So does this mean that your kitties are slowly depressing you???
Fortunately, this has nothing to do with actual cats but their little boxes are another story.
University of Maryland researchers found out that the bacteria Toxoplasma gondii may have something to do with higher suicides rates.
Currently, one third of the population has some level of T. gondii but many will go through their lives not knowing so.
However a study of 45,000 women in Denmark found that women infected with T. gondii were 1.5x more likely to commit suicide. The suicide risk also seemed to increase with the presence of T. gondii antibodies, the more present, the higher the risk.
The researchers believe that T. gondii causes a flux in mental stability and decision making, which may cause depression or impulsiveness.
But they also agree that litter boxes and the bacteria are not the only cause that affects the brain.
So we don’t need to panic and boot our kitties out the door.
