What at first sounds like astrology persists as a recurring assertion: the month in which we were born is said to have a certain influence on our health. Summer babies tend to be healthier than winter babies, it says, for example. But… “Is that right”?
Study by Columbia University comes to astonishing results
One Columbia University study in New York was actually able to link disease risk to the month in which someone was born. They found 55 diseases that are significantly more common in people born in a specific month or time of year.
For their study, the researchers evaluated data from around 1.7 million patients who had been treated in two New York hospitals between 1985 and 2013. The scientists included 1,688 diseases and tried to correlate them with the month of birth of the patients.
The result – roughly summarized? According to the evaluation, people who Im Mai were born, the lowest risk of disease. autumn children, whose birth falls in October or November, is the highest. For example, the researchers found people who were born in October and November to have an increased risk of respiratory diseases, and those born in March and April had an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Vitamin D levels crucial
The reason for the results? According to the research team, this is because different UV radiation at different times of the year rule – which in turn affects vitamin D levels. In addition, pregnant women and their fetuses are more frequently exposed to viruses in the winter months, which have an impact on later health.
However, the research team acknowledged that these results should be taken with a pinch of salt. In any case, further studies are needed in order to be able to better establish the connections. The research team warned once morest taking the results too much to heart if you or your child were born in a risk month. There are many factors and variables that play an important role in a person’s health.
Birth weight and onset of puberty as additional factors
One Studie des Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, which appeared in Heliyon magazine, came to a similar conclusion. The researchers studied 450,000 people in the UK. They found that summer babies have a higher birth weight, are a little taller as adults and are also a little healthier overall than babies who see the light of day in the winter months.
Here, too, the research team indicated the production of vitamin D depending on the season.
Surprisingly, they also found that a month of birth in the summer seems to be a good omen, especially for girls. Because the study showed that girls born in the summer are less likely to start puberty early (between the ages of eight and eleven). This, in turn, can have a positive effect on health. A study conducted in 2014 showed, for example, that the timing of the first period influences a woman’s subsequent heart health.
(Photo: David Weinert)
