When my daughter was born my in laws were convinced that she would look like their side of the family....until they saw her.  They immediately recognized that she looked like her dad, and my family.  Maybe that's a good thing.

A new study says that if a baby looks more like their father, they will be healthier by their first birthday.  The study revealed that babies that look like their dad at birth are more likely to spend time together with their father and, in turn, be healthier when they reach their first birthday.  Fathers who participated in the study spent an average of 2.5 more days per month with their babies than fathers who didn't resemble their offspring.

"Fathers are important in raising a child, and it manifests itself in the health of the child," said Distinguished Research Professor of Economics at Binghamton University Solomon Polachek.  "Those fathers that perceive the baby's resemblance to them are more certain the baby is theirs, and thus spend more time with the baby".

The result has implications regarding the role of a father's time in enhancing child health, especially in fragile families, said the researchers.

The researchers said that this study supports policies for encouraging nonresident fathers to engage in frequent positive parenting to improve early childhood health.

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