# Mortality of Antarctic babies due to gut microflora **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 10, 2015, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125 "2015-12-10T22:26:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Artfog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/artfog/32/1011_2.png) [@Artfog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Artfog)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2015, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/1 "2015-12-10T22:26:22Z")
In the late 70’s Agentina tried to enhance its claims to an Antarctic territory by sending pregnant women there to give birth. From what I can glean, there may have been eight births. At some point, they all returned to Argentina. There’s a claim in a book my wife is reading that there was an unusually high mortality rate in these babies soon after, the hypothesis being that due to being born in a microbially alien environment, their gastrointestinal tracts were colonised by abnormal microflora resulting in severe GI disorders. I’m skeptical of this story because: A) A lot of the initial colonisation of the gut comes from the mother during birth (except for caesareans); B) my Googling for this has turned up nothing other than that the first baby born is still alive. Is anyone aware of anything to back this story up? Does it sound plausible? ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2015, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/2 "2015-12-10T22:51:18Z")
Huh. Could you identify the book your wife is reading where that claim was made, please? Might help us track down some relevant info. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2015, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/3 "2015-12-10T23:05:27Z")
No answers, but I’m interested in more info, too. Are these considered the first (or only?) people to have been born on Antarctica? EDIT: Here’s some more info on Wikipedia for the [first person born in Antarctica](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emilio_Palma). It says there have been ten people so far to be born in Antarctica. ---
**Author:** ![Artfog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/artfog/32/1011_2.png) [@Artfog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Artfog)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2015, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/4 "2015-12-10T23:06:29Z")
It’s called [Gut: the inside story of our body’s most under-rated organ.](https://scribepublications.com.au/books-authors/books/gut/) ---
**Author:** ![Artfog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/artfog/32/1011_2.png) [@Artfog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Artfog)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2015, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/5 "2015-12-10T23:11:43Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > Here’s some more info on Wikipedia for the [first person born in Antarctica](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emilio_Palma). It says there have been ten people so far to be born in Antarctica. There’s understandably a lot of focus on Emilio Palma being the first person born on a continent, but I can’t find anything on the fates of the others. From various (not necessarily trustworthy) sources, I’ve read of eleven Antarctic births, eight from Argentina, three from Chile, all between 1977 and 1984. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2015, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/6 "2015-12-12T22:18:04Z")
Completely as an aside, [that was a plot from an issue of 2000AD](http://judgedredd.wikia.com/wiki/Antarctic_City) ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/7 "2015-12-13T12:37:48Z")
I found a quote of the relevant passage in the OP’s book, which says: > [@](#): > > A group of South Americans had to learn that through bitter experience. They had the clever idea of taking pregnant women to the South Pole to have their babies. The plan was that the babies born there could stake a claim to any oil future reserves as natives of the region. The babies did not survive. They died soon after birth or on the way back to South America. The South Pole is so cold and germ-free that the infants simply did not get the bacteria they needed to survive. The normal temperatures and bacteria the babies encountered after leaving the Antarctic were enough to kill them. I’m tentatively calling bullshit on this claim. For one thing, it waffles its argument by conflating gut bacteria with external temperature as contributing factors in the alleged infant deaths. For another, there’s a shit-ton of reasons that babies born in Antarctica would be at higher risk for mortality completely unrelated to gut flora, including being thousands of miles away from the nearest neonatal care medical facility. And finally, I’m not seeing any evidence that the Antarctic “anchor babies” actually **did** die in infancy at rates significantly higher than normal. It’s already been mentioned that the first of those babies survived to adulthood (and AFAIK is still alive and doing fine), so the book is at the very least sloppy in its phrasing. In short, OP, absent any cites in the book your wife’s reading that reference actual news reports or preferably medical studies on the alleged disastrous levels of Antarctic infant mortality, I think we can disregard those allegations. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/8 "2015-12-13T14:57:23Z")
