[Griff]

Study Links Cat Litter Box to Increased Suicide Risk

A common parasite that can lurk in the cat litter box may cause undetected brain changes in women that make them more prone to suicide, according to an international study.

Scientists have long known that pregnant women infected with the toxoplasma gondii parasite -- spread through cat feces, undercooked meat or unwashed vegetables -- could risk still birth or brain damage if transmitted to an unborn infant.

But a new study of more than 45,000 women in Denmark shows changes in their own brains after being infected by the common parasite.

The study, authored by University of Maryland School of Medicine psychiatrist and suicide neuroimmunology expert Dr. Teodor T. Postolache, was published online today in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

The study found that women infected with T. gondii were one and a half times more likely to attempt suicide than those who were not infected. As the level of antibodies in the blood rose, so did the suicide risk. The relative risk was even higher for violent suicide attempts. ...

Interesting stuff, but then one of the conclusions...



He also cautions against trendy food production techniques that let animals roam free. "The risk of infection could go up," he said, "and increase the rate of toxoplasmosis."


hmmm... so man has been cooking meat for 125,000 years. Large scale confinement agriculture has built up over what, 50 years? So free-ranging food animals is trendy?