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9/11 Caused Boys to be Miscarried
Nearly 10 years after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, researchers have uncovered some interesting numbers that show the lasting effects of that day and how humans react biologically to stress that is bey0nd the immediate and personal.
Population health researchers at the University of California — Irvine found a small but real rise in the number of miscarriages following the attacks. They also found that women who were pregnant with boys miscarried at a higher rate than women pregnant with girls.
Tim Bruckner, who headed the study now out in BMC Public Health, looked at miscarriage data from 1996 to 2002 of fetuses which had developed beyond the 20-week mark. He found a 3 percent increase in the number of male fetuses miscarried after 9/11. In the following months, the ratio of male babies to female babies dropped significantly, too. (Typically in the U.S., 105 males are born for every 100 females. Past studies have shown, however, that the number of males born drops during stressful times.)
Experts aren’t sure why male fetuses are more susceptible during times of stress. Some theorize that fewer male babies are born because stress harms sperm carrying the Y-chromosome or people have less sex (which favors girls).
Bruckner speculated that perhaps stressed-induced miscarriage of males evolved over time as a way to maximize the number of grandchildren a woman had.
Whatever the reason, a Rutgers University evolutionary biologist, Robert Trivers, says the study is compelling evidence that national tragedies have a way of reverberating through society and affecting even those not personally connected to the tragedy. And that the one-day event had lasting effects.
Any personal experience on this one? Do those of you with 8-year-olds feel like there are more girls in your lives than boys?
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Photo: NYTimes.com
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[...] 9/11 Caused Boys to be Miscarried [...]
C-Section Hysterectomies Increase Risk of Death | Strollerderby commented on May 25 10 at 4:09 pmEm commented on May 25 10 at 4:59 pmIsn’t losing a pregnancy after 20 weeks called a pre-term delivery, not a miscarriage? (Source: https://health.google.com/health/ref/Miscarriage)
Laura commented on May 31 10 at 8:45 pmComments
I had a miscarriage 8 days after 9/11. I was nine weeks pregnant at the time. I have always wondered if there was any connection. I was at home watching the attacks on television in real time and cried for three days straight. The miscarriage was a double blow and the two events will always be connected in my mind.
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