How good are mums? They teach us how the world works, they’re always there for some much-needed girl or boy advice and they’ll be the first to fetch the band-aids when you scrape your knee.
Turns out, we might have a good deal more to thank our mums for than some love and affection. According to a new study, researchers believe that genetically, your smarts come straight from your mum’s side.
Cop this, dad. Scientists now believe that children’s intelligence is all thanks to mum, and her handy two X chromosomes.
For years, we’ve known that intelligence is hereditary – smart fellas and ladies usually create smart little toddlers. However, in recent studies performed on lab mice, scientists have been led to believe that it’s a child’s maternal genes that influence their inherent intelligence.
The genes that develop into your central cortex are located in X chromosomes, of which women have two, while men only have one. This gives mothers double the chance of setting the bar for how smoothly their child’s brain works.
So, as it turns out, if you’re saying “sorry Mum” before sculling a shoey, you’re apologising to the right parent.
Don’t discredit Dad though. Fathers still play a hugely important role in developmental intelligence, providing the all-important genes for good stuff such as your intuition and emotion – both big factors in unlocking your potential brainpower.
We’ll leave you with one of the greatest Mummy ballads ever, Mother by Pink Floyd, from The Wall.
For much more information about all things mums and genetic intelligence, check out this comprehensive article on The Independent.
