9 Fascinating Facts About January Babies

Arriving in the midst of the coldest months (at least North of the equator) January babies are a beautiful reminder that out of the darkest days of the year can come the sweetest things. But more than just good omens of the continuance of life, January babies have some special advantages that make them unique.

For example, did you know that January babies, as reported by Slate, tend to shine when it comes to athletics? This could be due to the fact that they often start kindergarten as some of the older students, but hey, that’s of little importance when college scouts begin to visit fields and courts. And that’s just one of a number of interesting details about infants who arrive in January. Science has discovered that they have a leg up in a number of ways and are even predisposed for certain careers. You might at this very minute be changing the diaper of a future CEO. (I know, hard to believe when you’re cleaning spit-up off your shirt.)

Leaders of the Pack

Research in the publication Economic Letters has shown that January is one of the top five months for producing babies who'll grow up to be CEOs.

To get to this conclusion, researchers, according to Time magazine, looked at info from as much birth-date info as they could from 375 CEOs of S&P 500 companies born between 1992 and 2009.

The best time to be born if you want your child to have a corner office? March (12.53%), April (10.67%), November (10.67%), January (10.13%), October (9.87%).

Sports Stars

Famous economist Malcolm Gladwell did a deep dive on January babies in his book Outliers and found that those born in the first months of the year, January through April, are generally greater athletes. He used the example of Canadian hockey players. Thanks to the way the sport is designed by our neighbors to the north, young children play amongst and against other children the same age as them. The older kids on each team naturally do better, get greater attention, and become stronger athletes, he argues.

Chill, bro

You’re going to love this one, parents. In 2014, the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology found: “Those born in the winter were significantly less prone to irritable temperament than those born at other times of the year.” Can I get an “Amen!”?

Scientists decided to examine how birth seasons affect personality after biochemical research found that "the season in which you are born has an influence on certain monoamine neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and serotonin, which is detectable even in adult life," according to lead researcher, assistant professor Xenia Gonda.

The study looked 400 subjects and matched their birth season to personality types in later life. Incidentally, those born in the summer have a "Hyperrhythmic temperament" which means they're often excessively positive.

Capricorn January Babies are Ambitious

Was your wee one born before January 20? Then the stars indicate, according to BabyCentreCoUK, that they’ll be smart, hard-working planners who crave your approval. All great traits for a kid.

Aquarius January Babies are Super Bright

Look out Aquarius parents. You have a highly intelligent little human on your hands according to BabyCentreCoUK. The site notes them as being natural problem solvers as well, which is great news, but keep in mind these free spirits might want to do it their own way, not necessarily yours.

Debt Collector?

Here’s another good one: In 2011, the Office for National Statistics in the United Kingdom found that the most common profession for January babies is a debt collector.

According to the Telegraph, the study looked at people in 19 different occupations using census data to determine its findings. If that sounds wacky, consider that Russell Foster, an Oxford University neuroscientist, said the effects of the birth month on life outcomes was small but "very clear."

He added, "I am not giving voice to astrology — it's nonsense — but we are not immune to seasonal interference."

Looking for Love

Have a January boy? He might just fall in love with an October girl. That’s according to Journal of Interdisciplinary Cycle Research. Amazingly, it found that “Males born in the second half of January seem to have a tendency to marry females, born in the second half of October, significantly more than expected (about 2.3 times).”

Really? You might be thinking. Well, consider the source. This study was published in 1973 and was based on a a random sample of 3,392 married couples drawn from the registry‐office of Amsterdam. The statistical analysis of the data gave the following result. So could those stats be a little outdated? Sure, but it's still fun to consider.

Lefty Loosey

In 2014 Cortext published a study that found that men born in January had a 10.5% higher chance of being left-handed.

According to Nature World News, the survey involved 13,000 adults from Austria and Germany and found that the majority of left handed people, especially among men, were born during November, December, and January, with only 82% being born between February and October.

Why? Some researchers believe it has to do with light exposure in the whom. "If a child's mother is exposed to more daylight while pregnant, her testosterone levels may rise high enough to affect the baby's own levels, potentially leading to a change in handedness," the study's lead author Ulrich Tran told Nature World News. Something to consider if you're incubating a child in the winter.

Bottom line, children born in January are some unique kiddos destined to grow up to be even more special adults.