Are Left-Handed People Equal To Right-Handed People? Apparently Not!

Studies have shown that the number of left-handers who make it to old age is drastically lower than the number of their right-handed peers.

lefties were 2.7 times more likely to suffer from immune disorders and 2.3 times more likely to have been hospitalized at some point.

www.cracked.com...

Well Immune disorders is very specific, accidents is something else though as most of the tools we use are made for right-handed people.

Although left-handed people make up only 10 percent of the population as a whole, they compose a full 20 percent of schizophrenics. If you like those odds, you should know that left-handedness is also associated with dyslexia, ADD and some mood disorders.

Studies have shown that, if you're left-handed, you're twice as likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.

More surprising, left-handers actually tended to exhibit subtle symptoms of PTSD.

Now that's pretty serious
This is the first time that I actually have come to hope that I get a right-handed son/daughter when I have kids.

If lefties are more prone to mental problems as well as immune disorders it may very well be something gone wrong during the mother's 9months of pregnancy.

So I see alot of threads and people often use the analogy of left handed people and how they are equal to right handed people.... well apparently not!

They are not equal at all
Being a leftie means you may have had a glitch during the birth process
The end result is not at all equal to being right handed.

Thoughts ATS?

I always thought lefties were more successful. Its more likely that you hear of someone successful being left handed.. But probably because they hardly mention when someone is right handed.. Due to the amount. Thats some crazy info though. Maybe we were always righties.. Until some groupd started forcng their children to be lefties.. And it just kept going until we have some natural lefties..?

They are not equal at all

reply to post by ModernAcademia


You saying that you are superior to me?

So, what's your point? Should we hate left-handers? Should we force all left-handers to use their right hands? Should we treat left-handers as second-class citizens? Should we not give left-handers the same rights as right-handers? Or.... should we realize that left-handers didn't choose their lot in life, and that we should have compassion for left-handers, treat them as human beings with the same rights as everyone else, regardless of the fact that they are in the minority?

reply to post by ModernAcademia

If lefties are more prone to mental problems as well as immune disorders it may very well be something gone wrong during the mother's 9months of pregnancy.

The ratio of left handed to right handed is such because left handed people are born leaders. If you do not believe me have a look at how many US presidents were left handed for example..

There have been 7 left handed presidents. James A. Garfield Herbert Hoover Harry S. Truman Gerald Ford Ronald Reagan George H.W. Bush Bill Clinton Of these presidents James Garfield was ambidextrous. Obviously, all the other US presidents were right handed!

That is statically a very high proportion. Also worth checking is the amount of films stars and people in adverts that are left handed... Even Jesus was left handed...

I remember being told that in the bad old days, being left handed was a sign of being in league with the devil. Since similar attributes of this include being red headed, green eyed, allergic to silver, and other odds and ends, I'm pretty much screwed.

Originally posted by kaylaluv
So, what's your point? Should we hate left-handers? Should we force all left-handers to use their right hands? Should we treat left-handers as second-class citizens? Should we not give left-handers the same rights as right-handers? Or.... should we realize that left-handers didn't choose their lot in life, and that we should have compassion for left-handers, treat them as human beings with the same rights as everyone else, regardless of the fact that they are in the minority?

LOL when did I say any of that?

Originally posted by purplemer
The ratio of left handed to right handed is such because left handed people are born leaders. If you do not believe me have a look at how many US presidents were left handed for example..

U.S presidents are not "Born" leaders, they are Elected Leaders

Originally posted by purplemer
There have been 7 left handed presidents. James A. Garfield Herbert Hoover Harry S. Truman Gerald Ford Ronald Reagan George H.W. Bush Bill Clinton Of these presidents James Garfield was ambidextrous. Obviously, all the other US presidents were right handed!

Those guys all Suck!
Born Leaders or born greedy puppets?

Originally posted by purplemer
Even Jesus was left handed...

Jesus was not left handed
He also wasn't right handed
He didn't even have any hands as he never existed!

I'm just saying.......

Not saying you are wrong I just didn't agree with your examples

Some more info on left handed peeps...

According to Alan Searleman of the St Lawrence University in New York there are more left-handed people with IQ's above 140 (genius bracket) than right-handed people though we are only 10 percent of the world population.

Research shows that most left-handed people think faster than our right-handed friends. To be a genius, one must be able to create original works and since lefties are better equipped than righties to think with the right side of their brains (which controls creativity) we are more likely to come up with ingenious ideas.

www.sowetanlive.co.za...

reply to post by ModernAcademia


I dont like your attitude. You wanna kill all lefties dont you? I think thats a hate crime..If not, it should be!

Originally posted by ModernAcademia

Originally posted by kaylaluv
So, what's your point? Should we hate left-handers? Should we force all left-handers to use their right hands? Should we treat left-handers as second-class citizens? Should we not give left-handers the same rights as right-handers? Or.... should we realize that left-handers didn't choose their lot in life, and that we should have compassion for left-handers, treat them as human beings with the same rights as everyone else, regardless of the fact that they are in the minority?

LOL when did I say any of that?

I never claimed you said any of those things. I am asking the questions to see what your real point is of this thread.

So, you think lefties are not equal. What do you propose we do or think about that? How should we treat left-handers, considering this information you have provided to us?

reply to post by ModernAcademia

U.S presidents are not "Born" leaders, they are Elected Leaders

Lets not dice hairs here.. Born or elected they are still leaders.... Its a known fact that left handed people are more intelligent than right handed people and also more charismatic.. They have something right handed people do not.

