It’s all in the air…
I’m feeling pretty lucky that my children are all either Winter or Autumn babies, as I read the latest research on how the season your baby is born in can determine their future personality.
It seems Summer time babies are cranky – set for a life filled with mood swings and temper tantrums.
So to break it to you, if you are expecting in the next few months, and unless you can squeeze your bub out before the end of November, you might just be in for it.
I’m obviously ribbing you a little here – but scientists have determined that the month a baby is born in can have an impact on not just their personality but their future health as well.
The latest findings – released just last week – from scientists in Budapest show that the seasons have an influence on certain monoamine neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and serotonin, which control mood.
The research showed that the number of people with a “cyclothymic” temperament, which is characterised by rapid, frequent swings between sad and cheerful moods, was significantly higher in those born in the Summer.
Thus a tendency towards temper tantrums and mood swings.
(They have obviously never met my Winter born five-year-old.)
On the upside Summer bubs grew up with an “excessively positive” temperament.
Previous studies backed this finding up – with scientists speculating that a mother’s behaviour during her pregnancy may influence certain outcomes for her children.
Spring born babies seem set for a lifetime of happiness – with a study of data from Denmark, Austria and Australia showing Spring babies were polite, positive, upbeat and optimistic but here’s the kicker – they don’t live as long as their Autumn counterparts.
“A mother giving birth in Spring spends the last phase of her pregnancy in Winter, when she will eat fewer vitamins,” said Gabriele Doblhammer wrote for a study in the journal Schizophrenia Research. The study showed that adults born in Autumn lived seven months longer than those born in Spring.
Spring babies especially those born in October and November were however fitter, stronger and more powerful than their peers born in the other 10 months of the year.
If your baby is due in Winter then there is an upside to purchasing all those extra clothes and teeny tiny hats, your baby will most likely crawl earlier than the others.
They will also, according to the scientists from Budapest, be less irritable, bigger, brighter, smarter and more successful.
Winter babies though are 10% more likely to be premature, as their mothers are more exposed to the influenza virus. (Good incentive to get the vaccine.)
Babies born in Autumn and Winter are more likely to develop food allergies than Summer or Spring bubs – no one knows exactly why, but sunlight exposure during pregnancy and vitamin D levels may play a role.
Autumn born babies are also blessed with the happy stick, and will live longer than their Spring counterparts.
When your Autumn baby hits their teenage years, you will be grateful for their birth season as research also shows that when they were born can affect their sleep.
Spring and Summer babies will stay up later as adolescents as researchers speculate that their internal body clocks are affected by the exposure to sunlight they get as newborns.
Those little Autumn cherubs will be sleeping soundly in their beds while the Spring and Summer born prowl the hallways.
Here is a round up of the key traits:
Summer babies
Temperamental
Moody
May be short sighted
Often excessively positive
Winter Babies
Autumn
Happier
Live longer
Prone to food allergies
Sleep better as teenagers
Spring
Do you find these characteristics pan out with your children?
Want more? Try:
“44 things I missed while I was pregnant.”
“Sorry Mum and Dad, the jig is up.”
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