7 Fun Facts About Winter Babies

Some say winter babies are the best babies. But let's be honest—all babies are great! However, if you're expecting a winter baby, there are some traits and tendencies that set your winter baby apart from the rest.

Here are seven fun facts about winter babies:

Winter babies tend to be bigger in size.

When compared to their summer-born counterparts, winter babies tend to be bigger. Scientists at Harvard and at the University of Queensland in Australia found that children born in the winter months tend to be longer than babies born in the summer, and that at age seven, the winter-born kids were taller, heavier and had larger head circumferences than their peers.

They're better behaved.

A study at Queensland University assessed behaviors ranging from consideration of others to fidgeting among four- and five-year-olds, and found that the winter-born children were better behaved than their summer counterparts.

They have a higher chance of having Multiple Sclerosis.

Time of conception can have an affect on a baby's overall health. According to an Oxford University study, babies born in November have the lowest incidence of multiple sclerosis, while babies conceived in the winter months tend to have the highest incidence. This could be because moms get less vitamin D in the winter, which can affect the baby in utero.

Winter babies tend to come from humbler economic circumstances.

Economists from the University of Notre Dame did a review of birth certificates from 1989 to 2001 and found the percentage of children born to unwed mothers, teenage mothers, and mothers who hadn't completed high school peaked in January of every year.

They have weaker bones.

According to some studies, when compared to each other, summer babies have more bone area than winter babies. This is probably attributed to decreased amounts of vitamin D absorption by pregnant mamas, as vitamin D is more difficult to come by in the winter months.

Winter babies are more likely to be premature.

Based on research conducted at Princeton, babies conceived in May and delivered in winter are more likely to be born early than in other months. In fact, babies due in the winter are as much as 10 percent likely to be born early. One risk factor is that flu season is at its peak, and contracting the flu whilst pregnant can cause serious complications to your baby. All the better reason to receive a flu shot if you're expecting in the winter!

They start crawling earlier.

A 2014 study shows that babies born in the winter months (December-May) start crawling earlier compared to babies born in the summer (June-November). This may be attributed to the seasonal differences (like temperature) that occur around 30 weeks, when babies begin to crawl.