Boy, Girl Newborns Show Spinal Differences: Study

By Robert Preidt

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 5, 2015 (HealthDay News) — The spines of boys and girls aren’t the same size at birth, a new study shows.

Researchers suspect this difference is probably due to an evolutionary adaptation that allows females’ spines to cope with the added weight they carry during pregnancy.

The researchers used MRIs to measure the small bones that form the spine (vertebrae) in 70 healthy, full-term male and female newborns.

The diameter of cross sections of the vertebrae — a key factor in the strength of these bones — were an average of 11 percent smaller in girls than boys, the study revealed.

The study was published in the August issue of the Journal of Pediatrics.

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