Biology

Cannibalism: It Actually Can Be a Laughing Matter

#laughter #laughing #LOL #cannibalism #Kuru

Cannibalism is certainly no laughing matter. Or is it?

One of the strangest diseases to afflict mankind is Kuru. Found primarily among the Fore people of Papua New Guinea, it is transmitted by eating the brain of a person who has been infected with the disease. 

Among the many horrifying symptoms of Kuru is uncontrollable laughter. The laughing fit comes upon the victim as one of the last manifestations of the sickness before the victim succumbs to death. 

The disease has been on the decline ever since the Papua New Guinea government began discouraging the practice of cannibalism. Even so, new cases periodically emerge, due to the disease’s incredibly-long incubation period, which can be as long as 27 years.

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