Are you a sporty scorpio, sagittarian? You should thank the sun.

I came across this article today which was circulating on the major news networks, and found it quite interesting, as it particulary applies to me, as I am an autumn baby.  It suggests that children born in the autumn (specifically the months of October & November) are better athletes because their mothers recieved more Vitamin D in the critical phase of fetal development during the sunny summer months before their delivery.

Autumn-born children better at sport, says study

"November- and October-born children emerged as fitter, stronger and more powerful than their peers born in the other 10 months of the year, especially those whose birthdays fell in April or June."
"For example, we found that a boy born in November can run at least 10% faster, jump 12% higher and is 15% more powerful than a child of the same age born in April. This is, potentially, a huge physical advantage," said Sandercock.
The authors believe that autumn-born children's greater exposure over the summer months, towards the end of pregnancy, to vitamin D – the "sunshine vitamin" linked to a range of health benefits – is the most likely explanation. "Seasonal differences in intrauterine vitamin D concentrations seem most plausible," they say.

Here is the link to the full article:
http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/jun/22/autumn-born-children-better-sports-study


I always knew genetics played a vital role in athletic ability, and of course, a childs access to coaching and training facilities would also play a role in athletic performance and develpoment, but never knew how important the effect of season/Vitamin D in utero was.
I wonder if mothers of spring babies supplemented with Vitamin D while pregnant would reach a similar result?  It might be interesting to discuss with your doctor if you had high hopes of raising an athletic child.

On a personal note, I was born in late Oct and my brother was born in early April and its clear that I'm definitely the more athletic of us two siblings. We had the same parents, same educational and training opportunities, but a different season of birth.  An interesting coincidence, or example of the importance of Vitamin D in fetal development?  I'm not sure it explains all of our differences but it is an interesting tidbit to consider, particularly for expectant mothers who might want to give their children all the advantages in life regardless of their date of conception and birth.