We have all somehow heard of the phenomenon of how your birth month affects your personality. With tons of data and predictions about our zodiac signs, finding a compatible partner and guessing our personality is not that difficult. But did you know that the month you were born could also affect your health? Yes, it has been scientifically proven that people born in certain months are more likely to have some diseases than others. Even though there are still quite a few questions that are yet to be answered, research shows that the month you are born has a bigger effect on you than you think. But how is astrology related to our health, and how can we prove that some months have a higher risk than others?
Astrology and astronomy were a big part of human lives and beliefs. But did you know that it was also a part of medicine? Hippocrates and Galen believed that the relationship between human bodies and heavenly bodies was what formed medical theories. Diseases and health conditions were also linked to zodiac signs. So this phenomenon is not new. However, this study gives us new information on which diseases are linked to birth months and which are not, and gives us insight into high-risk and low-risk months.
Zodiac Signs
Questions started rising after a group of Columbia researchers gathered in 2015 and compared the birth dates and medical histories of 1.7 million people that were treated between 1985 and 2013 at the New York Presbyterian Hospital and at the Columbia University Medical Center. Nicholas Tatonetti, who is an assistant professor of biomedical informatics and who led the study, stated that this study was vital for discovering the roots of diseases and the most efficient way of treating them.
The research team looked at over 1600 diseases and found 55 that were correlated to the month a person was born in. Diseases such as asthma, eye diseases, ADHD, and reproductive illnesses were some of the 55.
The results of the study show that people born in October and November have the highest risk of having a disease while those who were born in May have the lowest risk. Being born in the fall was seen as a good thing since those born from September to December were not at high risk for cardiovascular diseases. People who were mostly born from January to June were seen at high risk. People prone to asthma are usually those who were born in late summer. The researchers guess that the reason is being exposed to dust mites that develop in humidity. A study conducted in 1983 also supports this argument declaring that babies who were born in times when there were dust mites were prone to asthma. Neurological illnesses are mostly seen in people who were born in the fall. A theory on the reasoning is that they do not get a lot of sun exposure and that they do not have enough vitamin D.
Of course, this study and its results should be taken with a grain of salt. Even though there are some theories, it is not yet crystal clear why some diseases are related to birth months and why some are not. It should also be noted that the study only took patients from New York City into consideration. This means that this information might not be relevant to people living in different areas of the world. The scientists stated that even after all this research, the factors that affect one's health the most, such as diet and exercise, were more relevant information to predict whether someone will get a disease. So do not worry, being born in one of these ‘high risk’ months does not mean you will certainly get sick.
Work Cited:
Scientists have discovered how the month you're born matters for your health
Accessed: 6 August, 2022
How Your Birth Month Influences Your Health
Accessed: 7 August, 2022
Accessed: 7 August, 2022
Accessed: 7 August, 2022
Accessed: 6 August, 2022
Accessed: 5 August 2022