of sync. Between 2011 and 2012, he was hospitalized three times for the heart condition, requiring a defibrillator to reset his heart\u2019s rhythm.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt feels like there\u2019s a bag of worms in my chest,\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cI can feel immediately when it goes out.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. reassured that the brain parasite ordeal wouldn&#8217;t hinder his presidential fitness. Despite memory loss and a 2012 brain scan showing a suspicious dark spot initially thought to be a tumor, further evaluation<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2910,"featured_media":2239901,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/rfk-jr-1-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2239900","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/rfk-jr-1-1024x683.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2239900","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2910"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2239900"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2239900\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2239901"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2239900"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2239900"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2239900"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}