Last week, I told you about Toxoplasma gondii infections found in an Australian study of eyes. Many Australians like to eat their red meat rare. Raw red meat could harbor Toxoplasma.
In addition, lots of feral and domestic cats can transmit the infection. Gloves should be worn when changing cat litter, and hands washed afterwards.
Although a Toxoplasma infection is not curable, it can be prevented. Cooking meat to an internal temperature of 150 degrees Fahrenheit or freezing it ahead of cooking will kill the parasite.
It is also always a good idea to wash fresh fruits and vegetables before eating. And drinking untreated water (such as straight from rivers or creeks) should be avoided.
In spite of any precautions that might have been taken, Toxoplasma is the world’s most successful parasite, affecting 30%-50% of the world’s population. It is mainly thought to go after the brain in humans, possibly changing behavior and leading to neurological disorders and mental illness.
But the news is not all bad. According to a recent study, those affected by this parasite were seen as more attractive and healthy-looking, compared with non-infected people.
I know that does not make much sense, but it could be an evolutionary thing. The more attractive the parasite makes a person or animal, the more likely it is to spread.
Among the ways that Toxoplasma can be transmitted is by sexual contact. Some sexually transmitted parasites, such as Toxoplasma, may produce changes in the appearance and behavior of the human host, either as a by-product of the infection or as the result of the manipulation of the parasite to increase its spread to new hosts.
The attractiveness researchers found that infected men had more facial symmetry, which is generally considered to be more attractive than when one side of the face does not exactly match the other side.
Infected women had lower body mass, lower body mass index, a tendency for less facial fluctuating asymmetry (as was noted in infected men), higher self-perceived attractiveness, and a higher number of sexual partners than non-infected ones.
Then, they found that infected men and women were rated as more attractive and healthier than non-infected ones.
It is not clear to me whether the infection makes people more attractive or more attractive people are more likely to become infected.
Either way, we usually perceive parasites as a bad thing, and this aspect of Toxoplasma infection might not sound too bad. However, before you start thinking that Toxoplasma could be the Next Big Thing to improve appearance and attractiveness to the opposite sex, I think you should know that human infections are sometimes far from being benign.
In most human toxoplasmosis cases, the infected individual experiences mild, flu-like symptoms, often with enlarged lymph nodes, or has no symptoms whatsoever. Thus, most people who have been infected with Toxoplasma are unaware because clinicians do not routinely test for it.
There are three exceptions to this otherwise benign clinical picture:
• The first is cerebral toxoplasmosis, which occurs in individuals who are immunosuppressed because they have AIDS or are receiving treatment for cancer or organ transplantation. Cerebral toxoplasmosis can be severe and was a common cause of death in patients with AIDS before the development of effective AIDS treatments.
• The second exception is congenital toxoplasmosis, when an infection occurs in a pregnant woman. Such infections can cause severe damage to the developing fetus, including abortion, stillbirth and brain damage. Congenital toxoplasmosis infections occur in approximately 1 of every 10,000 births in the U.S., or approximately 3,800 each year. As a result, pregnant women are advised not to change their cat’s litter and to be evaluated for evidence of Toxoplasma infection.
• The third exception is eye disease. Toxoplasmosis is one of the most common causes of eye disease, especially of the retina. Each year in the U.S., approximately 4,800 individuals develop systematic ocular toxoplasmosis.
Although I realize that Toxoplasma has not been a frequent consideration in your life up to now, I have some other aspects of toxoplasmosis that I plan to share in next week’s column. In the meantime, if you have had personal experience with this parasite, I would be interested in learning your story.
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June 26, 2022 at 11:00AM
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Some parasites can change a person's appearance or behavior - KPCnews.com
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