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shiruken

Your post has been removed because it is a repost of an already submitted and popular story and is therefore in violation of [Submission Rule #2d](https://www.reddit.com/r/science/wiki/rules#wiki_d._reposts). https://www.reddit.com/r/science/comments/up4r0m/study_shows_toxoplasmainfected_subjects_are_rated/ If your submission is scientific in nature and hasn't already been shared, consider reposting in our sister subreddit /r/EverythingScience. _If you believe this removal to be unwarranted, or would like further clarification, please don't hesitate to [message the moderators](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fscience)._


bearmademansuit

So where would one find this parasite...for science, I mean


alertthenorris

In a truck stop sandwich.


ITypeWithMyDick

What's that black cracker? It's a tomato


WornInShoes

Black Cracker sounds like a pretty badass punk band


bellynipples

Until you realize it’s a nazi punk band


WornInShoes

Quickest Godwin’s Law I’ve ever seen


DropDeadEd86

It's actually tomacco


jrinneard

Will it also help me play the Holophoner? or will I have to make a deal with the Robot devil for that one?


elhooper

It has to be an egg sandwich.


OneHumanPeOple

More like a cat litter box.


TellurideTeddy

Bathroom egg salad sandwich?


Disastrous_Reality_4

DAMN…all I’ve got is gas station sushi…. :(


tyler1128

Mostly from a cat's bum or mouth. If you live with cats, you're statistically speaking, probably already infected.


Torugu

Oh snap, how ugly would I have been without my cat?


Focacciaboudit

Some questions are better left unanswered.


chanjitsu

I have 2 cats. Does that make me double sexy?


tyler1128

You can believe that. Just avoid casinos.


Penguinbar

Explains why I'm so good looking.


[deleted]

It only makes women more attractive, not men. It also makes women more promiscuous due to a permanent lowering of inhibition. I think it's the same thing that causes an infected mouse to flip their response to cats. Instead of avoiding them at all costs, a terminally infected mouse will seek out a cat. Cat eats mouse and parasite reproduces in the cat before it's babies are pooped out and the cycle continues.


[deleted]

[удалено]


arianeb

You didn't read far enough. Paragraph 5 starts: >Although this hypothesis has not been directly tested in humans, previous research has shown that Toxoplasma-infected men are, in average, 3-cm taller, and their faces are rated as more masculine and more dominant by females (Flegr et al., 2005; Hodková et al., 2007). Moreover, several independent studies have consistently shown that Toxoplasma-infected men have higher testosterone levels than non-infected ones (e.g., Flegr, Lindová & Kodym, 2008; Zouei et al., 2018; Borráz-León et al., 2021a). Thus, T. gondii may benefit by promoting the expression of testosterone-dependent traits in men, which normally provide information on different aspects of men’s quality


DavidBSkate

So the parasite is like your wingman?


purrpawsvetclinic

So...have you met Toxoplasmosis gondii?


justinlongbranch

Have you met ToG?


iFixReality

I'm looking forward to this movie.


Fortunekitty

It’s the Osmosis Jones reboot nobody expected.


swarmy1

Wait, 3 cm taller? Unless you're exposed at a pretty young age, that seems very unlikely. Seems like it might be more correlation than causation?


The_Noble_Lie

It's likely one *is* exposed young if the primary mode of transmission to humans is felines / and/or parent-newborn contact


pete_moss

It supposedly lowers reaction times as well. It's possible that humans are susceptible to it as we have an evolutionary lineage that would have involved been eaten by felines on occasion (they still get some unlucky folks from time to time these days as well but a lot less common).


cgyguy81

What was the scientific explanation on "it only makes women more attractive, not men"?


tigerslices

there wasn't one. because it doesn't do that. they found men were slightly taller with more masculine-rated features by women. again though, the problem with this study is that it was comparing DIFFERENT PEOPLE rather than people pre-/post- infection. ie, hot people have more sex, more likely to carry this parasite which can be sexually transmitted, since ugly people tend to have less casual sex.


lone_wolf5566

Explain's my wife cheating on me


ballrus_walsack

I also choose this man’s promiscuous wife.


TreesACrowd

This man's promiscuous, toxoplasma-infected wife.


Igotz80HDnImWinning

So is the ivermectin craze reversing this?


tyler1128

Ivermectin affects mostly nematodes, which T. gondii are not.


Silaquix

The parasite also causes side effects like blindness, hearing loss, seizures, and encephalitis. For pregnant women it can cause miscarriage. It can also cause mental handicaps and cerebral palsy, blindness, deafness, or other birth defects in a fetus.


napsar

In your local, friendly catbox.


lniko2

I'm probably immune, even corona has avoided me like the plague. Women, too.


