Are Winter Babies Smarter Than Summer Ones?
By Maggiepie
@Maggiepie (7816)
United States
January 9, 2010 3:33am CST
I've read that studies bear this out, & if it's true, I have a theory as to why it might be!
1. Cold air holds more oxygen.
2. Oxygen helps one think more clearly.
I was born January 6th, & I swear, the first cold snap in the air & my brain goes into overdrive. I think more, & more clearly. I get more done. My best poems, articles & stories are written when there's a chill in the air. Even my dreams are more powerful, & the "plots" clearer!
Conversely, in the Summer I'm not worth a bowl of cold macaroni 10 days old. Soppy, smelly dishrags have more personality. I just want to strip nekkid, lie on a bed of ice, turn a couple of fans set on high blowing directly on me, & snooze until the heat breaks. If I don't, here in Texas ("5 miles South of Hell..." 
), it breaks me.
Anyway, that's my theory & I'm stickin' to it. So what do you think. Are the scientists onto something? No anecdotal examples, please; I want to know if you've read differing data, & if you have, what did those data say about why it's not so? Or if it agrees with the scientists' data I read, did they say why it's so?
Inquiring mind wants to know! 
Maggiepie
HAVE A SAFE & HAPPY 2010!
), it breaks me.
Anyway, that's my theory & I'm stickin' to it. So what do you think. Are the scientists onto something? No anecdotal examples, please; I want to know if you've read differing data, & if you have, what did those data say about why it's not so? Or if it agrees with the scientists' data I read, did they say why it's so?
Inquiring mind wants to know!
Maggiepie
HAVE A SAFE & HAPPY 2010!1 person likes this
13 responses
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
21 Jan 10
Ditto, here. But at least our drought is now nearly over, thanks to all the rain we've had over the last few months! My Mom was also born in December--the 28th--& she always did better in colder months, too.
I am speaking mostly of when we lived in Texas & Louisiana, though. I never really knew how energetic she could get until I saw what living in Pennsylvania did for her when we spent a year there! Wow! I mean, she was baking (fabulous tasting) loaves of bread from scratch! I'd never seen her do more than occasional biscuits, cornbread, pies &, in rare moments, cakes! She even went swimming with me, & hunting with Dad!
We lived outside, since Western PA was on strike (1957), & few could find work, & she was so busy! She even helped Dad find & fix up a half-burned, abandoned house we found near our initial campsite, in which we spent half the Winter. Mom had always been handy with tools (during WWII, she'd met my father while they worked on building ships in Houston. Mom was a "Rosie the Riveter"). I took everything in stride in Pennsylvania, but looking back, I realize I never saw her more alive than at that time!
Maggiepie
"LIVE FREE OR DIE!"
@spalladino (17891)
• United States
23 Jan 10
I'm a winter baby as well and absolutely HATE the cold. Maggie, I'm glad that you can appreciate winters in PA...I knew some folks when I lived up there who felt the same way...but I found the biting cold in PA and MD to be very draining on my energy levels. The sun and the heat down here in Florida is what energizes me...along with the breezes. Maybe that's the difference...the ocean breezes.
Now, I have four children who represent three distinct seasons by birth. I have a winter and a summer one living down here with me who both hate the cold as much as I did. My son, however, isn't bothered by the heat or the cold.
@vandana7 (99097)
• India
9 Jan 10
Hi Maggiepie, Donald Trump - born June 14, Warren Buffett - Born August 30, Bill Gates - Born October 28th, Albert Einstein - March 14, Isaac Newton - January 4th, Edison - Born February 11th, Marie Curie - 7th November, Louis Pasteur - December 27.
It does look as if god is a tad partial towards those born in winters. Well, I must sue god for this injustice. Thanks for bringing it to my notice.
@longsdogin (454)
• China
17 Jan 10
Hi,maggiepie,I don't think babies 's intelligence can be decided by the season.There r many factors to effect it,both innate and acquired factors ,such as nutrition,education and so on.Have a nice day and happy my lotting.
1 person likes this
@my_name_is_coco (4334)
• Philippines
16 Jan 10
I don't think that's the case.it will depend on the genes and environment of the child.children in families have different gifts.while one is good academically,one is good in creative arts.it will depend on how that gift is nurtured by the parents.
1 person likes this
@thewayis (646)
• Bulgaria
9 Jan 10
I disagree. When it comes to intelligence, there are genes, education, persoanl ambitions and so on and so forth. I don't think that the season you're born in have any relevance. If the winter babies were somerter, then all trapical countries have no smart people? And you can just check the birth dates of some of the smartest people of all times... you get the point
As for your other theory that winter born babies think clearly in winter, I think you have a certain point there but in general I disagree with that too. Your personality is what is important. For example, I am a summer born child, but I am useful and productive in the winter. My roommate, on the contrary is a winter baby and she hates winter and she is most productive during summer
Well. that is just my opinion on the matter
1 person likes this
@spalladino (17891)
• United States
23 Jan 10
You also asked what folks think so isn't that the same as asking for opinions? I haven't read any studies specifically related to this but I have read plenty in the area of child development and the importance of nurturing and environment. I would have to say that those two factors are among several that help to dictate a person's intelligence since the brain is a living organ.
And, I really do have to agree with thewayis. If this theory were true there would be no smart people living in tropical climates where there is no winter.
@maezee (41997)
• United States
9 Jan 10
Well goodness. This does not make me feel very good at all; I'm a Cancer. I always thought that I was a smart kid, but now that I think of it - I do know QUITE a few fall & winter babies who had always far.. superceded my abilities & knowledge in high school. Yessm. This could make some sense. My problem though is that I pretty much love winter, which doesn't really work well with the theory. I love winter and I love summer equally. I can't explain it!
1 person likes this
@agv0419 (3022)
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
I've read that too but I don't know if it is true. Me and my sisters born in summer but I'm not that smart. I think it is varies and the season has nothing to do with intelligence. It is inherited from your parents so I think wether you are born in summer or winter it really doesn't matter.
1 person likes this
@BurntCookie (45)
• United States
9 Jan 10
I don't believe that because I was born in the winter and I have friends born in the summer who are just as smart as me. It sounds like a coincidence in the data. I have also heard something that is somewhat similar to that. There was a study on how height affects our intelligence and it said that "tall people are smarter than shorter people". I highly doubt that, because the short friends I have are quite intelligent.
1 person likes this
@skbrence (475)
• Philippines
9 Jan 10
Seasons won't trigger one's knowledge. Being a smart person greatly depend on his/her parents' genes.
While in the mother's womb, the mother could eat healthy foods that contain vitamins and minerals (such as "Iron" which makes a person think better) so that she could boost her baby's knowledge in the near future.
Anyways, environment would also affect in a way. Uncomfortable surroundings would make the mother's feeling too heavy. The secret is, just let the mother rest in a comfortable area and in a cool mood.
Anyways again, I would just hope that everybody would be smart. xD
@zuokula (43)
• Lithuania
9 Jan 10
Hello, Maggiepie.
Well, maybe cold air holds more oxygen, but as you said it affects you only at that moment. There is no clue whether cold air helps to grow brains or not. And whether children becomes intelligent or not is already decided in first periods of pregnancy. What affects it later is diseases, social enviroment and, of course, effort that you put into making yourself more intelligent.
Mindaugas.
1 person likes this
@cloudymcstiles (40)
• Indonesia
10 Jan 10
Well... I don't know about it. But I think someone's intelligence has nothing to do with when they were born. How about in other countries that don't have Winter? There are lots of smart people there ;)
