Problems Faced by Left-Handed People

Like Leonardo Da Vinci, one person out of 10 is left-handed. From where does this reversal come? What are the advantages and disadvantages of this peculiarity? Is there an impact on life expectancy?

What is the origin?

Considering that there are approximately 10% of left-handers in all societies, in detail, the proportion varies widely from country to country from 3% to over 27%.

What is certain is that there is a hereditary component in the transmission of left-handedness. Having one of your two parents left-handed increases the chance of being left-handed. The chance of being left-handed doubles if the mother will be left-handed. Certainly, scientists believe that environmental influences during pregnancy or in infancy might be also involved. In all cases, being left handed is not related to education. There is no need to upset the child by forcing him to become right handed. On the contrary it is better to help him develop this feature.

Contradictory studies

Are left-handers more intelligent than others? A popular belief has tended to say they would have an advantage in several areas of science and art. But scientific studies are somewhat contradictory. While some regard left-handedness as a benefit, others found left-handed people as having lower intellectual performance.

Other studies suggest that left-handers are more often aggressive and sometimes destructive while right-handers are more calm and tolerant.

Difficult to live in a right world!

Aside from all benefits it is difficult for left-handers to live in a right world! A pair of scissors, a can opener, a musical instrument and a book, are some examples of how cumbersome some things can be for left-handed people. Left-handed people are however more victims of accidents related to inadequate use of tools.

Being left-handed does not simply expose to little accidents in everyday life. Researchers have stressed that they have a shorter life expectancy! They lose a decade in relation to right-handed persons (66 years against 75 years). How do we explain this phenomenon? The assumptions are many but it could be related to the lack of adaption to the right world! Other theories suggest that being left-handed is associated with a weak immune system, thus increasing the risk of infection.

All left-handers people need to be assured that other studies have since reversed this decline in life expectancy. According to scientists, there is simply a bias and because of this, in the past, left-handed children where forced to be right-handed.

To do this, they attached the left hand to the back as not to use it but over the time, this practice has declined. This would explain why there are very few left-handed persons over 80 years gradually increasing as the years decline.

Left-handers can therefore rely on their whole life ... to cope in a world of right-handers. They have an increased tendency to form associations, to find help on the internet and to exchange advices and defend their interests. They even created the International Left-Handers Day!

Sources:

http://www.anythingleft-handed.co.uk/lefty_research.html