Birth Order Linked to Risks of Diabetes & High Blood Pressure

Birth order may raise the risk of first-born children developing diabetes or high blood pressure, reports researchers from the Liggins Institute at the University of Auckland (New Zealand).  Wayne S. Cutfield and colleagues measured fasting lipid and hormonal profiles, height, weight and body composition in 85 healthy children between the ages of 4 and 11. The 32 first-born children who participated in the study had a 21% reduction in insulin sensitivity and a 4 mmHg increase in blood pressure.  Writing that: “Although first-borns were taller and slimmer, these children had reduced insulin sensitivity and increased daytime blood pressure compared to later-borns,” the study authors submit that: “Thus, first-borns may be at a greater risk of metabolic and cardiovascular diseases in adult life.”