Cat Ownership Mental Health: Nowadays, humans have started loving animals more than humans. But now wait a bit. If you are a cat parent, it is important to be alert. After analysis of 17 studies, the result has come out that keeping a cat can double the risk of mental diseases like schizophrenia.

Scientists at Australia’s Queensland Center for Mental Health Research have found a strong link between cat contact and psychotic illnesses. Let us tell you what came out of the research.

What came out in the study

Psychiatrist John McGrath and his team have worked in 11 countries, including America and Britain, in the last 40 years. They reviewed 17 studies regarding this. This meta-analysis published in Schizophrenia Bulletin found that people who had contact with cats were almost twice as likely to develop mental health issues later on. The researcher found the same pattern even after removing the influence of other factors.

probable cause

The most discussed reason to explain this relationship is Toxoplasma gondii. A parasite commonly found in cats. It can reach the body through cat fecal matter, bite, or even through undercooked meat and dirty water. Once inside, it can reach the brain and affect neurotransmitters, which can trigger personality changes, psychotic symptoms or mental illnesses. However, scientists are also making it clear that mere finding of relationship does not prove causation.

Study limitations and complications

As big as doubling the risk may sound, the picture is not that simple. 15 out of 17 studies were case-control. That is, already sick and healthy people were compared, and not followed for a long time. Such a design does not prove cause-effect. The quality of many studies was also not very good and their results were not uniform. Some studies even refuted this claim. For example, a study conducted on college students in the United States did not find any clear relationship between cat ownership and schizotypy scores. In another study, people who were bitten by a cat showed more psychotic-like symptoms. But the researcher believed that other bacteria might have played a role in this.

Something different in this research

Not all research supports this relationship. For example, a 2017 study from University College London followed 5,000 people from birth to 18 years and found no strong link between cat exposure and later psychotic symptoms. In this study, factors like socio-economic status were also controlled, due to which the cat-schizophrenia theory seems even weaker.

What should cat owners understand?

The latest meta-analysis does not prove that cat ownership causes schizophrenia. This just points to a possible risk factor. Researchers themselves are saying that larger and better designed studies are needed to understand this relationship. If you have a cat in your house, there is no need to panic. Just a few simple habits can be adopted, such as keeping the litter box clean, washing hands after handling cat feces and keeping the pet healthy.

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Disclaimer: This information is based on research studies and expert opinion. Do not consider this as a substitute for medical advice. Before adopting any new activity or exercise, please consult your doctor or relevant specialist.

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Do you know that animals also fall ill like us? They have serious problems like humans like heart attack or kidney failure. Actually, the system of humans and animals is very similar to the same extent. Most things like our and animals and animals work in different ways like other things like liver. The only difference is that humans can speak and tell their problems, while animals also remain quietly in trouble.

This is the biggest reason that often animal disease does not get caught, until the condition deteriorates. In such a situation, let us know whether the kidney fails of animals and a heart attack comes, as well as how different their system is from humans.

Animal kidney also fails?

Kidney ie kidney is one of the most important parts of the body. Like humans, animal kidney also does many things. Such as removing dirt and waste material from the body, maintaining water balance, keeping salt levels in the blood right and making some essential hormones, when these kidneys do not work properly, it is called kidney failure or chronic kidney disease. In such a situation, early symptoms of animal kidney disease are often minor, but can gradually take serious form if not paid attention. Such as too much thirst and frequent urination, loss of appetite, gradually losing weight, lethargy, vomiting or diarrhea. Due to which the kidney of animals can also fail. Kidney disease in animals can be caused due to many reasons. For example, in humans, the organs are weak when aging, the same happens in animals. In some breeds, this problem occurs from childhood, in addition to infection or bacteria, due to this, bacteria can reach the kidneys in the blood.

Do animals have a heart attack?

Hart, humans or animals are the most important part of everyone’s body. It pumps blood throughout the body and gives oxygen to every cell of the body. If the heart stops working, then the animal can also reach a serious condition. Heart attack in humans is often caused by coronary artery block. Animals may have a similar problem, but its form is slightly different. Animals often suffer from heart disease without symptoms and sometimes they may suddenly have cardiac arrest. Among animals, cardiomyopathy, mitral valve disease, high blood pressure and heart diseases present from birth time are the most common.

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