If you're one of the lucky ladies who was born in the months of June, July, or August, you're going to want to hear this: According to science, it is entirely possible — likely, even — that you will outlive me. I know, I know, it's nothing personal — you had no control over when you became a bun in your bio mom's oven, so I forgive you. Still, feel free to think of me when your life span exceeds mine and gives credence to the study recently published in Heliyon that found summer-born baby girls grow to become healthier women than girls born at other times of the year.
Being an April-born gal, I'd love to object. But according to the researchers from Cambridge University who completed the study, science says this statistic is accurate. To come to this conclusion, they compared growth and development in a whopping 450,000 men and women from the UK Biobank study to see what — if any — correlation birth month had to factors like birth weight as well as adult weight and body mass index. Their findings? That girls born in the summer months shared many markers of good health, such as slightly higher birth weight and slightly later start to puberty. Although they're not certain why or how birth month affects health, some scientists suggest perhaps it has to do with the amount of sunlight the mother was exposed to during the gestation of her baby girl. You hear that, mamas? Vitamin D is good for your nugget in utero!
But, lest you summer girls go bragging to all your friends about your superior birth month (although I wouldn't judge you if you did) and be met with a rebuttal, you should know that being born in the summer months isn't all sunshine and roses. Here's what your sunshine-drenched birthday says about you, according to science:
1. You May Not Rule the World
In a 2012 study published in Economic Letter, it was found that those born during the summer months are less likely to be highly successful than their peers. There's actually a simple explanation for why you may not wind up a CEO, though — being born in the summer often makes you among the youngest in your class, which puts you at an educational disadvantage.
2. But You're Really, Really Happy
When Xenia Gonda, an associate professor at Semmelweis University in Budapest, polled students using a questionnaire to determine temperaments, she found that people born in summer (and also spring, FYI — holla!) tended to be excessively optimistic compared to peers born in other seasons.
3. You Might Need to Visit an Optometrist
Are you squinting right now? Odds tell me you might be, since summer-born birthday folks are 17 percent more likely to develop nearsightedness than those born in other months, a UK survey discovered. But, hey, this isn't all bad news — specs are super sexy. I should know.
4. You Are a Creature of the Night
Do you dislike mornings with a passion? Do you like to burn the midnight oil? Well, you might have your birth month to thank for your nocturnal proclivities. In a study done by the University of Bologna in Italy, researchers documented that people born during the summer months like the night — regardless of gender or nationality.
5. You're Rockin' a Body Posi Lifestyle
In the same Italian study, scientists found that people of the night like yourself report lower feelings of conscientiousness. Admittedly, this is a trait my spring-born self covets. Still, do the dang thing, summer babies! Maybe your confidence will rub off on the rest of us.
6. You're a Teensy Bit Moody, Too
Don't shoot the messenger! I don't make the rules here. Scientists (of which I am not) claim that their findings prove babies born in the summer grow up to have markedly more mood swings than babies born in the winter, who wind up less irritable adults. Blame it on your monoamine neurotransmitters.
Images: Fotolia; Giphy (7)
