Fangs, the most obvious vampire characteristic.

Vampires are one of the greatest mysteries of history. Practically every culture from around the globe has vampire legends of some sort; from the asian vampire Pontianak, to the chinese vampire Ch’ing Shih, to perhaps the most well known in the western world, Dracula. Vampires have inspired thousands of movies, books, and other media to be created in their name. But no conclusive physical evidence of vampires has really been found. Why do all these different cultures have legends describing virtually the same thing? Do vampires fall into the same category as dragons, sea monsters, and other fairy tales, or is there truth behind them?

A vampire bat, which in modern times have been linked to the presence of vampires in numerous movies.

Origins: The Real Modern Vampire

Today, there are many different kinds of “vampires” in existence. Many creatures share traits with those that are what we assign to our anatomical and physiological view of the vampire. The most common traits in the western view of a vampire include: enlarged canines, pale skin, inability to stand in the sunlight and the most deviant of all, their thirst for blood. So what are these modern day vampires? Mosquitos, ticks, and leeches all have a thirst for blood in mammals and fish. Bats seem have acquired the most direct connection to vampires, perhaps because of their appearance and their nocturnal behavior and some of them being described as “vampiric”. In other cultures, vampires were often described as being non-human, appearing in many different forms including wolves, dogs, spiders, and even other forms, like chupracabra.

Bela Lugosi, a man well known for his roles in hundreds of vampire films.

Human Vampires, a Possibility?

As far as a human variant of the traditional vampire existing, it is very unlikely; but this depends on how you define vampire. Why do all these different cultures around the world have legends for vampires? A side from seeing these traits in animals, how did these legends jump from them to us? Scientists say this could be from a combination of things. There are many mental and physical conditions that could be seen as vampiric.

A rabies culture under a microscope.

Rabies

For example, take a look at rabies. Rabies is a disease that causes extreme bouts of rage, which can cause the victim to bite others, frothing of the mouth, hypersensitivity to sunlight and spreads to someone else if they are biten. It is easy to see how someone infected with rabies could be confused with being a vampire.

Porphyria, a horrible disease which can lead to disfigurement. The disorder has many traits in common with vampiric behavior.

Porphyria

Another condition that some have confused with having vampire-like properties is porphyria. Porphyria is a condition where the patient may have increased photosensitivity, have reactions to foods high in sulfur (garlic), and have a blood disorder where certain enzymes that are necessary aren’t created properly; creating a false assumption that they must drink the blood of others to survive. Also, some cases have created an appearance of fangs, because their gums may start to recede. They often have reddish-brown urine and teeth as well. They can have disfigured nose, eyelids ears or fingers, because of issues that the condition has with cartilage. It can also cause mental disorders such as bipolar disorder, hysteria or delirium. It is caused by a recessive gene, and it is very rare. The gene is thought to have originated from Sweden or Switzerland, because it is most common there. The most popular case was reported by King George the III, a monarch of England.

Jeffrey Dahmer, a serial killer of the 80's and 90's who cannabilized many of his victims.

Serial Killers

Recently, many neurological conditions have been linked to what might be described as vampiric in nature. Serial killer Jeffry Dahmer, who resorted to cannabilism, was said to have a neurological disorder which rewired his sexual desire and desire to feed into one. People who are neurologically addicted to drinking the blood of people or animals are said to have vampirism, coined in the 20th century.

According to psychic vampire philosophy, all people contain energy which can be extracted.

Psychic Vampires

Psychic vampires are ones that feed on the energy of their prey. Believers state that energy can be “stolen” from one another, and that using safeguards to protect against it is very much necessary. Have you ever just had a day where you were extremely tired or sad for no specific reason? Did you have someone that seemed dominating or stick in your mind? Perhaps you were the victim of a psychic vampire. Often they prey on the weak, attempting to exploit situations to extract energy from the target host.

Conclusion

But can you go as far as saying the traditional dracula type vampire exists today? To me, that is very unlikely. Not only does the overpopulation of vampires become an issue, but most of the traits assigned to vampires were only created recently by hollywood. But as long as there is mystery in the world, people will continue to believe.

So why are people so attracted to vampires? Some people find the values of vampires align with their own beliefs. They enjoy the dark, having pale skin and dressing in gothic style clothes that have been made popular by mass media. While this in its own doesn’t make the person an imitation vampire, when they go as far as to drink human blood then that may lead them into the category of imitation vampire. Others simply fear them, and fear is enough to make someone believe.

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