Parasite linked to cats infects 350,000 a year: Infections linked to dementia in humans

A thousand people a day are being infected by a dangerous parasite spread by cats, a study has revealed.

Toxoplasma can cause birth defects, blindness and dementia and has been linked with schizophrenia and other psychotic disturbances.

Official figures to be released today show that around 350,000 Britons suffer infections every year. The link with Britain’s most popular pet will shock cat owners.

One per cent of Britain's eight million cats carries the toxoplasma parasite

The animals are the primary carriers of the parasite because they are the only animals within which it can reproduce. 

Humans, though, are most likely to become infected by the Toxoplasma gondii parasite from contaminated meat and vegetables or direct contact with infected cat litter.

Vulnerable groups such as pregnant women and those with weakened immune systems are most at risk. The disease can cause serious damage to babies developing in the womb.

Experts have estimated that one per cent of Britain’s eight million cats carry the parasite. But they have warned that the true extent of the disease has yet to be realised.

They want it to be made a notifiable disease in England and Wales  – meaning that medical staff must report the infection on a national database, as is already the case in Scotland.

The Food Standards Agency will publish a ‘risk profile’ later this week looking at Toxoplasma in the food chain.

The FSA’s paper is expected to highlight the unknown scale of Toxoplasma infections.

Although 80 per cent of those infected do not show any symptoms after infection, the remaining 20 per cent – up to 70,000 people a year – can become ill.

Cats are the primary carries of toxoplasma as they are the only animals within which the parasite can reproduce

Richard Holliman, a consultant medical biologist at St George’s Hospital in London, told The Independent: ‘Toxoplasma is more important, or as important, as salmonella and campylobacter, which affect a lot of people. 

‘Toxoplasma affects a few people but when it does affect them it can be devastating. A child born with congenital Toxoplasma is damaged for life.’

While cats are the only main host of the pest, the FSA will say that most infections are from eating contaminated food. 

Basic studies have shown that around 70 per cent of British sheep have been exposed to the parasite, which is thought to be carried by grass or feed that has come into contact with infected cat faeces.

A study published last week revealed that more than 12 million cats and dogs may be infected with parasites thanks to the wet summer, risking serious health problems for their owners.

The majority of owners fail to protect their pets against parasites, leaving them at risk from pests which can then infest the home. The mild winter and washout summer have led to a proliferation of pests such as ticks, which can lead to Lyme disease in humans.

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WARNING FROM RAEL: For those who don't use their intelligence at its full capacity, the label "selected by RAEL" on some articles does not mean that I agree with their content or support it. "Selected by RAEL" means that I believe it is important for the people of this planet to know about what people think or do, even when what they think or do is completely stupid and against our philosophy. When I selected articles in the past about stupid Christian fundamentalists in America praying for rain, I am sure no Rael-Science reader was stupid enough to believe that I was supporting praying to change the weather. So, when I select articles which are in favor of drugs, anti-semitic, anti-Jewish, racist, revisionist, or inciting hatred against any group or religion, or any other stupid article, it does not mean that I support them. It just means that it is important for all human beings to know about them. Common sense, which is usually very good among our readers, is good enough to understand that. When, like in the recent articles on drug decriminalization, it is necessary to make it clearer, I add a comment, which in this case was very clear: I support decriminalizing all drugs, as it is stupid to throw depressed and sad people (as only depressed and sad people use drugs) in prison and ruin their life with a criminal record. That does not mean that there is any change to the Message which says clearly that we must not use any drug except for medical purposes. The same applies to the freedom of expression which must be absolute. That does not mean again of course that I agree with anti-Jews, antisemites, racists of any kind or anti-Raelians. But by knowing your enemies or the enemies of your values, you are better equipped to fight them. With love and respect of course, and with the wonderful sentence of the French philosopher Voltaire in mind: "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it".

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"Ethics" is simply a last-gasp attempt by deist conservatives and
orthodox dogmatics to keep humanity in ignorance and obscurantism,
through the well tried fermentation of fear, the fear of science and
new technologies.

There is nothing glorious about what our ancestors call history, 
it is simply a succession of mistakes, intolerances and violations.

On the contrary, let us embrace Science and the new technologies
unfettered, for it is these which will liberate mankind from the
myth of god, and free us from our age old fears, from disease,
death and the sweat of labour.

Rael
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