“Toxoplasmosis Gang” Psychedelic Cat Shirt

Imagine you’re walking around in the rainforest and suddenly you feel an unexplainable urge to climb a tree. You climb up, and then you just sit there on a branch and wait to die. Then an insane fungus alien explodes out of your head. Sounds like a bad trip, right? But it’s what happens to ants that are infected by the very real Ophiocordyceps, a mind controlling parasitic fungus.

Around 30-50% of humans worldwide have been exposed to Toxoplasma gondii, a similar parasite. We get it from interacting with cats, and it also goes straight to the brain where it pulls the levers needed to help it propagate itself.

Studies have shown that having Toxoplasmosis make you more impulsive, more reckless, or more prone to certain mental health conditions like anxiety and schizophrenia. One of the things that’s been noted about infected individuals is that it can affect gendered behavior — feminize men.

So if you’ve ever done something completely out of character, like impulsively buying an inflatable pool or downloading Grindr at 2 a.m., it’s possible you’ve got cats to blame.