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June 2015Volume 165, Issue 1, Pages 1–2
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Is childhood cat ownership a risk factor for schizophrenia later in life?

E. Fuller Torrey
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E. Fuller Torrey
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Affiliations

  • Stanley Medical Research Institute, United States

Correspondence

  • Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 301 571 2078.
correspondence
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E. Fuller Torrey
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Affiliations

  • Stanley Medical Research Institute, United States

Correspondence

  • Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 301 571 2078.
,
Wendy Simmons
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Wendy Simmons
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  • Stanley Medical Research Institute, United States
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Robert H. Yolken
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Robert H. Yolken
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Affiliations

  • Stanley Laboratory of Developmental Neurovirology, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, United States
Received: January 29, 2015; Received in revised form: February 26, 2015; Accepted: March 2, 2015; Published Online: April 18, 2015
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.schres.2015.03.036
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Abstract

Two previous studies suggested that childhood cat ownership is a possible risk factor for later developing schizophrenia or other serious mental illness. We therefore used an earlier, large NAMI questionnaire to try and replicate this finding. The results were the same, suggesting that cat ownership in childhood is significantly more common in families in which the child later becomes seriously mentally ill. If true, an explanatory mechanism may be Toxoplasma gondii. We urge our colleagues to try and replicate these findings to clarify whether childhood cat ownership is truly a risk factor for later schizophrenia.

Keywords:

Schizophrenia, Bipolar disorder, Cat contact, Toxoplasmosis, Toxoplasma gondii

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© 2015 Elsevier B.V. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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June 2015Volume 165, Issue 1, Pages 1–2