Ratios do matter, whether it is for riding the bike more quickly, for making the meals healthier (more veggies than fat is always better), even the question of life and death depends on them. According to new studies, they can also predict mental disorders.
Schizophrenia, a chronic debilitating mental disorder, can be predicted thanks to your digit ratio. What does digit ratio mean? That is the difference between the length of the ring finger and the length of the index finger.
If your index finger is longer than your ring finger, you have a high digit ratio. If you ring finger is longer than your index finger, you have a low digit ratio.
Between 2012 and 2013 a research was conducted by the Turkish scientists who measured the fingers of 103 men with schizophrenia and 100 men without schizophrenia. Then, they measured the length between their index and ring fingers.
Digit size matters
The results the Turkish scientists got showed that people with schizophrenia had a higher digit ratio on the right hand compared to the ‘healthy’ men. On the other hand, people with schizophrenia had lower digit ratio than those who did not have schizophrenia.
Taner Oznur, MD, from Gulhane Military Medical Faculty in Ankara, Turkey, who was the study author said that according to the study results, the finger-length ratio has a moderate predictive value for schizophrenia.
But what is the thing that really makes the connection? Some previous studies have found out that a disturbance of male hormones in the womb can affect the way the brain develops, as well as the levels of the hormones, which affect the size of your fingers.
Fetal development
According to Dr. Oznur, the imbalance is noticed during the third month of pregnancy, but it is hard to evaluate and assess because of some ethical limitations. He says that the digit ratio gives an indirect measure for this evaluation and can reflect early deformities in the brain.
Former studies make a connection between the finger length and mental toughness as well. The British Psychological Society has conducted a study that connects low index ratio to mental toughness and an aptitude for sports in men.
Study author Jim Golby, PhD, head of research in sport and exercise at Teesside University in the United Kingdom, says that high prenatal levels of testosterone can result in increased mental toughness, optimism and aptitude towards sport. This means that the mental toughness can be partially biologically predicted.
Still, there are inconsistencies. Women are not mentioned in the studies, as well as folks whose finger-ratio did not correlate to any mental disorders. Then, how applicable is this?
According to some experts, it is not much.
So many factors
Even though the research has a potential, it relates to only one factor among many and gives another clue for researchers to explore, Ben Michaelis says, a PhD and a clinical pshycologist. He did not participate in the Turkish study.
Women also have not taken part in this study, so this has left a glaring hole in the results. Oznur says that further research is needed, which will either confirm or disapprove any of these results.
