Thread by @imacuriosguy

Pregnant women are advised not to clean their cat litter tray and to wear gloves while gardening.
Avoid eating raw meat or from eating unwashed fruit and vegetables.
This is to prevent the infection of Toxoplasmosis which is deleterious to the baby inside..

Toxoplasma Gondii is a parasite which can infect many mammals and birds, but can only sexually reproduce inside cats. Its normal lifecycle is to be shed into the environment in cat faeces, from where it may be picked up by rodents and birds, which are then eaten by cats..

For most people, it causes only a mild flu-like illness, but during pregnancy it can harm the fetus.
In people with weak immune systems, toxo can be deadly. .

Even in those who aren’t immunosuppressed, the parasite usually isn’t eradicated from our bodies. Instead, it survives in latent form as small cysts in the brain or muscle tissue.

The bizarre mind-altering effects parasite has on the brain. Mice and rats infected with toxo become bolder and more aggressive, and even become attracted to the scent of cat urine. These effects would clearly make rodents more likely to end up in a cat’s stomach..

In rodents, the parasite may be controlling behaviour by boosting the release of dopamine, a brain signalling chemical. The genes for helping to make dopamine are present in T. gondii DNA.

Although not proven conclusively in humans,
this parasite can cause same effects of reckless behavior and violent outbursts of rage, as well as in people with schizophrenia.
Its effects in rodents are super dramatic.
#medtwitter #obgyntwitter #Schizophrenia #parasites

Beware of this mind controlling single celled protozoan parasite.