Birth month affects future health, fitness and sports ability.

[The Straight Story]

Birth month affects being a sports star


BRISBANE, Australia, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Researchers in Australia found a child's birth month could influence his or her future health, fitness and sports ability.

Dr. Adrian Barnett, a senior research fellow at Queensland University of Technology's Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, and Annette Dobson of the University of Queensland say the month of your birth influences your chances of becoming a professional athlete.

The researchers analyzed the birthdays of professional Australian Football League players and found a disproportionate number of the soccer players had their birthdays in the early months of the year, while many fewer were born in the later months -- especially December.

The Australian school year begins in January.

"Children who are taller have an obvious advantage when playing the code of AFL," Barnett said in a statement. "If you were born in January, you have almost 12 months' growth ahead of your classmates born late in the year, so whether you were born on Dec. 31 or Jan. 1 could have a huge effect on your life."

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2010/02/02/Birth-month-affects-being-a-sports-star/UPI-43271265145911/

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Wonder if the month is correlated to the northern hemisphere.

Their January is equivalent to the north's July.

[Lex]

3. As kids, they often divided up by age when playing sports and

those born earlier in the year often have more size and skill (generally speaking) than those born late in the year. At 7 or 8 years old, eight or nine months can make a difference. They are thus be seen as more gifted athletically than the younger ones, and are given more positive reinforcement and encouragement by parents and coaches.

[Lex]

2. In the book "Outliers," Malcolm Gladwell discusses why

professional athletes are born in the early months of the year. Pretty fascinating.

[Missy Vixen]

7. Check out December 30th on Wikipedia

A disproportionate number of pro athletes were born on December 30th...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30

[Lex]

8. I don't see that at all at that link.

I just see lists.

[Missy Vixen]

10. Go to birthdays, especially in the mid-seventies

I know there are at least six pro athletes, including Tiger Woods, born on December 30th.

[Lex]

14. stastically speaking that means absolutely NOTHING

sorry

[laconicsax]

13. Compared to what?

I'm counting 34 athletes in the last 100 years (including the darts player). In the same list, starting in 1910, there are another 34 in film/tv/stage, and 24 people in music. If anything people of some fame and notoriety are disproportionately represented in that list.

Statistically, somewhere between 17 and 18 million people alive today were born on December 30th. I'd find it incredibly unlikely to not have at least 30 professional athletes among the crowd.

[applegrove]

15. That was a great book as all of his are.

[Edweird]

4. I finally have something to blame when my life is shitty - being born in December.

[nolabear]

5. Oh, good. I can blame my December birthday for my thighs.

Of course that's directly counter to my sign's characteristics. Sagittarii are supposed to be athletic.

[FloriTexan]

17. Jupiter is the Sag planet..

and Jupiter rules thighs - Probably the most muscular part of a horse. I think of myself as a thoroughbred - born to run ;)

[deaniac21]

6. Wonder if this changes by what hemisphere you are born in?

[customerserviceguy]

9. I doubt it

It doesn't seem to have anything to do with weather or climate, it seems to have to do with when the school year starts in a particular place.

[Spike89]

12. Sure, but generally southern hemisphere is different

It is almost universal that summer is the vacation time and school is during the winter, so thus, hemisphere would have everything to do with it. Just because we play baseball in July, doesn't mean Australians would play it then (in the middle of winter). Of course, they don't play much baseball, but the point is the same...

[Spike89]

11. Yup, I remember guys gaming the system

Athletics in my area were set by grade level, generally in groups of two, i.e., 7th and 8th graders (11-13 years old). I knew three kids in my baseball league that were "held back" in school to repeat 7th grade not for academics, but because that would allow them to get an extra year at that level and be more mature than the competition. I suppose it still happens. Two of those guys did go on to have decent high school sports careers, and I suppose if they'd had the talent, the extra "boost" might have been enough to give them that edge it takes to reach college ball or even the pros.

[DefenseLawyer]

16. I share a birthday with Lance Armstrong, James Gandolfini, Greta Garbo

Frankie Avalon and the lady who does the voices of Rocky and Bullwinkle. I think we can all see the obvious connection. Spooky!