Your baby can inherit a lot more than just hair color and physical features from its parents. As you await the arrival of your new baby, you’ll probably wonder not only what they will look like, but how they’ll act, talk, walk, and more. Thankfully, studying genetics has allowed us to pinpoint which of these traits come from which parent, so you can narrow down exactly who your little one got those dimples from.
More: What Color Will My Baby's Eyes Be? A Genetic Explanation
Here are eight traits you probably didn’t know your baby will inherit from their mom.
Sleeping Style
Between tossing and turning, insomnia, and even being a fan of naps, babies can pick up on these from mom during nap time and turn them into their own lifelong sleep habits. Monkey see, monkey do!
Hair Color
While it is most likely that the baby will inherit the dominant over recessive genes, the color of a mother’s hair can also say a lot about what the hairs on your little one will look like.
Hair Texture
Like hair color, your little one is more likely to inherit the texture of their mother’s hair over their father, so your curls could definitely carry over to the baby!
Temper
Will your little one not stop crying or screaming? You may have yourself to thank (or blame) for that! While their environment does play a part in this, new studies have indicated that genetic makeup could play a larger role in your baby’s temperament.
Healthy Eating Habits
What you feed your body and baby during pregnancy isn’t just important while you’re in the womb, it could have lifelong effects on your little one! One study done in rats showed that a poor pregnancy diet could affect a gene linked to insulin production, which could increase their risk of type 2 diabetes later in life. While the same study has yet to be tested on humans, it’s best to be safe!
Dominant Hands
While having two parents who are left-handed could all but guarantee that their baby would too be left-handed, if only the mother is a lefty, your baby likely will be too!
Migraines
If you suffer from migraines, there could be a higher chance that your little one will too one day.
Intelligence
Sorry, dads! A new study shows that because intelligence is carried over into the baby with two X chromosomes from the mother and one from the father, this could have an effect on the baby’s level of intelligence. A second study showed that despite education, race and socio-economic class, the IQ level of the mother could be a good indicator for that of a baby.
Most often, babies are a perfectly intricate mix of both parents, but there are still more than a few things they could pick up from just mom or dad. Does your little one have any traits from you?
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