What Science Says About Babies Born In August

Science has shown that kiddos born during the height of the summer season have some distinct qualities that may be unique to their birth month — specifically, August. So what does an August birthday potentially indicate about a child's health and wellness?

A 2015 U.K. study published in the scientific journal Heliyon found that youngsters born during the months of June, July, or August may have health benefits to be gained from the summertime sunshine, researchers theorized. In a study of 450,000 participants, those born within the summer months had a heavier birthweight and turned out to be taller as adults. Additionally, the study team found that women born during June, July, and August experienced a slight delay in the onset of puberty, which has been linked to better health later in life. Researchers speculate these findings could be related to increased vitamin D exposure during pregnancy but further research is needed to confirm this theory.

In addition to being physically healthy, August babies may also be at a decreased risk for certain mental health disorders. A 2012 study published in PLOS One looked at health and birth month data from nearly 58,000 patients in England. Those born in the months of August or September were the least prone to developing bipolar affective disorder (BAD), while prevalence rates were highest amongst those born in January.

Health and personality traits of August babies

Science has also shown that babies born in August may be more likely to be diagnosed and treated for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, one such study from 2016 in the Journal of Pediatrics found that age may be more of an influencing factor than birth month. Factoring in August 31 as the cut-off birthdate for school enrollment, researchers from Taiwan analyzed data from over 375,000 children between the ages of 4 and 17. It was found that August-born children in preschool or elementary school who were the youngest in their class were more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD and prescribed treatment medication than their older classmates born in September. These findings, however, did not hold true for adolescents; only those of preschool or elementary school age were more at risk. "Our findings emphasize the importance of considering the age of a child within a grade when diagnosing ADHD and prescribing medication to treat ADHD," researcher on the study Dr. Mu-Hong Chen stated (via Science Daily).

Lastly, August babies may be more inclined to believe luck is on their side. Internet survey responses from nearly 30,000 participants revealed that those born in the summer months had greater feelings of being lucky than those born during the wintertime, according to research published in Personality and Individual Differences. Such findings held true across both age and gender.