Cat Parasite Affects Everything We Feel and Do

[dem629]

Move over "swine flu"...

Research Shows That a Certain Cat Parasite Affects Our Behavior and Mood

Kevin Lafferty is a smart, cautious, thoughtful scientist who doesn't hate cats, but he has put forth a provocative theory that suggests that a clever cat parasite may alter human cultures on a massive scale.

...

The parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, has been transmitted indirectly from cats to roughly half the people on the planet, and it has been shown to affect human personalities in different ways.

Research has shown that women who are infected with the parasite tend to be warm, outgoing and attentive to others, while infected men tend to be less intelligent and probably a bit boring. But both men and women who are infected are more prone to feeling guilty and insecure.

more:
http://a.abcnews.com/Technology/DyeHard/Story?id=2288095

[uppityperson]

1. I wonder if toxo makes them that way, or if they are that way and hence own cats?

Women who own cats tend to be warm, outgoing and attentive to others, while men who own cats tend to be less intelligent and probably a bit boring?

Or is it Big Cat's way of taking over the world?

Thank you for the article, very interesting.

[kestrel91316]

7. HIV studies involving Toxo have shown there is no correlation between

cat ownership and infection with Toxoplasma. We know enough about sanitation, and our cats are not eating infected prey enough for the life cycle to complete.

Consumption of incompletely cooked meat is the main way people in the US catch Toxo.

So this theory doesn't really pan out for me in modern industrialized society.

[uppityperson]

15. quick google shows me these: primarily by food, cats only if they hunt or eat raw meat. Interesting.

http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/InSite?page=kb-05-04-03
"Transmission to humans occurs primarily by ingestion of undercooked pork or lamb meat that contains tissue cysts, or by exposure to oocysts either through ingestion of contaminated vegetables or direct contact with cat feces.(1) Other modes of transmission include the transplacental route, blood product transfusion, and organ transplantation. Acute infection in immunocompetent individuals is usually asymptomatic. "


http://www.guide4living.com/hiv-aids/toxoplasmosis.htm
"Toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by the parasite toxoplasma gondii and is one of the more common opportunistic infections associated with AIDS.

The parasite is commonly found in undercooked or meat, particularly pork, lamb and venison and in certain animals such as cats, dogs and birds. It can also be found in the soil, particularly in areas where there is dog or cat faeces."



http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/toxoplasmosis/DS00510/DSECTION=causes
"Although you can't "catch" toxoplasmosis from an infected child or adult, you can become infected if you come in contact with:

* Cat feces that contain the parasite. You may accidentally ingest the parasites if you touch your mouth after gardening, cleaning a litter box or touching anything that's come in contact with infected cat feces. Cats who hunt or who are fed raw meat are most likely to harbor T. gondii.
* Ingesting contaminated food or water. Venison, lamb and pork are especially likely to be infected with T. gondii. Occasionally, unpasteurized goat's milk also may contain the cysts. Additionally, while not common in the United States, water can be contaminated with T. gondii.
* Contaminated knives, cutting boards or other utensils. Kitchen utensils that come in contact with raw meat can harbor the parasites unless they're washed carefully in plenty of hot, soapy water.
* Contaminated, unwashed fruits and vegetables. The surface of fruits and vegetables may contain traces of the parasite. To be safe, thoroughly wash all produce, especially any you eat raw.
* An infected organ transplant or transfused blood. In rare cases, toxoplasmosis can be transmitted through an organ transplant or blood transfusion."


So, don't eat undercooked pork or lamb, wash your vegetables and hands. If your cats don't hunt or eat raw meat, they probably don't have it.

[Kitty Herder]

32. So if humans usually get it from food, the focus here shouldn't be on cats.

My cats protest. They're being blamed unfairly. :P

[uppityperson]

33. I agree, but then we are both probably those warm, outgoing and attentive to others people too

[Kitty Herder]

41. I'd like to think so.

Well, warm and attentive, anyway. I've always been shy, not particularly outgong. And I can't deny that I have guilt and insecurity issues. :blush: Of course, that probably has as much to do with having grown up with an alcoholic father as it does with cat parasites.

[kestrel91316]

34. Don't get me wrong. Cats are an essential component of the Toxo life cycle.

It's just not our well-cared-for housecats that are the problem. Barn cats and strays that hang out where livestock is produced ARE an issue.

[Kitty Herder]

39. No doubt I've been infected since childhood.

I grew up on a farm, adopting barn cats and strays as pets, and eating meat from cattle and pigs raised near those barn cats.

Oh, well.

[kestrel91316]

42. Probably. And it's not important unless you become severely immunosuppressed.

[Silver Swan]

67. I always figured I contracted it that way

I also grew up on a farm with a lot of barn cats.

I remember eating sand cookies that I made in my sandbox. The cats no doubt used the sandbox as a litter box! Any disease humans can catch from cats, I probably had.

