1But science may have just proved them right - because beautiful women are more likely to have daughters than their plainer counterparts, according to a study. As parents tend to pass on genes that determine looks, this could result in handsome men becoming rather thin on the ground.2For example, Yasmin Le Bon is signed to the same modelling agency as daughter Amber, and Jerry Hall's daughters Elizabeth and Georgia Jagger have both taken to the catwalk. Dr Satoshi Kanazawa, of the London School of Economics, analysed data from a survey of 17,000 babies born in Britain in March 1958 and tracked them throughout their lives.3When they reached 45, they were asked about the gender of any children they had. Those rated as attractive were equally likely to have a son or daughter as their first child - but the unattractive sorts were more likely to have a son.4 Dr Kanazawa believes that parents tend to produce children who benefit from their own features.5So it pays for attractive women to have daughters.But couples blessed with strength and aggression rather than looks are better off having boys, as these characteristics are of more use to males. |