Agree with the bullshit assessment that **Kimstu** makes. The most significant exposure to the bacteria that colonize people they had just fine: their mothers and then the other adults around them. Even C-section kids bottle fed. Meanwhile [here](http://webecoist.momtastic.com/2011/02/15/born-freezing-meet-antarcticas-first-citizen/) is the man who was born there, now in his 30s. > [@](#): > > In the 1970s, Argentina was ruled by a military dictatorship with expansionist ambitions. The nation’s political hierarchy thought that announcing births in Antártida Argentina would help support Argentina’s claim to the territory. … The solution came courtesy of Captain Jorge Emilio Palma, leader of the Argentine army detachment at Esperanza Base, and his wife Sílvia Morella de Palma who at the time (late 1977) was 7 months pregnant. Once it was assured basic medical facilities and staff were on hand at Esperanza Base, Mrs. Palma was flown in to complete her pregnancy. … Once ensconced at the base, the remaining weeks of Sílvia Morella de Palma’s pregnancy passed without complications and on January 7, 1978, Emilio Marcos Palma entered the bottom of the world weighing 7½ pounds (3.4 kg). If it was any consolation to the family, Emilio’s birth occurred at the height of the Antarctic summer with the midnight sun shining bright and the average temperature hovering around 3°C (37°F). … To date (2009), eleven children have been officially born in Antarctica or antarctic territories, which are defined as being south of the 60th parallel. Eight of these erstwhile Antarcticans were born at Esperanza Base. Nothing about any of those kids dying … at all. Some pictures of some kids at the Antarctic station there too. They look pretty much alive. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/9 "2015-12-13T15:08:47Z")
For what it’s worth, [here](http://aqamb.com/declaration.html) is a full list of names and birthdates of people born in Antarctica. (The author of the page seems more than a little wacky, but provides citations at the end of the list.) There’s no mention of any of them having died. ---
**Author:** ![WF\_Tomba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d9b06d/32.png) [@WF\_Tomba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WF_Tomba)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/10 "2015-12-13T15:14:20Z")
Also hurting the book’s credibility is the statement that the babies were born at “the South Pole”. Esperanza Base is way out on the end of the Antarctic Peninsula, a long way from the South Pole. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/11 "2015-12-13T18:50:27Z")
Some people consider this woman (1913-1996) to have been the first baby born in Antarctica, but it isn’t official because she wasn’t born on the continent. > **[Solveig Gunbjørg Jacobsen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solveig_Gunbj%C3%B8rg_Jacobsen)** > > Solveig Gunbjørg Jacobsen (8 October 1913 – 25 October 1996) was a Norwegian who was the first person born and raised south of the Antarctic Convergence, in Grytviken, South Georgia in 1913. > Her father, Fridthjof Jacobsen (1874–1953), settled in South Georgia in 1904 to become assistant manager, and from 1914 to 1921 manager of the Grytviken whaling station. Two other daughters of Jacobsen's and his wife Klara Olette Jacobsen, Signe Fon (Jacobsen) and Åse Jacobsen were also born on the island.... I also noticed that two of the Argentinian babies were born on the same day, but they are not twins. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/12 "2015-12-13T21:19:26Z")
> [@WF\_Tomba](#): > > Also hurting the book’s credibility is the statement that the babies were born at “the South Pole”. Esperanza Base is way out on the end of the Antarctic Peninsula, a long way from the South Pole. Yeah, Esperanza base is just a bit farther from the South Pole than Reykjavik is from the North Pole, and just a bit closer than Anchorage Alaska is. And I’m not aware of any issues with babies born either of those places (which, without checking, I’m guessing will have climates not too different from Esperanza; the South Pole is much harsher than the North Pole, but that’s because it’s at high altitude and far from any ocean, unlike Esperanza which is sea level and seaside). ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2015, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/13 "2015-12-14T01:32:21Z")
It is a bit disappointing that someone whose bio is fairly decent wrote something that demonstrated so little knowledge of the subject she wrote a book about. Our microbiome is impacted mightily by what we have been initially colonized with from our mothers in particular (but also by the spewing fountains of bacteria that are other family members and other children/caregivers around us), and lots by our diets that encourage particular gut ecosystems to thrive or wither along, lots by genetic factors intrinsic to each of us that makes us better or worse hosts for particular populations, and maybe some little tiny bit by other bacteria we ingest. That happens just fine and just as differentially whether we are born in New York, Argentina, an Antarctic base, or heck, even if a kid was born on a space station (although at least there, there might be some other factors that could come into play). It is highly probable that a child born in Antarctica growing up to eat similarly as his parents do, has a gut ecosystem, even a complete microbiome (skin inclusive) broadly comparable to his parents’. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2015, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/14 "2015-12-14T03:51:18Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > It is a bit disappointing that someone whose bio is fairly decent wrote something that demonstrated so little knowledge of the subject she wrote a book about. Yup. On the other hand, it’s always very satisfying to see one more of the innumerable filthy spawn of ignorance get crushed to a bloody smear right here on the page. Take _that_, you irresponsibly-alleged pseudofact. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2015, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/15 "2015-12-14T04:54:11Z")
