Do Richer Women Really Have More Sons?

Do Richer Women Really Have More Sons? According to a recent study women from wealthy backgrounds tend to give birth to more boys. The study claims that women from poorer classes usually have more girls. In other words, there are more factors than the ones we know of that determine a baby’s sex. The scientists who conducted the study say that the quality of the mother’s life and their environment influence the sex of the baby they end up having.

The Theory Explained

During prosperous times the best way for a mom to pass on her genes to future generations is by having a boy. Healthy and strong boys, the scientists suggest will make sure the line continues by fending off rivals in times of conflict.

On the other hand, if the mother is not well fed because of tough times, the child is likely to be weak. This child, if it is a male, will not be able to fend off attackers and is not expected to live very long. Apparently there is some evolutionary influence at work here as in this case it would make sense to have a girl. In times of difficulty it would make sense to have a girl as she would be less likely to be hurt in a conflict and therefore fail to reproduce.

Of course that might sound like quite a stretch to most of us, but they do back it up with evidence in the study. Reports indicate that the researchers looked at over 95,000 mothers in Rwanda based on a list that was put together in 2002. In Rwanda, men are allowed to have more than one wife, and the women studied were compared based on their marital ranking. A woman’s rank as wife is an indicator of her wealth the study claimed.

The wives higher up in the pecking order are usually wealthier as they receive most of the husband’s wealth. Wives lower down had more daughters than the wives who were higher ranked or even women who were in monogamous marriages. For every 100 sons they had 106 daughters, while women in monogamous marriages had 100 sons compared to 99 daughters.

Looking Closer at the Study

I’m not sure that these figures are entirely significant given that the figures are so close. Also Rwanda is a very poor country, so it is not clear how much wealth the average man would have to spread around. The study went on to point out that unborn baby girls are less likely to be miscarried if the mother is stressed. This could go a long way towards explaining why more women in these circumstances have more girls.

Of course all you have to do is think about wealthy celebrities to test this theory. Glamorous couple David and Victoria Beckham have three sons. Actor Woody Harrelson who certainly can’t be hurting for cash has three daughters he lovingly refers to as the “Goddess Trilogy.” Actor Bruce Willis has only girls as do a number of other wealthy celebrities. The late Princess Di gave birth to two boys, but fellow royal Sarah Ferguson gave birth to two girls. You could look at many examples that either support or disprove the theory.

The study published in the journal, Biology Letters is sure to spawn a lot of debate. I, for one, am not sure I buy into it since there are so many examples of the reverse being true. Granted, the researchers did state that boys are born during prosperous times – so the proof will reveal itself in the birth rate coming out of this economic crisis or will it.