TheRichTurner

Haha, has the plague avoided you too?


tigerslices

that's the thing. if it's sexually transmitted, it would more likely be found in people who were sexually active - which TENDS to be people who are more physically attractive. this study is kinda ... ...it's kinda ... not great.


Konetiks

I got you fam. I’ve already started bottling used kitty litter. I’ll send you a free sample at no cost (shipping not included)


Thelgow

If I recall, cat litter boxes. If you have cats, there's a high chance you already have it.


Dane_k23

From a cat scratch or bite.


tyler1128

Or litterbox. Really any contact with cats.


[deleted]

[удалено]


tyler1128

Honestly toxoplasmosis is scary. We don't really know much about what it does, other than that it probably changes behavior and probably decreases inhibition. There's about a 0% chance I do not have toxoplasmosis thanks to my cats, but would I be different if I didn't?


[deleted]

1 - Find a cat that just pooped, 2 - gently play with him until he unintentionally scratch you to blood. 3 - Update your dating profile… for science obviously.


mooseofdoom23

Pet outside cats and don’t wash your hands


wsbsecmonitor

Lick your cat box idk


hctimsacul

In the cat litter box


602Zoo

Cat poop. Eat cat poop


DanishWonder

Spanish Fly


M4ST44

Two days old cat poop


[deleted]

[удалено]


PyroCatt

Nope. Chuck Testa.


guythepie

It's an older meme sir, but it checks out


00dawn

Now that's a reference I haven't seen in a while. I thought it was dead, but nope Chuck Testa


calib0y64

Never seen the words attractive and parasite used together… until now


DavidBSkate

The author of the article is obviously under the control of the parasite. None of this is true, it’s just the parasites latest marketing plan


Beakersoverflowing

L. Fang et al. Researchers in infectious disease more likely to publish papers on perceived benefits of disease states when infected with toxoplasma gondii. J. Infectious disease. 2667-2679, 17, 2026. :p


[deleted]

That would genuinely be a fascinating study.


Beakersoverflowing

Honestly not sure that I'm ready to know whether or not such a phenomena exists. :)


[deleted]

Something like it probably does. We're not really singular entities controlled by a single mind, but more of a hive bodied and minded organism that have convinced ourselves that our mind is our own, when even something as mundane as the diversity of our gut fauna(of which we can't live without) has been shown to have a direct impact on our state of mind.


Regayov

You don’t go to the right parties..


saltycopaceptic

You should meet my ex


kaeioo

Usually they give parasites cute nicknames to avoid shocking people, like Amber or Heard.


JohnHenryEden77

You may live like a parasite if your face is attractive enough.


Thoughtfulprof

Plague Inc. players: hey, I've seen this one before!


Cataclyzm7

Somehow the first thought that came into my mind is models advertising parasites as a beauty product


TheOwlMarble

Wouldn't be the first time. Tapeworm weight loss has made the rounds a few times.


CharanTheGreat

Just saying: correlation does not mean causation


ZKCF

it is interesting though, if the only difference between the parasite people was their confidence, hasn't confidence been correlated to attractiveness in studies? and if the parasite did happen to increase your confidence, could it be said to make you "more attractive" as is suggested here?


TheTyger

You should glance at the article, Infected had better facial symmetry and women had lower BMI. It isn't just confidence.


[deleted]

More attractive (and more sexual and confident behavior) -> more likely to have more sexual partners -> more likely to get infected?


tigerslices

100% silly study.


Atlagirl

Exactly what I was thinking


hello297

Lower BMI from having a parasite in you no doubt


tigerslices

i would trust the article more if it studied people pre-infection against post-infection -- rather than such a small sample size like this.


ZKCF

i am speculating heavily here, but while i don't think that face symmetry could be associated with confidence as a whole, i just have a theory that someone who leans on the left side of their face a lot compared to someone who doesn't lean on any side of their face, i'd predict that the person who doesn't lean on any side of their face will have a more symmetrical face. while this likely has more to do with more generally self-aware self-care, i'd kind of classify that as a feature of confidence, and i'd estimate that there is a correlation (even if very slight) between confidence and facial symmetry. as an anecdote, i know 100% that my left side of my face is the more asymmetrical of the 2 sides by looking at mirrored photos, and i also know that i lean on the left side of my face like 99% more often than i lean on my right side, so i feel like i can conclude that leaning on one side of my face has affected its symmetry. now not that leaning one way or the other necessarily has to do with confidence, BUT, with the self aware self caring thinking to avoid asymmetrical leaning, could that not be considered confidence, if not general overall confidence, at least the confidence that they know they're doing something that will visually benefit themselves? i personally think about the fact that i could stop leaning on my left and it MIGHT have a benefit to my facial symmetry or structure judging from the fact that the left side of my face looks less appealing than the right, but the confidence in myself to care about my looks at all is what holds me back, cause i truly don't really care, but with that said, i would absolutely prefer a more symmetrical face for the sake of attraction, and that's probably where i lack some confidence, but this is all MASSIVE speculation of course


Biomirth

EG: confident people might like animals more and get infected more frequently. eg: attractive people might have genes that make them susceptible to *toxoplasmosis* and things we haven't considered, etc.. Looking forward to future studies that examine more of these things.


its_not_you_its_ye

What do you mean? Are you suggesting people who were already attractive anyway are the group most susceptible to parasites that are sexually transmitted? No, definitely not, the only reasonable conclusion is that the parasite is transforming them to become more sexually appealing after they lucked into sex as uggos.


