Owning a Cat Could Double Your Risk of Schizophrenia, Research Suggests

The potential reason might be this charming fellow

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasma_gondii

"Once inside our bodies, T. gondii can infiltrate the central nervous system and influence neurotransmitters. The parasite has been linked to personality changes, the emergence of psychotic symptoms, and some neurological disorders, including schizophrenia."

Otherwise the data is not really great so far.

"This kind of research can't show cause and effect, and it often doesn't account for factors that may have affected both the exposure and the outcome.

The researchers also highlight the low quality of a number of the examined studies."

	▲	cm2012 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		There's so much BS around toxoplasmosis online. Most toxo cases in humans are not caused by pet cats. Here's corrections for two common misconceptions: 1) Most people with the Toxoplasmosis infection got it from eating undercooked meat, not from cats. France has the highest rate of toxoplasmosis in the world (50%+ of the population have the parasite) because of their propensity for rare meats: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1118145/ 2) Unless your cat lived a significant part of it's life as an outdoor cat, it is very unlikely to have the parasite (like any parasite). Most cat to human transmission (again, minority of total transmissions) comes from stray cats infecting gardens with their feces.

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gus_massa 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> This kind of research can't show cause and effect, and it often doesn't account for factors that may have affected both the exposure and the outcome.

So, it's not clear that cats make you schizophreanic, or schizofrenic people buys more cats.

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holysoles 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

This seems sensationalist to me, the research the article references doesn't conclude any causal effects, only correlation:

Our review provides support for an association between cat ownership and schizophrenia-related disorders

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chequoredDaemon 11 hours ago | parent [-]

I suspect deliberately infecting large populations with the goal of inducing higher rates of schizophrenia so a strong scientific causality can be asserted is, unfortunately for science but fortunately for us, somewhat unethical.

Unless you know something I don't.

	▲	threatofrain 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		You'd have to look for natural experiments, such as natural big swings in cat ownership around the world.

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gnabgib 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

(2023) Somewhat related studies:

Cat parasite linked to mental illness, schizophrenia (19 points, 2023, 13 comments) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38529342

Mind-Altering Cat Parasite Linked to Schizophrenia in Largest Study Yet (22 points, 2019, 3 comments) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19040456

	▲	cm2012 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		As I say elsewhere in the comments here, PSA: Toxoplasmosis in humans is rarely caused by pet cats, almost never from indoor cats. Undercooked meat is the more common cause.

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puppycodes 8 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I see so many "sciencealert.com" posts on HN.

Does this site have some sort of credibilty?

The name alone gives me snake oil vibes

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thrill 9 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Half of me says this is not true.

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TheChaplain 10 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

No schizophrenia, more like constant anxiety that he found another way to end himself prematurely.

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