The Male: Female Ratio at Birth is Depressed by Maltese Parliamentary Elections and Increased by Other Non-electoral Events

Abstract

Aim: The male to female ratio at birth declines with stress. In Malta, parliamentary elections are highly divisive and stressful. This paper looked at the association of M/F with parliamentary elections and other important political events in Malta. Methodology: A retrospective analysis of monthly male and female births was carried out. These were obtained from official Malta Government publications back to 1966. Index months were months in which parliamentary elections were held. Eleven elections were included which comprised all those wherein elections were essentially contested by two parties between 1966-2013. The monthly sums for live births for each gender were summated for the months prior and following each election and for four other political but non-electoral events. Analysis was carried out with chi tests and chi tests for trend. Results: This study analysed a total of 168795 live births. For the period 1966-2013, mean M/F was 0.5176 (95% CI 0.5156-0.5196). For elections, a peak in M/F was found at month -7, followed by a decline down to the election month, and this decline was statistically significant (p=0.005). The ensuing return to the baseline over the next few months did not reach statistical significance. The converse was noted in non-electoral events, with an increasing trend in M/F from month -10 to month -1 (p=0.003). This was followed by a significant decline from month-1 to month +4 (p=0.002). Conclusions: In Malta, since the early 1970s, the country has developed one of the purest two-party systems in existence, a structure that has produced intense political polarization of most of the Maltese society. It possible that stress leading up to elections suffices to depress M/F in Malta. The converse occurred in relation to non-electoral events. To the author’s knowledge, this is the first reported instance wherein local elections and other political events influence M/F.