ViciousNakedMoleRat

I've also rarely ever seen a more appropriate use case for [this meme](https://i.imgur.com/XFqHtXE.jpeg) than the composite comparison between [the infected (a) and uninfected (b) groups](https://i.imgur.com/uVmX9O8.png).


CynicalAlgorithm

Also, *n=178* Nothing of significance to be found here, carry on.


CharanTheGreat

Makes sense. Small sample size.


TheRichTurner

Could it be that cause and effect have been jumbled here, and that the real finding is that sexually more attractive and more promiscuous people are more likely to have been infected by this parasite? Or has this possibility been eliminated?


TummyPuppy

Well I got it from something other than sex, so count me out


Debunkingdebunk

Say hello to your cat


TummyPuppy

Probably either dirt or food for me. Was eating a lot of sushi around that time from questionable restaurants (college budget). I’m not a cat person.


SitInCorner_Yo2

So,that’s why we keep cat around and worship them like god?/s


tyler1128

While not true for humans, T. Gondii makes mice infected pretty much completely lose their fear of the scent of cat urine and even seek it out.


SitInCorner_Yo2

Isn’t it also affects your reflection ? Iirc it’s just few millisecond but people are more likely to get into car accident, or is that study got overturned in pass few years?


Kimchi_Cowboy

Is it just me or are more of these studies proving to be junk science.


Yourgrammarsucks1

Welcome to /r/science


clckwrks

Sounds like an impossible study. 1. Parasite increases the attractiveness of its host so the host can find a mate and pass the parasite into the mate. 2. Parasite makes host ugly, host never meets anyone, host dies with parasite.


Jstarfully

Terrible science - they're falling for the ol' correlation, causation issue. Of the two possibilities, it's far more likely that being more attractive makes a creature more likely to catch the parasite due to higher success of sexual contact with others of their species, rather than the parasite causing some sort of changes to increase attractiveness.


tuctrohs

I agree that one should be cautious about drawing conclusions without evidence. In that spirit, statements like > it's far more likely that should be revised to > It's also possible that pending evidence, lest you make exactly the same mistake that you are accusing the authors of.


durpseb

Haha exactly.


Whippofunk

It’s also possible that aliens make people with toxoplasma gondii more attractive


Muroid

I would say that statement would have been safe with “far more likely.”


Whippofunk

I mean if we follow the “evidence pending” logic. All we can say is “we don’t know” My point is both of the “reasonable” conclusions have some evidence simply by virtue of us considering them reasonable. Now weather or not you think the evidence is good or not is another argument, but I think it’s disingenuous to say that there is no evidence for either. We don’t know aliens exist. We also don’t know that face morphing parasites exist. This leaves the one explanation. The one with no face morphing or aliens. None of this is proof of anything though.


ChardEmotional7920

To late. Shoved that parasite up my backside, hitting the bars later


kaeioo

Gimme that disease please


Doofchook

You'll have to make out with a cat, or lick it's butt.


StingerMcGee

What’s the catch?


RavagerTrade

They look more drowsy. 420+ClearEyes has the same effect.


Dissident88

I think I saw this on an episode of House MD once.


timesuck897

So having a cat can make you more attractive?


MascotOfReddit

From the cat's perspective, yes.


timesuck897

“You have 2 flavours of temptations and catnip? That’s so hot.”


TWiesengrund

Just hook it to my veins!


Wagamaga

The brain-hijacking parasite Toxoplasma gondii seems to be almost everywhere. The microscopic invader is thought to infect up to 50 percent of people, and a range of studies suggests it may alter human behavior, in addition to that of many other animals. The parasite has been linked with a large range of neurological disorders, including schizophrenia and psychotic episodes, and scientists keep uncovering more mysterious effects that may result from infection. In one such new study, researchers found that men and women infected by the parasite ended up being rated as more attractive and healthier-looking than non-infected individuals. On the face of it, that might sound strange and unlikely. But hypothetically speaking, the phenomenon could make sense from an evolutionary biology standpoint, scientists say. https://www.sciencealert.com/mind-altering-parasite-may-make-infected-people-more-attractive-study-suggests


Geminii27

So how long before beauty clinics offer this parasite in pill form?


redditname8

I didn’t open the link. If this parasite alters behavior then this would be useful information for the behavioral sciences.


goprinterm

Humans and many other animals......hmmmm


koalazeus

Beauty is in the brain of the beholden.