> [@Quercus](#): > > Yeah, Esperanza base is just a bit farther from the South Pole than Reykjavik is from the North Pole, and just a bit closer than Anchorage Alaska is. And I’m not aware of any issues with babies born either of those places (which, without checking, I’m guessing will have climates not too different from Esperanza; the South Pole is much harsher than the North Pole, but that’s because it’s at high altitude and far from any ocean, unlike Esperanza which is sea level and seaside). Conditions at the South Pole are very harsh, and it would be unwise for a pregnant woman to go there. p.s. No, I’ve never been there. However, I do understand that it’s at something like 11,000 feet elevation, and even the compound has consistently low temperatures and humidity. ---
**Author:** ![sbunny8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@sbunny8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sbunny8)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2015, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/16 "2015-12-14T15:52:30Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > Yup. On the other hand, it’s always very satisfying to see one more of the innumerable filthy spawn of ignorance get crushed to a bloody smear right here on the page. Take _that_, you irresponsibly-alleged pseudofact. 😃 Damn. I thought we were just supposed to fight ignorance, not pulverize it and then taunt it afterwards. LOL ---
**Author:** ![Artfog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/artfog/32/1011_2.png) [@Artfog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Artfog)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2015, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/17 "2015-12-15T00:31:13Z")
Just to add a bit more weight to the conclusion, checking through Fretful Porpentine’s link to the list of Antarctiwegians, the second born also appears to be alive and well. I couldn’t find anything about any of the others. It looks like a sloppy bit of work by the author, maybe recounting an anecdote from someone else that she never verified. ---
**Author:** ![Cyrux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@Cyrux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyrux)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2017, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/18 "2017-01-22T17:58:09Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > In short, OP, absent any cites in the book your wife’s reading that reference actual news reports or preferably medical studies on the alleged disastrous levels of Antarctic infant mortality, I think we can disregard those allegations. I have no idea about the veracity of the claim itself and I concur with the general thought in this discussion however there does exist a [news report](http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/d-26161823.html)about this claim. It’s from the German newspaper called \*Der Speigel \* and seeing the author of the book is German I imagine this is where she got her information from. I asked one of my German friends to translate the relevant passage: [QUOTE=] To assure access to this area [Antartica], Argentina tried a trick: the navy transported a woman who was 7-months pregnant to the Esperanza station, who gave birth to the first “Antarctican” in 1978. Shortly afterwards they even established a Kindergarten on the Antartic peninsula - however, the polar-children who grew up in the almost sterile environment showed that they were not strong enough to withstand the pathogens present on the mainland. In the almost sterile air of Antarctica, their immune system could not develop properly. Some of them died early. [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2017, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/19 "2017-01-23T16:42:52Z")
Ys, presumably the child gets bacteria from the mother, from food they consume which is never completely sterile, from touching the same surfaces as everyone else as they crawl around and put everything they encounter into their mouth. The only valid argument might be that bacteria that work their way into the domestic environment from local penguin and bird colonies might be very different from what is normally encountered, but we don’t usually hear of high infant mortality in other environments with extreme bird populations. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2017, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125/20 "2017-01-24T03:13:39Z")
Do we know how long any of the babies were there? And on an unrelated-but-related note, I Googled “at what age is it safe to fly with a baby” and the top result said **two days**. Color me surprised; I’d have thought _two months_ was pushing it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-of-antarctic-babies-due-to-gut-microflora/740125.md?page=2)