Daily Mail by Vanessa Chalmers 1/30/2019
People with the infection were more likely to have schizophrenia, experts found
Parasite T. gondii is believed to affect 350,000 Britons and 60million in the US
Findings add to previous research showing a link to mind-altering behavioursA common parasite spread by cats that is carried by two billion people may lead to schizophrenia, researchers fear.
Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii), which can spread to people through contact with cat litter trays and eating uncooked meat, is usually harmless.
But now, the largest study of its kind, has found having the parasite could raise the risk of developing schizophrenia by 50 per cent.
Unusual links between T. gondii and mind-altering behaviour, such as risk-taking, depression and car accidents, already exist.
Scientists at Copenhagen University analysed data from more than 80,000 individuals in the Danish Blood Donor Study, of which 2,591 people had registered psychiatric conditions.
The researchers, led by Dr Kristoffer Sølvsten Burgdorf, scoured traces of immunoglobulin antibodies for the presence of T. gondii.
Billions of people worldwide - nearly one third of the population, according to the University of Chicago - are believed to have been infected by the parasite, including 60million in the US and 350,000 a year in the UK.
More:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6648545/Mind-altering-parasite-spread-CATS-lead-schizophrenia.html