(In fact, I just now looked up the symptoms for toxoplasmosis. Fever and "swollen glands" were listed. I recall missing school frequently when I was about five on account of swollen glands. After that, I never had those symptoms again...)

[KoKo]

66. If they hadn't hunted cats down...wouldn't the Bubonic Plague been less severe?

I've read that when cats were hunted down as evil it allowed the Rat Poputlation to multiply thereby leading to more deaths from Bubonic Plague.

I don't have time to Google...but, I believe there is documentation if you search.

[The Doctor.]

60. Obviously, we need to stop eating raw cat...

or cat shit.

Damn... when will people learn?!?

[beac]

71. Yet another reason why THIS is great advice:

[Triana]

57. My cat doesn't hunt, eat raw meat (none of my cats ever did) and I don't eat meat..

...but I do clean the litter box (and wash or use antibacterials afterwards)

[stray cat]

37. actually what you have to watch our for is undercooked hamburgers!

or other undercooked meat containing Toxoplasma tissue cysts.

[LynzM]

2. Fascinating...

There is so, so much about the world that we have yet to understand...

[pscot]

3. Victims of the parasite

also have an almost irresistable urge to claw the furniture and lick themselves where they oughtn't.

[vanboggie]

50. ROFL! n/t

[Donnachaidh]

51. And cleaning up the hairballs is just SOOOO nasty.

Especially when they smell of beer and burritos....

[Tumbulu]

4. Now this is a wild one, huh? nt

[konnichi wa]

5. That isn't even mediocre satire...

:shrug:

[DS1]

8. It isn't satire

[konnichi wa]

47. I apoligize! I have heard of the disease but had absolutely no idea it could infect humans.

My bad. (I did some research after I saw the replies to my post)

Apparently I don't know everything, after all.
sorry

[Donnachaidh]

52. yeah, my doctor read me the riot act on this when I was pregnant

He INSISTED that my DH take over the cat litter duties. Sixteen years later, he's still wondering when he can give me back this chore. :rofl:

[dem629]

11. Good thing that's not what the author was shooting for there.

[stray cat]

35. Not satire at all - and you can't get rid of it once you have it

[Cronus Protagonist]

6. Ugh

I dislike cats even more now.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

18. You too??

We need to start a group here on DU of people who can't stand cats.

:popcorn:

[pokercat999]

31. People that don't like cats were probably mice in another

lifetime!

[Medusa]

55. I'm in.

How people live in a house with cats is beyond me. The second I walk into a house that has cats I know immediately: that smell is awful and you can't get rid of it. I guess the owners must be used to it or something. Read an article the other day about Grey Gardens, which is now owned by Ben Bradlee and Sally Quinn. 30 years later, when it rains, the house still smells like cat pee. No thanks.

[Patchuli]

62. That is not at all true with well-trained catties

and my catties say nuts to you! pppffffttttttttt...

[mainer]

9. It's how cats become our masters!

They use their parasites to enslave us and turn us into attentive slaves, by making us feel guilty and insecure, attentive and boring. We begin to think we NEED them to be happy.

Does anyone wonder why Toxo is so endemic in cats? That mutualism evolved because it serves the cat's needs.

[Echo In Light]

10. Whoah...the crusading conspiracy deniers should be all over this one, big time

[Occam Bandage]

59. What conspiracy? Are cats conspiring?

[get the red out]

12. I definitely dated an infected guy back in college

He never owned any cats, but he had it bad!

[Egnever]

19. .

:rofl: :applause:

[Lars39]

28. lol

:rofl: mercy lolol

[rug]

13. It's not the parasite, it's the cats that make humans feel guilty and insecure.

[Echo In Light]

16. Guided by cats - mine psychically will me to scratch their bellies, the scoundrels

[Donnachaidh]

53. mine stares me down until I let him curl up in my armpit for the night.

he will sit IN MY FACE literally, and snuffle at my nose until I *assume the position*. It's degrading, and the crick in my shoulder in the morning is getting worse as the years go by.

[riverdeep]

68. People train dogs, and cats train people.

Mine would do that thing where he stands at a door and meowls, so you open the door. That was part one. Then he would stand there and decide that maybe he doesn't want to go out after all. And you stand there and watch him decide. Part two.

I guess I was just lucky I never got to part three, but I'm sure he was working on it.

[CreekDog]

14. i call BS

This reads like astrology. :wtf:

"Research has shown that women who are infected with the parasite tend to be warm, outgoing and attentive to others, while infected men tend to be less intelligent and probably a bit boring. But both men and women who are infected are more prone to feeling guilty and insecure."

Let me guess: if you are a man like this, you also identify with Woody Allen movies. :eyes:

[Egnever]

17. Well that must be why I dont like cats!

Although i have owned a couple that were pretty cool. In general I cant stand em :P It's cause they are trying to get me!

