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17th January 2017
08:22am GMT
'Overall, we find that first-borns are less healthy in terms of physical markers such as blood pressure, triglycerides, and indicators of overweight and obesity. 'For example, compared to fifth-borns, first-borns are about 5 per cent points more likely to be obese and 7 per cent more likely to have high blood pressure. So, unlike education or earnings, there is no clear first-born advantage in health.The good news? First born children are more likely to describe themselves as happy adults. The percentage of adults who describe their mental health as being very good tends to decline with birth order. The study was published in the journal Economics and Human Biology.'However, first-borns are about 13 per cent less likely to smoke daily than fifth-borns and are more likely to report good physical and mental health. Later-borns also score lower on well-being with fifth-borns being about 9 per cent less likely than first-borns to report that they are happy.
'When we explore possible mechanisms, we find that early maternal investment may play a role in birth order effects on health.'
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