Babies Born At 41 Weeks Display Better Cerebral Activities In School, Says Study

Researchers from Northwestern University have concluded in their study that babies born late - defined as being 41 weeks - will show better measures of school-based cognitive function. When mothers deliver later, babies are more likely to have physical problems, but they also are likely to have cognitive benefits down the road, Medical Xpress reported.

David N. Figlio, Ph.D., of Northwestern University and his coauthors evaluated Florida birth certificates connected to public school records for more than 1.4 million single births with 37 to 41 weeks of being carried in the womb from conception to delivery. The authors compared born at 41 weeks birth otherwise known as late-term with those born at 39 or 40 weeks gestation otherwise known as full-term. 

To do so they used three school-based cognitive measures, and two physical outcomes - abnormal newborn conditions and physical disabilities noted in the school record. 

Of the 1,536,482 children examined, 51.2% were male, 22.1% of mothers were black and the mean age of mothers was 27.2 years. 

Those children who were born late outperformed full-term infants in all three cognitive areas, showing higher than average test scores in elementary and middle school, a 2.8 per cent higher probability of being gifted and a 3.1 per cent reduced probability of poor cognitive outcomes, compared to their peers born at full term, Business Insider reported. 

"Our hope is that this research will enrich conversations between ob-gyns and expectant parents about the ideal time to have the baby. A statistical study is just one piece of evidence that expectant parents should consider when thinking of the 'right' time to give birth.Physicians have a tremendous amount of information about maternal and fetal health in each specific pregnancy." Figlio pointed it out

Figlio and partners recognize these constraints, and include that they additionally did not know which deliveries were incited or performed under c-section, which reduces the study's ability to form conclusions from detailed facts.