[L0oniX]

20. A bull shit extravaganza. n/t

[Mrs. Overall]

21. Wasn't there also a story about the link between cats and schizophrenia?

I think I remember reading it here on DU (oops, maybe that was my other self who read that...the one who constantly kisses both of her cats...).

On Edit: Looked it up and the answer is yes:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/OnCall/story?id=1299317

Excerpt:

Can your cat make you crazy?

Dr. E. Fuller Torrey, president of the Stanley Medical Research Institute in Bethesda, Md., has been studying whether a parasite found in cat droppings called Toxoplasma gondii can trigger an onset of schizophrenia later in life.

"Most people have not thought of schizophrenia as being caused by a virus or bacteria or a parasite," Torrey said. "This is a relatively new idea."

It's long been established that the parasites found in cat droppings are a health risk to pregnant women and young children, but whether the cat can be directly linked to schizophrenia remains to be seen.

Torrey's study found a 53 percent increase in risk for schizophrenia if you owned a cat during childhood, but he also found a 51 percent increase in risk if you were breastfed. Statisticians believe the increase in risk has to be above 200 percent for there to be an actual association between something like owning a cat and schizophrenia.

"We haven't proven anything," Torrey said. "Infectious agents, virus, etcetera really need to be looked at very carefully in these cases."

In the meantime, Torrey is still cautious of cats.

"Personally I would not buy a kitten for a small child," he said. "I don't think we know enough to be able to say there's no risk."

[Arugula Latte]

22. I don't care if kitties carried brain-eating bugs, I need them in my life.

Life without the kitties is not worth living anyway.

:loveya:

[Echo In Light]

23. Auh, I know. Our kitters are a big part of our little family too

:hi:

[Arugula Latte]

45. ...

:toast: :hi:

[Patchuli]

63. Amen to that!!

:fistbump:

[Arugula Latte]

77. ...

:fistbump:

[WilliamPitt]

24. I resemble that remark.

Meow, fuckers. :)

[Echo In Light]

25. .

:)

[Donnachaidh]

56. you need to animate this picture, with just a bit of an eye twitch

it would be perfect. The left eye. :rofl:

[riverdeep]

26. Interesting stuff.

"Toxoplasma, he notes, is "frighteningly amazing."

It can change the personality of a rat so much that the rat surrenders itself to a cat, just as the parasite wanted."

There's also some parasite that affects a snail, and causes the snail to wait patiently on top of a blade of grass to be consumed by a wandering cow.

[Poll_Blind]

27. IS THIS A JOKE? See these 3 short nature clips before you scoff:

A creature that gains control of the ant's brain and movement, Parasitic Mind Control & Zombie Snails. I'd actually heard about the debate about how much Toxoplasma gondii might or might not effect humanity prior to this- along with having seen both of these video snippets I'm linking to.

  It may sound absurd but that's just because the concept that our behavior could be affected or modified by what we consider far-lower organisms is offensive to our human-centric self-image. However, our acceptance or rejection of such a concept does not change the reality of the effect, if any.

PB

[riverdeep]

29. I think that the real point of the article isn't about cats one way or the other,

it's about rethinking our relationship with microbes. If it wasn't cats, it would be some other source. Indeed, it seems that it would be hard not be infected if you think about the way humans lived not even very long ago, and how many still live now.

[western mass]

30. Yawn...correlation does not equal causality.

Just another example of dubious research that chooses to ignore this basic fact in exchange for sexy theories.

[stray cat]

36. although they did actually test part of the theory in rats

rats infected with Toxoplasma ran toward cat pee unlike uninfected rats that ran away from it.

[riverdeep]

61. There are some warning signs aren't there, about the story?

I'm talking about the story, not the actual paper, which I haven't seen. Science reporting in the popular press is often pretty sensationalistic. Like, how is 'boring' a scientific term? The men are more boring and less intelligent? He says that half the people on the planet are infected. That seems pretty high, are all infections equal? How does the men's boringness and more meager intelligence get reflected in different types of infection?

Also, they didn't mention that Toxoplasma gondii can be found in soil and in undercooked meats? It's not just in cats, though they're the primary host. That seems highly relevant.

The paper seems fascinating, the story could use some work.

[anigbrowl]

72. Riiiight. Only people with certain personality traits get this virus.

Do tell us where the flaw is in their methodology, then. I'm guessing you haven't actually read the paper.

[alarimer]

38. Clearly I don't have it then.

I am not outgoing and warm toward others.

:eyes:

[Sandrine for you]

40. What happen if I eat my cat ...

[Matariki]

43. Aha, I KNEW my cats were jealous of my boyfriend!

And if they can infect him the think I'll prefer being more attentive to THEM instead of him. Diabolical! The fiends!

