Birth stress, autoimmune diseases, and handedness.
A large nonclinical sample of left-handed and right-handed subjects completed laterality and medical health questionnaires. The group of left-handed subjects showed a raised incidence of birth complications and learning disorders whereas no differences were found for birth order and maternal age. Left-handed and right-handed subjects showed similar incidences of autoimmune diseases, allergies, migraine, and stuttering. These results suggest that an association between early pathology and left-handedness may be found in a subset of the nonclinical left-handed population. The underlying pathological influence seems to manifest itself in pregnancy and birth complications rather than in immune disorders.
Faculty of Psychology, Free University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
J W
JW
van Strien
A
A
Bouma
D J
DJ
Bakker
D000328:Adult; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000523:psychology*; D001720:Birth Injuries / Q000523:psychology*; D001925:Brain Damage, Chronic / Q000523:psychology*; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D007859:Learning Disabilities / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors