Why we need Grannie...
Most women are thankful for the services provided by grandmothers - unpaid babysitting at the drop of a hat and the ability to lavish your children with a huge amount of affection. But new evidence suggests that grandmothers played a much more important role in shaping the human race and ensuring that it survived.
Research has shown that in less advanced societies, having a grandmother nearby to shower a newborn with love and attention greatly increases their chances of reaching the age of two.
Using birth records, scientists from Newcastle University and University College London worked out that the optimum age for a woman to have the menopause is age 50. They then worked out that the menopause evolved to stop women having babies themselves, but that the women were still young enough to care for their grandchildren, therefore benefiting the survival of another generation.
Basically, the grandmother nurtures her grandchildren, guaranteeing the survival of her genes without having to go through the painful process of childbirth again.
The research was started because scientists wanted to work out why human females lose the ability to have children at a relatively young age, whereas females in the animal community can continue having children into old age.
The study was conducted using the records from a Gambian village of more than 5,500 villagers, where the data was collected between 1950 and 1975 before a medical centre was established in the area. The villagers would not have had the availability of contraception or healthcare that developed countries expect, which is why the data can be used as a guide to how our hunter-gatherer ancestors used to live.
In the UK, the average age for women to go through the menopause (which means they stop having periods for 12 months) is age 52. One per cent of women go through the menopause before they reach 40.
Thanks to the Daily Mail, 19/09/07
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Last Modified: 19/09/2007
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both my mother and my mother in law have been brilliant with providing advice, babysitting, childcare and it's free!!!! They devote 100% attention to the baby/child and have a vested interest in their well being.
This is really interesting, I havent heard about this before, but it makes sense. I couldnt have managed without my mum close by to help. The scientists didnt look into why women in Britain are starting their periods earlier, and consequently starting the menopause earlier. This is quite an significant trend, which if it continues, what with women choosing to have children later in life with dramatically affect the birth rate.
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