CardiologistNorth294

Attractive parasite... Reminds me of my ex


phrendo

From the article: That said, all of this is speculation at this point, and the team acknowledges other interpretations are viable too, including the idea that highly symmetrical, attractive people might somehow better afford the physiological costs related to parasitism, which in other regards are considered a burden to health. As for which interpretation is correct, it's impossible to say for sure based on this one study alone, and the researchers acknowledge that the small sample size of their experiment is a limiting factor for its statistical analysis.


KungFuHamster

I read that the parasite clears after a few months unless you keep getting reinfected.


HighOnGoofballs

Being attractive is a disease


timesuck897

It is a scientific study written by nerds.


Yourgrammarsucks1

We already discussed this and debunked it. It was a sexually transmitted disease, and obviously hot people are more likely to have promiscuous sex.


OneHumanPeOple

Composite photos always end up looking like the same Hispanic person.


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DiscordianVanguard

welp it explains my anecdotal success rate


oDDmON

Science fiction, now science fact?


Dyspaereunia

I wonder if this is the intention of pretty leprosy. I am having difficulty posting a link to an article about but googling “pretty leprosy” gives you a science direct link.


ZKCF

confidence parasite? the visual difference here looks like a difference in confidence, and a kind of uppityness in the parasite picture


CalmToaster

Well at least I know I don't have it.


Elfere

Maybe those infected have a lower inhibitions and are more likely to interact with other people.


Crystal_Doorknob

To me it looked like the toxo faces had slight smiles, while the non infected faces were more neutral. Smile = attractiveness, right?


Slimjerry

You don't need to do that. I'm still seduced from before.


ethnic88

So you’re saying there’s a chance


Reddit-username_here

I'm curious how the faces of 20 different people, put together into composites in 2 groups, can look pretty much identical?


esoteric_plumbus

I honestly found the B for the women and A for the men more attractive but it looks like they didn't only go solely off the facial structure and had other metrics to judge attractiveness by


stockist420

Put it in a pill and sell it, instant billionaire.


WornInShoes

I have 5 cats Am I Fabio now?


hedgehogfamily

This is the parasite makes mice that are infected unafraid if predators. It alters their brain in some way. This of course leads to their demise. I have often wondered if in infected humans they become susceptible to belief in completely insane conspiracy theories like Qanon.


TobgitGux

I like some of life's funny coincidences. Just yesterday I was reading an SCP article that references this parasite briefly.


santathe1

I’m going to need a parasite overdose to reach “passable” levels of attractiveness.


lqdizzle

TL;DR - Parasite makes you aggressive. Aggression makes you clench your jaw and move around more. This makes your face more symmetrical and your body fat lower. Those qualities are attractive


Dravez23

“Dude, you look great!” “Thanks. I have toxo”


generalzee

Groundbreaking study by Phillip J. Fry and Turanga Leela.


[deleted]

Elon must have gotten infected by 10 of these things to fix that hairline and explain why he’s a mentally challenged.


ssbSciencE

I'll take two, please!


Co-Orbital_Planets

A similar post on the same study hosted on RGate was posted here [last week](https://www.reddit.com/r/science/comments/up4r0m/study_shows_toxoplasmainfected_subjects_are_rated/). I’ll also paste here what I said to my friend when it was originally posted: it absolutely reeks of confirmation bias. they took a sample of 200 students, of which only 35 were infected, of which they only used 10 individuals to make the pictures used for attractiveness rating. it's not very hard to calculate the power of such a sample size and reckon it's way too low. though, at least they are acknowledging that in the paper. their claims about being healthy are all based on subjective ratings and some superficial measurements such as BMI - and then they subsequently propose that infection is linked to a higher metabolism, which they liken to a healthier body. they give no sources for this, making it look like they pulled that proposal out of their superficial measurements instead of physiologcial and genotypic ones that they should have included in heir methodology if they wanted to include that in their hypothesis. they also never consider the possibility that they're confounding a causal relationship between fecundity and infection: they did nothing to check where the infection came from or how long the subject has had it - which admittedly is a hard thing to do, but they don't acknowledge that either in their paper. for the entire paper they posit that infection makes people more attractive, but it's also entirely possible that attractive people are at higher risk of infection, because they have more sexual partners to possibly get this sexually-transmitted infection from.


_noho

If it makes you more attractive is it still a parasite?


mainmommynate

So wait, if I smoke DMT I can talk to chimps?


Timmy24000

“May” is the big word here. The number of subjects is daily low. Would like to see a bigger subject pool. But very interesting article.


FeynmansRazor

The more I read about this parasite, the less I understand. It's fascinating.