Poorva Chavan
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Written By: Poorva Chavan | Updated : September 3, 2015 9:48 AM IST
Who knew gaining wealth in life would dependent on whether you were born premature or not! A new study claims that pre-term babies are less likely to gain wealth later in life because of their lower mathematic abilities. The researchers have established a link between early birth, lower academic abilities in school and hence less wealth in adulthood. Dieter Wolke from the University of Warwick in England said that their study revealed that economic costs of a preterm birth are not only limited to healthcare and educational support in childhood but also extend to adulthood.Wolke also said that effects of a premature birth on wealth gain are long term and can last for up to 50 years of life. Read: Born too soon - the dangers of premature birth.
The researchers studied 15,000 subjects who were either born in 1958 or 1970. Out of theses, those who were born at less than 37 weeks were compared to those who were born full-term. In both the groups, it was observed that, children who were born preterm were more likely have less educational qualifications and also accumulate less wealth at age 42 than those who were born full term. Researchers also found that individuals who were born preterm were more likely to be manual workers or unemployed and also more likely to report financial difficulties. They were also unlikely to own a house even after other potential factors were taken into account. Read: Premature babies more likely to suffer from ADHD
Previous studies have established that brain injury suffered by preterm children is likely to result in cognitive difficulties that may cause learning difficulties resulting in underachievement at school. As predicted, premature children in this study also tended to demonstrate lower academic abilities in childhood, and for mathematics in particular. The findings appeared in the journal Psychological Science. Read: Talk to premature babies to boost their health! Source: ANI Image source: Getty Images
