Everyone loves cuddling with kittens. But there can be a
little-known danger lurking behind that furry little face and that
innocent-sounding meow: a parasite called Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii).
T. gondii is the most common parasite in developed nations,
according to Schizophrenia Bulletin. The cat-carried parasite can infect any
warm-blooded species, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
estimates more than 60 million people in the U.S. may have it.
Most people never suffer any symptoms at all. But in those
with weaker immune systems, infection with T. gondii can cause an illness
called toxoplasmosis, which can result in miscarriages, fetal development
disorders, weeks of flu-like illness, blindness and even death. It has also
been associated with mental disorders including schizophrenia and bipolar
disorder. Now two more studies explore the mental health issues in greater
detail.
E. Fuller Torrey of the Stanley Medical Research Institute
and Dr. Robert H. Yolken of Stanley Laboratory of Developmental Neurovirology
at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have been studying the link
between infection with T. gondii and schizophrenia for close to three decades.
Their most recent study, published in Schizophrenia
Research, along with researcher Wendy Simmons, compared two previous studies
that found a link between childhood cat ownership and the development of
schizophrenia later in life with an unpublished survey on mental health from
1982, 10 years before any data on cat ownership and mental illness had been
published. Results of the analysis indicated that cat exposure in childhood may
be a risk factor for developing mental disorders.
To read more on this story, click here: Cat Parasite Linked to Mental Illness, Schizophrenia
