My dentist informed my me adult tooth root resorption (the same process through which baby teeth fall out) is correlated with cat ownership during early childhood.
or maybe we, as a group, underestimate the impacts of chronic infection on the body and brain.
Otherwise “simple infections” are (likely, almost obviously) responsible for tons, including dementia, Parkinson’s, more,
and they’re the ones everyone ignores,
or struggle to even get a diagnosis for,
and instead say “it’s normal to not be able to squat once, or have any energy when you’re ‘getting older’!”.
These infections can drive…completely life-changing medical trajectories - without the patient ever noticing.
Everyone just thinks they won the “reverse—lottery” when cancer or dementia finally shows up…I’m becoming less convinced it’s a “chance” thing at all.
We just don’t see, nor monitor the beginnings - and if we do happen upon them, hey, “everybody has Staph, EBV, [insert bacteria or virus here] - nothing to be worried by! Very common!”
"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."
I think a more obvious candidate is self-selection. People with known mental issues that want a pet are wise to choose those that demand less maintenance. It's hard to go walk the dog while undergoing a mental breakdown. Cats, on the other hand, don't require people to walk them, and are mostly self-cleaning. They are a safer pick for people whose routines are subject to sporadic disruption.
My dentist informed my me adult tooth root resorption (the same process through which baby teeth fall out) is correlated with cat ownership during early childhood.
Hmm even if it were causal it would be worth it. It's not a stretch to say my cats once saved me from worse.
Or maybe Schizophrenia is linked to increased risk of cat ownership
or maybe we, as a group, underestimate the impacts of chronic infection on the body and brain.
Otherwise “simple infections” are (likely, almost obviously) responsible for tons, including dementia, Parkinson’s, more,
and they’re the ones everyone ignores,
or struggle to even get a diagnosis for,
and instead say “it’s normal to not be able to squat once, or have any energy when you’re ‘getting older’!”.
These infections can drive…completely life-changing medical trajectories - without the patient ever noticing.
Everyone just thinks they won the “reverse—lottery” when cancer or dementia finally shows up…I’m becoming less convinced it’s a “chance” thing at all.
We just don’t see, nor monitor the beginnings - and if we do happen upon them, hey, “everybody has Staph, EBV, [insert bacteria or virus here] - nothing to be worried by! Very common!”
Recent discussion (18 points, 1 month ago, 14 comments) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45946707
From that discussion...
"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."
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45947121
Cat-positive schizotype here!
Did cat haters write this steaming pile of cat turds?
The Cat Lady Council wishes to object
Friendly reminder that correlation does not imply causation.
Sure, but it can point to potential causation. Toxoplasma gondii infection is the obvious candidate here.
I think a more obvious candidate is self-selection. People with known mental issues that want a pet are wise to choose those that demand less maintenance. It's hard to go walk the dog while undergoing a mental breakdown. Cats, on the other hand, don't require people to walk them, and are mostly self-cleaning. They are a safer pick for people whose routines are subject to sporadic disruption.
& Bartonella.
I love my cats crazy much so yeah I guess it's true lol
Nothing conveyed here, move along
JD Vance was prescient bout those cat ladies… Took a year for those researchers to catch up. :)