Even polar bears are left handed

Yes, in the sense that 4/5 of my sons have apraxia, a wiring disorder that affects muscles, speech and learning. And 2 physical apraxia needing Occuptational Therapy, though still normal by most circumstances, are very right hemisphered and unconventional, very bright and abstract thinkers mind you. But this isn't new information, right from the start, with the neurological society and speech therapists involved, this information was already known years ago, amongst learning professionals, and its a whole cluster.

The plus side is, many like this, with learning disabilities and overcoming wiring disorders, who have tested above their grades in abstract, but behind in classic learning, they usually do very well, in being self starters, in being inventors, in creating their own successes. This doesnt relate to intellgence, how gifted they are, insightful, intuitive and successful.

It goes both ways. Lefties tend to be more off from the norm in any which way. I view us all as more of an experiment than rigid design as most righties seem to be be. We are more likely to be at least two deviations above the norm on an IQ test, and also more likely to have immune diseases.

I read a section of an online book once that went into detail how elevated prenatal testosterone levels in the womb (from the mother) , contributes to a smaller thymus gland, and an enlarged right hemisphere.

Immune system disorders are also 2-3X more common in the gifted

I never really bothered to notice the difference between left-handed items and right-handed, I just adapted and choose not to care. The only time I truly noticed something being for right handers was at school using the scissors. I learned early to hold the scissors at a particular angle to make the cut, and later on felt fine switching to my right hand.

I see no reason why I should be more accident prone.

We're obviously a bit funky, but I'm weary of these results that show we don't live as long. What about controlling for the idiots who die out early? Say before 50 years of age?? I doubt there's much of a difference in mortality.

I cope with having a weak immune system in various ways, from hand washing dishes (a little bit of funk a day, keeps the RX away!!) , to taking vitamin-c and b-vitamins, cooking my own whole meals, and of course walking in sandals or barefoot as much as possible.

My youngest is ambidextrous yet writes with her left, eats with which ever is closest to the food, and knocks out the coloring with both (why waste time). She seems to grasp things faster then my other two but I do see the frustration sometimes in devices that are designed for right handed individuals. She had to learn to use her right hand for the computer mouse, yet it made her a more efficient as she can now multi-task far better than I can utilizing both hands comfortably.

I think it just depends on how one is taught to work with the worlds challenges.

Originally posted by kaylaluv
I never claimed you said any of those things. I am asking the questions to see what your real point is of this thread.

So, you think lefties are not equal. What do you propose we do or think about that? How should we treat left-handers, considering this information you have provided to us?[

Just to be careful when using this analogy that is used alot in the Social Issues section of ATS that's all

Originally posted by purplemer
Even polar bears are left handed

That's a myth my friend

Well, I am left handed but I broke my right thumb last night and im struggling like hell to use the mouse with my left hand lol. could be the hydrocodone too

Originally posted by ModernAcademia


Just to be careful when using this analogy that is used alot in the Social Issues section of ATS that's all

Well, if you are referring to using this analogy with how gays are treated, I wouldn't hesitate to use it.

Left-handers: born that way, about 10% of the population, deserve to be treated with the same respect, and given the same rights as right-handers.

Homosexuals: born that way, about 10% of the population, deserve to be treated with the same respect, and given the same rights as heterosexuals.

I am a lefty. I learned about the statistic that lefties don't live as long of lives as righties when I was a kid. It kind of freaked me out for a bit. I can concur with some of the information, as I've suffered from Panic attacks for years and have problematic allergic disorders, which of course lead to other illnesses.

I think that lefties are very "cerebral" and that can not only be an obviously advantage, but also a physical detriment since we know that mind of matter can be very real. We probably manifest many ailments due to this right brain musculature.

Do any of you lefties literally tire yourself out from thinking on new concepts all the day long? I wouldn't have it any other way, but I tire others(righties) out sharing them. They just don't get it, or understand why I think the way I do, it's such a waste of energy to them it seems.

Oh well, we are who we are, the two types make for a balanced world.

reply to post by Juggernog


Interesting that you aren't able to use the mouse with the left hand. I switch on the fly if I'm doing something else around the room which has caused my current position to make it easier with the left on mouse.

If it's really so difficult, you could just cup your fingers to move the mouse without the thumb. Unless it's bandaged in a way that doesn't make this easily done.

I seem to have become more ambidextrous through the years, or rather more functional with my right hand. I'm thinking using the mouse has contributed, but also consciously choosing to use my right hand when it's closer to that side even if I would feel more comfortable with my left. I started doing this for everything, except that which requires a precise touch/movement a decade ago, or so. Now it's pretty much automatic to be non-choosy except for handwriting, for the most part.



reply to post by SunnyDee



No and yes. I don't tire myself out anyomre thinking all day. It doesn't matter what I'm doing, I'm always running through at least a few big-idea thought processes in the background, and it no longer makes me tired. It did when I first started to "go insane". I'm good with insanity these days

Yes, it tires out nearly everyone else I talk with. Only other high-energy cerebral types enjoy talking about complex topics all damned day. Pretty much everyone else gets ticked off to some degree, even if they know it's just me being who I am...but I get better at keeping it to myself, else talking about mindless things to socialize a bit...as I age.