Left-Handed People May Have Certain Advantages Over Right-Handed People, Study Says

Lefties, you’re always getting the short end of the stick, living in a world that’s made for right-handed folks. But cheer up, long-suffering left-handers — it turns out you guys are actually pretty dang special. And we’re not just saying that to butter you up — science agrees, too.

1. Left-handed people are better at processing information

It’s a bit unclear as to why, but the corpus callous (which is the nerve cells connecting both sides of the brain to one another) are generally larger in left-handed people. This means that left-handed people tend to be better at information processing, which can give them a leg up when it comes to certain vocations — especially music and the arts.

2. Left-handers are, well, geniuses:

If you’re looking for a notable left-handed person, you don’t have to look far. A small sample of famous lefties includes Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Mozart, Mark Twain, Nicola Tesla, and even philosopher Aristotle. Left-handers who really wanna blow away their right-handed friends can also brag that Albert Einstein was a lefty.

3. You’re a rare breed:

Only around ten percent of the population is actually left-handed, so you’re like rare, special flowers.

4. You make really good architects and designers:

Your hand preference signifies whether you’re left or right-brained. While righties are often left brain dominant, lefties are more often right brain dominant — the hemisphere of the brain that’s connected to spatial reasoning and visualization. That means they’re good at architecture, design, and basically anything to do with picturing how things should look or be arranged. Right-brained (and left-handed) people also tend to excel at artistic expression. But that’s not all…

5. They also tend to be great at math:

A 2017 study found that lefties outperformed righties when it came to “difficult problem-solving,” including “mathematical functions to a given set of data.” Artistic AND mathematically inclined? What can’t lefties do?

6. Lefties have better sex lives:

Well, well, well. It turns out that lefties are having better sex than righties. At least according to one study from 2014, which found that 86% of left-handed people reported being “extremely satisfied” with their sex lives, compared to only 15% of righties. That’s a preeetttty significant difference, eh?

7. And they actually dominate in many sports:

Given that so much of the world caters to right-handed people, you might be surprised to learn that lefties actually excel in certain sports because of their left-handedness. In sports like boxing, fencing, and tennis — and even basketball — being left-handed is a boon. That’s because opponents aren’t typically expecting left-handed competitors, and left-handed athletes can use the element of surprise to their advantage.

8. Left-handed men are richer:

Science can’t really explain it, but according to a study led by Lafayette College and Johns Hopkins University, left-handed college-educated men make on average 26 percent more than their right-handed colleagues. Sadly, this doesn’t mete out for left-handed women.

9. And lefties of both genders are less likely to get ulcers or arthritis:

A 2012 study found the link, and researchers hypothesized that there may be a DNA connection between left-handedness and reduced risk of these diseases.

10. Plus, they recover from illnesses more quickly:

Apparently, it goes back to those right-brain, left-brain connections. In 2014, a group of researchers found that “the intact right hemisphere, specialized in spatial function, can compensate for a damaged left hemisphere whilst the left hemisphere is ill equipped to reciprocate after right hemisphere damage.” In short, left-handed, right-brained people are quicker at compensating for any left-brain damage they experience.

11. And finally, they’re natural leaders:

A 2013 study found that lefties have better “mental flexibility, inhibitory control, and working memory operations” — which makes them great at juggling multiple responsibilities and leading teams. So yup, you should hire a lefty today.

So, if you’re left-handed and have struggled with that fact throughout various aspects of your life, this should come as some good news. You possess many qualities that right-handed people do not, and so you should celebrate your left-handedness!