Womb testosterone exposure, finger ratio etc...

[prada]

There has been recent work into whether the ratio between a man's ring and index finger is indicative of the levels of testosterone that he was exposed to in the womb, and the researchers claim that this can also give us an indicator of his fertility, liability to heart attacks, depression etc, sporting ability etc.

However, I was wondering if anyone could elaborate on the importance of womb testosterone exposure. Is a man's fertility really set from the levels of hormones which he was exposed to in the womb, as I'd have imagined that later exposure (like the levels at puberty) would be more important - or are the levels of testosterone that a man is exposed to later in life also decided by the exposure in the womb?

Can we actually expect to believe that a man whose idex finger is longer than his ring finger to be 'less of a man'? Surely it is the testosterone which he is exposed to during life which is more important? Or can testosterone later in life (e.g. during puberty or taking artifically) not have such a profound fact on physical characteristics?

If we think of a man or boy who has an index finger that is longer than his ring finger is it really likely that throughout his life he is likely to be less fertile, more at risk from heat disease, less likely to make a top sportsman. Even if this particular male received higher amounts of testosterone during puberty than a male who had the favourable finger ratio?

What I'm really asking is if foetal exposure to testosterone is as important as Manning etc. make out, or if exposure later in life and at puberty is important (or is this too based on foetal exposure?). Can we expect males who had low womb exposure rates to be more likely to suffer from low testosterone levels in future? Does womb exposure have enough of an influence to make some men less 'man' than other men, or is it what happens after birth?

Would the all important penis size, for example, be based on womb exposure, or puberty exposure? Or are genetics far more important in general than womb exposure?

I'm partly asking this because the research (I know it is still fairly new and only lightly touched upon) seems fairly misleading. Why should the high testosterone ratio give higher chances of homosexuality if it also gives 'perfect alpha man' characteristics, and why does it differ depending on where peoeple are geographically located?

Thanks for any replies, I do find this topic interesting, and would love to hear some educated (or otherwise!) replies. I hope you don't find my ramblings too vague/un-scientific to follow

Any info on womb testosterone exposure and effects/lack of effect on later life I'm interested in.

[prada]

Bump.

Anyone?

Would still be grateful of any responses.

[James]

Some research suggests there may be correlation between finger ratio and sporting ability, however testosterone is likely to be only one factor that contributes to such charactersitics later in life.

[pinkpanther]

umm so i have a very masculine finger ratio and im a female. so this means im more manly then other women ? how can you measure your finger ratio anyway? in the palm or what?

[James]

Ring finger length compared to index finger. Measured from tip of finger to crease between finger and palm.

[pinkpanther]

oh... ring finger is still bit longer.. please tell me your finger ratio! which finger is longer?
so id know how the ratio is for males

[Navin]

I think that testosterone in the womb has a much different effect than testosterone produced during puberty.

I just want to clearify something: Why is there testosterone present in the womb in the first place?

[James]

When the fetus is first exposed to the testosterone it serves to allow it to know how to respond to later testosterone surges, ie at puberty. It also allows the male to gain all the male features and characteristics when growing.

[gabriel]

i don't thik that higher testestrone level reduces chanses on homosexuality.reserch has shown that most homosexuals are born like that.

[prada]

I was under the impression that very high testosterone levels in the womb lead to homosexuality, from what I've read of the research.

I'm not sure about the whole idea, I mean just reading the sport section of the newspaper it immediately becomes obvious that there are professional football (soccer) players who have the 'low testosterone' finger ration, whilst Dr Manning claims that he could pick the best sportsmen (and I think he specifically mentions soccer players) from a group of random men, by selecting those with the higher-testosterone finger ratio.

[prada]

When the fetus is first exposed to the testosterone it serves to allow it to know how to respond to later testosterone surges, ie at puberty. It also allows the male to gain all the male features and characteristics when growing.

I wonder if variations in womb testosterone exposure are actually significant enough to cause noticable differences between men after puberty? I mean if we compared a man who was exposed to x more testosterone in the womb than another man, how profound would the physical/mental differences be?