Roman soldiers defending Hadrian’s Wall had intestinal parasites
Excavations of sewer drains at a Roman fort in northern England have revealed the presence of several parasites that can cause debilitating illness in humans
Humans
Excavations of sewer drains at a Roman fort in northern England have revealed the presence of several parasites that can cause debilitating illness in humans
19 December 2025
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Roman soldiers might have had enemies inside their bodies
Andrea Matone / Alamy
Despite their reputation for advanced sanitation, ancient Romans at a major fort in northern England were probably suffering from a range of digestive ailments caused by parasites.
The fort of Vindolanda, near Hadrian’s Wall and occupied by Roman soldiers from the 1st to the 4th century CE, would have been no place for anyone with a delicate stomach, suggest the results of excavations of the site’s sewage pits.
Piers Mitchell at the University of Cambridge and his colleagues collected and analysed nearly 60 sediment samples from a latrine drain that serviced a communal toilet thought to have been in use in the 3rd century.
Using microscopy, they found the eggs of two intestinal parasites: roundworm and whipworm. They also found traces of a single-celled parasite called , which they identified using antibodies that bind exclusively to this organism’s proteins.
