What diseases you are prone to depending on your birth season

Fortune telling based on birth data is a representative superstition of the Chinese people. At the same time, there are also such things as fortune telling based on horoscopes in foreign countries. Many people believe that people's destinies are different depending on the time they are born into the world. But does the time of birth really affect one's life? Of course, it is not only "superstitious" people who are concerned about this issue. Scientists have also done a lot of research in this area. Hundreds of studies published in peer-reviewed journals have shown that the month a person is born is associated with certain traits. These traits include: personality, lifespan, and susceptibility to certain diseases. Scientists say that although some of the "associations" are specious, other "associations" or "influences" are likely to be real.

Born in spring: gastrointestinal diseases, learning disabilities, multiple sclerosis

A study by Southwest Missouri State University in the United States found that people born in spring are more likely to suffer from gastrointestinal diseases and learning disabilities. Researchers at the UK National Statistics Office also analyzed the 2011 census data and concluded that people born in April have a lower average IQ and a higher proportion of people born in this month are in poor health. The reason for this is, on the one hand, related to whether the mother receives enough sunlight during pregnancy; on the other hand, as the temperature continues to rise, the bacteria in the food begin to multiply in large numbers. Babies born in spring have to start eating some normal food in summer. At this time, the fragile stomach and intestines are susceptible to bacterial attacks, laying hidden dangers for digestive system diseases in the future.

People born in the spring have a greater risk of contracting multiple sclerosis. Multiple sclerosis is the product of the combined effects of genetic and environmental factors. Studies have shown that the higher the latitude of a country, the higher its multiple sclerosis prevalence. In 2005, a study of 17,874 Canadian MS patients and 11,502 British MS patients found that those born in May were 23% more likely to develop MS than those born in November. The reason may be due to maternal vitamin D deficiency in the late second and third trimesters (i.e., the 7th to 9th months of pregnancy).

Born in summer: Myopia and diabetes

A vision survey of 270,000 children in Israel found that children born in summer had the highest rate of moderate and severe myopia. Researchers said this may be related to the fact that the eyes of newborns born in summer are more susceptible to excessive light stimulation.

Children born in the summer (particularly August) are more likely to develop type 1 diabetes. This phenomenon was discovered in a study of Swedish children published in 1999 in the Archives of Disease in Childhood. In a sample of 1,248 children with diabetes, those born in August had 24 more children than average, while those born in October had 33 fewer children than average. Possible causes are also related to viral infection of the mother during pregnancy (such as Coxsackie virus infection). Experiments on mice have shown that coxsackievirus interferes with the immune system and may induce diabetes.

Born in autumn: allergies

Studies from Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Japan have all shown that children born in the autumn and winter have a higher incidence of food allergies than those born in the summer. Dr. Milo Vassallo, an allergy expert in Brooklyn, New York City, confirmed this difference: by surveying more than 1,000 patients with acute food-related allergic reactions from three Boston emergency rooms, he found that those born in autumn and winter were 53% more likely to suffer from food allergies than those born in other seasons. He believes the difference may be due to seasonal fluctuations in vitamin D levels, as a deficiency can weaken the immune system.

Born in winter: Insomnia, mental illness, obesity

A study on the distribution of birth months in patients with chronic insomnia conducted by the Sleep Center of Peking University Third Hospital showed that among the chronic insomnia patients who visited the hospital, more than 40% were born in winter, while the fewest were born in summer, accounting for only 16%. Researchers believe that this is mainly related to factors such as the cold winter climate and the large difference in day and night length that affect the fetal brain development.

In addition, researchers also found that people born in winter are more likely to suffer from mental illness. According to statistical analysis, people born in winter are 8% more likely to suffer from schizophrenia and depression than those born in other months. A 1999 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that in the Northern Hemisphere, those born in early March were 11% more likely to develop schizophrenia than those born in early June or early December. South of the equator, this distribution of differences is exactly the opposite of that in the Northern Hemisphere. One hypothesis accepted by many scientists regarding this phenomenon is that it is all due to prenatal infection, while others believe that it is due to the epidemics of rubella, polio, and diphtheria in summer and autumn. Prenatal infection may endanger the health of the fetus during early pregnancy.

David Phillips, a professor at the University of Southampton in the UK, analyzed the weight of 1,759 elderly British people and found that 13.8% of men born from January to March could be classified as "obese"; while among men born from October to December, this proportion was only 9.4%. In the female population, seasonal trends in weight distribution are less obvious. Phillips believes that if babies are exposed to low temperatures before or after birth, it may promote the development of their fat tissue, making them more likely to become obese when they grow up.

Choosing the season for birth? It’s totally unnecessary

After reading the above content, do you feel that no season is good? Of course not, everything has its pros and cons. Although people born in any season may have the risk of disease, they also have advantages. People born in spring will grow taller, people born in summer will be happier, people born in autumn will live relatively longer, and people born in winter will be more stable. Doesn't it sound good? Life and health are not determined by the season of birth. Many coincidences and necessities together create the miracle of life. Moreover, conceiving a life is a natural choice and cannot be manipulated artificially, and the time of delivery should not be deliberately chosen based on research results.