SEOUL — Medical staff treating a wounded North Korean defector found numerous parasites inside his body, revealing a picture of poor health that may be commonplace in the north.

The North Korean border guard was shot several times while fleeing across the demilitarized zone to South Korea last week.

According to Reuters, surgeons treating the defector found several parasites inside his body. Several of these were removed from his digestive tract, including one 27 cm long roundworm.

That is likely due to farming practices in the north where human excrement is used as fertilizer due to a lack of chemical fertilizer. Known as night soil, this practise is notorious for spreading parasites and disease.