Men born in the sunny summer months might be more likely to be gloomy with depression later in life. At least, according to a new study from Kwantlen Polytechnic University in British Columbia.
The study, published in PLOS Mental Health, surveyed 303 adults about their anxiety and depression levels. After sifting through the data and accounting for stuff like age and income, researchers found that men born in summer were statistically more likely to report symptoms of depression than those born during cooler months.
The same effect was not found in women.
Men Born In The Summer Might Be More Prone To Depression
Mikael Mokkonen, the study’s lead author, got the idea from a party conversation. Someone asked him if he believed in horoscopes. Instead of rolling his eyes, he started thinking: could birth timing actually influence mental health?
Turns out, maybe yes. Mokkonen and his team suggest that environmental conditions during pregnancy, such as sunlight exposure and temperature, may subtly impact fetal development.
The research is preliminary, with a small sample size mainly consisting of college students. This is yet another initial study that has found something interesting, which may or may not be replicated by other teams in the future. It also only gathered responses during a narrow two-month window. It’s got all the signs of correlation, not causation.
Still, it raises some fascinating questions. Like, why did this only show up in bed? What role do maternal hormones or diet play?
Holt might sound a bit outlandish, but considering that a completely different research team recently found that 2012’s Hurricane Sandy may have caused long-lasting damage to the brains of babies that were still in the womb as the hurricane passed overhead, it might not be so crazy.
There appears to be a small but growing idea in the scientific community: weather affects our brains, possibly even before we are born. This could have significant implications, particularly as the effects of climate change become increasingly apparent each day.
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