Is it possible that bacteria from cats and other animals is responsible for mental illness to a large degree?
..."In 29 of the 33 patients studied, evidence of previous or current Bartonella infection was found, with tests finding antibodies to the bacteria or direct traces of the bacteria in their system. Twenty-four of these patients also had skin lesions linked to Bartonella infection that developed at around the same time their other symptoms began; these were usually vertical or horizontal reddish lesions that looked like stretch marks and were found along people’s limbs or trunk. The list of neuropsychiatric symptoms in these patients included sleep disorders, confusion, anger issues, anxiety, depression, and headaches/migraines.
The rod-shaped Bartonella bacteria are somewhat strange, even among their own kind. They can survive and replicate inside other cells, much like viruses—in people, they usually choose the cells that live inside or line our blood vessels. This disappearing act allows them to evade conventional tests for detecting infection and makes it harder for antibiotics to kill them.
Bartonella henselae is the most commonly seen infection in humans and causes cat scratch disease (also called cat scratch fever), named after its ability to spread from the bite or scratch of cats. Despite the name, B.henselae and other disease-causing Bartonella can be spread through dogs and other mammals, as well as through exposure to parasites like ticks, fleas, and lice."..
..."Doctors have started to come around to the idea that hidden bacteria and viruses in the body can affect our mental health and, over the long term, contribute to diseases like dementia and Alzheimer’s. But a case study out this week is the latest to suggest that certain germs can cause much more immediate and frightening mental health problems."...
Anger issues? I don't don't need anger management therapy. I need people to stop ticking me off so much. (as Red Green at the Possum Lodge said)
If more people realized how serious a cat bite can be, there would be a lot less cats in households - particularly with children. A cat bit me on the right hand five years ago. I couldn't even hold a pencil for a month. It required several trips to the hospital for intravenous penicillin treatment. Luckily gained full use of my hand. Some are not so lucky. Damage can be permanent. My ophthalmologist told me he had a patient who lost her eye as the result of a cat scratch. "We saw pathogens we had never seen before," he said.
It is not rational therefore, that I like cats. I like their mysterious intelligence - that sense they give you that they could do all those dog tricks too, but they just can't be bothered. If they choose to show off, they can. I had a cat that would jump up on my shoulder and I could go for a ride on my bike with it sitting there, purring to beat the band. I had a cat that would, at my urging, and to amuse friends and family, leap from a high tree branch onto my back, always landing with its claws retracted. I like the way cats just hang out with you, with no demands. I like their grace and beauty. I like their politeness. They greet your arrival with a yawn (for a cat it doesn't mean boredom), and will make some sort of peep before entering a room, to announce their arrival. I like cats.
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It is easier to let the cat out of the bag than to put the cat back in the bag.
Well people with cats (and dogs) tend to live longer on average, so perhaps not a problem. There have been comments about toxoplasmosis being implicated in human mental health before.
There I was reading your post and decided to get up, make a coffee and listen to the song. Damn the cat was sleeping behind my chair and I stepped on her tail. Suddenly I was scratched on both ankles most unplayfully such that one might say bleeding cat.
Should I, in subsequent posts, exhibit being more mental than anything please accept my happy eulogies!
A similar photo, but taken inside a house, hangs on the wall of a local bookstore, which always has a couple of working cats (sleeping on bookshelves) in attendance. It is easy for the cat situation to get out of control. Cats recognize a cat-friendly house. A few years ago a pregnant stray cat came through an open window and had its litter in a back room of my house. I already had four cats, so with this addition the number was up to eleven. I was knee deep in cats, and sinking fast. I called the regional Animal Rescue Crew and cried, Help!", and they did. I'm holding steady now at three cats. The big tom though, might be part dog, judging by the way it growls when it hears a strange noise at night. It is my attack cat.
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It is easier to let the cat out of the bag than to put the cat back in the bag.
It is unlikely that all <...mental illness...> is caused by <...cats[']...bacteria...>.
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"Did you get my e-mail?" - "The biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place" - George Bernard Shaw, 1856
My limited understanding of biology is that they all do at some point.
Slightest accidental scratch and I get a really annoying reaction - a white coloured raised area for about an inch or so along nearest blood vessel (even from a pin prick scratch). Iritates like heck for at least a day
Death is a bit extreme. They just need to be compelled to wear little boots. Helping them to put the things on could be a problem.
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Anybody licked by a cat's tongue will know the horrific feeling. I'd keep slimey sandpaper if I wanted that. Apart from Del, I'm finding it hard to think why we put up with them.
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Love it. I saw some weird stuff when I lived in London and used the underground every day. Not as mad as Spiderman, but certainly hilarious. The ones that leave you thinking 'what the heck just happened' are the best.
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Cat Scratch Fever
Re: Cat Scratch Fever
