That's not what the source meta-analysis[0] says: "Our findings support an association between cat exposure and an increased risk of broadly defined schizophrenia-related disorders; however, the findings related to PLE as an outcome are mixed. There is a need for more high-quality studies in this field." (DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbad168 linked at the bottom of the editorial)

[0]: https://academic.oup.com/schizophreniabulletin/advance-artic...

I wonder how this may have impacted world history. Something along the lines of humans have grain storage >> rats are attracted to grain >> cats are attracted to rats >> humans are attracted to cats >> human populations with cats become slightly more schizoaffective (which in most premodern societies is not really pathological) >> these societies commune with the divine more/tell the future/develop more complex religious institutions >> these religious institutions help stabilize society

Kinda seems like a win-win to be honest.

How does the topic of toxoplasmosis gondii reappear every six months or so?

Reminds me of the Paul Graham article about submarine news placement.

http://paulgraham.com/submarine.html

I wish i knew how to compose one of those related article searches that dang does so well.

Imperfect search:

https://hn.algolia.com/?q=toxoplasmosis

> The researchers conducted an extensive study search across various databases and gray literature from January 1, 1980, to May 30, 2023, without geographical or language limitations. They included studies reporting original data on cat ownership and schizophrenia-related outcomes. Out of 1,915 identified studies, 17 were used from 11 different countries.

cherry picking studies to find some meaningful signal. Meta analysis is not a thing, it's just pseudo-science.

It'd be easy to rule this out. Cats who have been indoor-only without access to rodents are unlikely to have it. This would be a good distinction to collect/analyze if wanting to add credibility to the toxoplasmosis theory and rule out other cat related factors.

Although I'm all for the study of T. gondii, they also state other factors that could affect schizophrenia outcome:

>> Environmental factors are also important. Epidemiologic studies, for example, have established that winter-spring birth, urban birth, and perinatal and postnatal infection are all risk factors for the disease developing in later life.

Hmm. My schizophrenic relative really likes cats. Could it just be a genetic predisposition to like cats is related to a genetic predisposition to the illness?

This just seems like a review of previous studies, picking and choosing evidence/previous conclusions from tangentially related investigations. I can’t access the published paper but the article implies this area has been studied before, so I’m confused what this new paper is supposed to contribute. Is it just a literature overview?

I’m interested in getting a cat in the future so I’m interested in a proper study of this.