[Jakes Progress]

44. But, but, it must be true.

It was on television.

[tammywammy]

46. I knew they were planning on killing me!

I have two devious furry ones in my house. Yesterday it was the last of the food in the bowl, I picked up more on my way home from work, but still I know they're planning on snuffing me out in my sleep. I placated them today with treats and a little tuna (I was making tuna salad for lunch). I'm only safe for one more day.

[stevedeshazer]

48. Reads like "The Onion".

'Research has shown that women who are infected with the parasite tend to be warm, outgoing and attentive to others, while infected men tend to be less intelligent and probably a bit boring. But both men and women who are infected are more prone to feeling guilty and insecure.'

Read this twice out loud.

[BrklynLiberal]

49. Sounds like an alien plan to take over the planet.....

and I think it is an excellent idea.....

[bvar22]

54. Meh.

I was less intelligent and boring long before I got my cat.
No noticeable change.



http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=243x6017

[Patchuli]

69. Awesome cat!!!!

:yourock:

[Triana]

58. Also - people being they way they are...a LOT of them will refuse to own cats

now - after reading this - and/or they will kill/shoot them on sight. This will NOT be good for the poor cats.

Hell, China will probably exterminate them all in their country. They've been known to do things like that - round up people's pets and kill them on the spot.

[riverdeep]

64. I love the picture they used for the cat overlord:

Yes, yes Mr. Orangepants, I will give you my steak...

[Hassin Bin Sober]

65. I knew it!

Little furry murderers.

You know they would eat you if they were big enough.

[riverdeep]

70. The general stuff like this is fascinating, and more than a little disturbing.

If you're going to bed soon, I would skip this post...


We generally think of ourselves as top of the food chain, and that anything smaller than us, is insignificant. But what if those little things are controlling us, manipulating us? It can make Howard Hughes seem like he was on the right track, after all.

Viruses are only recently being thought of as significant in human evolution. Viruses seem to have shaped and molded us so much they have become part of our DNA, the so-called 'junk' DNA. And very strong evidence exists that viruses played a major role in the development of the mammalian placenta itself, one of the defining qualities of mammals.

Now, these parasites. :


Many parasites don't directly damage their host, but others, whoa. Strange, terrifying examples of parasites and what they can do. To wit:

Cymothoa exigua: A sea louse that lives only in the Californian rose snapper (fish). Swims in through the gills when little, and proceeds to vampirize the tongue of the fish. The louse gets bigger, and eventually the tongue falls off, and guess what?, this little guy replaces it! The fish continues along, but now it's got a parasite where it's tongue should be. The following pic should only be viewed with those with a strong stomach:

http://uglyoverload.blogspot.com/2007/02/two-mouths-to-feed.html

Spinochordodes tellinii: A parasitic worm of grasshoppers that makes it's host commit suicide by jumping into water (it's an aquatic worm in it's adult stage).

"Now Biron and his colleagues have shown that the worm brainwashes the grasshopper by producing proteins which directly and indirectly affect the grasshopper's central nervous system."

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn7927

Dracunculiasis: much better known as the 'guinea worm'. This one is for the humans. The larvae live in stagnant water (actually inside fleas) and when a person drinks it, the larvae enters. Stomach acid dissolves the flea-but not the larvae. The males and females develop in your body where they have sex. The male dies, and the female burrows into your connective tissue, often the legs. The worm then causes a rupture of the skin, seriously painful, and people (being smart) often relieve the pain by immersing the point of rupture in-stagnant water. This is where the female releases many new larvae to begin the wonderful process over again. You can get rid of the worm once it emerges, it takes months to do so correctly. Another brutal picture, don't look!:

http://www.who.int/features/factfiles/guinea_worm/facts/en/index1.html


All large species are infected with some parasite, including us. We have to rethink the way we do about our place in nature, and realize that we ourselves are a zoo, will always be a zoo, and that some of this zoo is actually vital to our very existence (various bacteria for example), while others will cause us harm (the Black Death, caused also by bacteria). We may even have to rethink the way we do about the atomization of species in general, since a particular species may not even be able to survive without their invaders. This makes things even more complicated than before-the web of life is even more tangled and intricate than previously imagined.

[sofa king]

73. Here is my worst photoshop job, ever.

[TexasObserver]

74. So that's why cat owners are that way.

It all makes sense now.

From the article:

"Other researchers have linked the parasite to schizophrenia. In an adult, the symptoms are like a mild form of flu, but it can be much more serious in an infant or fetus. Oxford University researchers believe high levels of the parasite leads to hyperactivity and lower IQs in children."

[flvegan]

75. This thread is the Awesome.

It's like GD and the Lounge got drunk and fornicated.

[BlooInBloo]

76. I responded to your post because the Cat Parasite made me.

[elizfeelinggreat]

78. Any update since 2006?

When this was written?