[新聞] 養貓或引發心理健康問題

If you’re prone to sudden bursts of anger, it could be your cat’s fault.如果你發現自己經常會突然大動肝火，那麼問題可能出在自家養的貓身上。

A new study has found that people with Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED) – characterised by explosive bouts of rage – are twice as likely to have been infected by a parasite found in cat faeces.
最新研究發現，間歇爆發性精神障礙（IED）患者（以突發性情緒激動為主要症狀）曾經受貓排泄物中寄生蟲感染的機率是其他人的兩倍。

The findings suggest that toxoplasmosis, an infection from the parasite Toxoplasma gondii, may alter people’s brain chemistry to cause long-term behavior problems.
調查結果表明，這種由弓形蟲引起的弓形體病，可能會改變人們的大腦化學組成，導致長期的行為問題。

Cats are known to pass the parasite on to human by shedding its eggs in their faeces. People can become infected by not washing their hands after cleaning a cat’s litter tray, and then unintentionally ingesting the eggs.
據悉，貓通過排泄物將弓形蟲卵傳給人類。貓主人如果在洗完貓的糞便托盤後沒有及時洗手，就會無意中在手上殘留了蟲卵，進而感染這種寄生蟲。

Around a third of people in the UK will become infected at some point in their lives – with cat owners at particularly high risk.
在英國，大約有三分之一的人會在一生中的某個時刻受到感染，那些家裡養貓的人感染風險尤其高。

Toxoplasmosis has also been linked with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, impulsivity and suicidal behavior in earlier studies.
早期有研究表明，弓形體病也與精神分裂症、躁鬱症、衝動和自殺行為有關。

The new study, published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, looked at 358 adult participants. Researcher found that 22 percent of the people with IED tested positive for toxoplasmosis exposure, compared with only 9 percent of those without IED.
這項最新研究發表在《臨床精神病學雜誌》上。通過對參與實驗的358名成年人的觀察，研究人員發現，患有間歇爆發性精神障礙的受試者中，有22%對弓形體病的檢測結果呈陽性，而未患該病的受試者中，檢測呈陽性的僅佔9%。

“Not everyone that tests positive for toxoplasmosis will have aggression issues,” said research leader Dr. Emil Coccaro of the University of Chicago. However, exposure to the parasite does appear to “raise the risk for aggressive behavior.”
埃米爾·科卡羅博士來自芝加哥大學，是該研究的科研組長。他表示，“弓形蟲病的檢測結果呈陽性並不代表身體一定會出現攻擊性問題”。然而，接觸此類寄生蟲似乎的確會“增加人們出現攻擊行為的風險。”

The NHS says that toxoplasmosis is “usually nothing to worry about because the immune system is normally strong enough to fight the infection and stop it from causing serious illness.
英國醫療管理機構（NHS）表示，“通常無需太擔心這種弓形蟲病，正常情況下人類的免疫系統足以與之抗衡，能阻止它繼續引發任何重大疾病。”

“After getting the infection, most people are immune to it for the rest of their life.”
“大多數人受到感染後就會終身免疫了。”

However, it can lead to serious problems in women who become infected while they’re pregnant, and people with weak immune systems.
不過，如果孕婦或者一些免疫系統較弱的人受到感染，後果則不容小覷。

本文來源 中國日報網

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