Giant land snail slime threatens human health, says Swiss study

The first worldwide study of the giant land snail, which has become a popular pet, has revealed that the invasive species poses a serious threat to human health. The researchers from the University of Lausanne are calling for restrictions on the purchase of land snails as pets. Growing to over 20 centimetres in length, the giant land snail is far from harmless beneath its “friendly” gastropod exterior. + How Switzerland is battling invasive species “Social networks are full of photos of people putting the animal in contact with their skin, or even their mouth. The mollusk’s slime is supposed to be beneficial for the epidermis, when in fact it is a vector for diseases such as rat lungworm, which can cause a form of meningitis in humans,” warns Cleo Bertelsmeier, associate professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the Faculty of Biology and Medicine of the University of Lausanne (UNIL), quoted in a press release on Thursday. Consumption of these invertebrates is also...