Myths about left-handed persons

Artiste Eddy Kenzo,  says being left-handed was easy with his mother around. She understood he was not an outcast and never complained about him being left-handed. However, this changed when his mother died. The family that took care of him constantly beat Kenzo for eating using his left hand. He had to try and eat with the right and today, this he can only do if he does not use a fork to eat.

 However, it slowed down his ability.

The artiste says it hurts him that society is still ignorant about left-handed persons.

He believes that being left-handed is unique and attributes his dance and football skills to this trait.

A common belief that left-handed persons are ‘disabled’ has driven left-handed children away from society. Many are beaten for just using their left-hand. Those that have made to the Hall of Fame are not an exception.

According to research, majority of the world’s population are right-handed, and only about 10% are left-handed. There is no evidence that left handiness is a disability. A lot of research has shown that it is a normal part of child development. However, there is a possibility that left handiness coexists with learning disabilities or other health concerns but this is an exception and not a rule.

Growing up, Raymond Mujuni was always out spaced. Being the only left-handed child in school, it was not easy for his teachers to comprehend. He was asked to leave school if he could not use his right hand.

 A lot of his work was only accepted if he had written with his right hand. This he said became a problem for the school because he could not use his right hand and even when he tried and learnt, the hand writing was not as good as it was on his left hand. Trying to switch from the left to the right slowed down Raymond’s ability.

  Raymond was lucky his parents appealed to the school and he was allowed to use his left hand.

 “My parents were more forward thinking because they did not stop me from using my left hand,” ’Raymond said.

 Achura E. Fredrick, a Ugandan actor and movie director, says being left-handed is a blessing and has made him a jack of all trades. He plays football, he is very good at martial arts and many other things. Being left-handed, he says made him unique among his friends. On the football pitch, he was  such a genius that his coach loved his style of play.

 “I played my first football game when I was in Primary Two. When I first met the coach, he asked about my preferred side, my answer was; the left. Coach said , ‘you are the best pick for this game,”  Achura says.

 With time, he says he became versatile and played almost every position on the pitch., including goalkeeping. For this, he received many golden gloves. 

However, the now retired footballer had a tough childhood, especially at school. His teachers beat his hands a lot. He says, he performed tasks differently from his right-handed peers, citing an example of his writing style.

 ‘’People would say left-handed people are people with disability. Others would say if you use your left-hand side to do daily chores, you are overworking the heart, and your life expectancy would reduce by five or 10 years,” he narrates.

Dr Sabrina Kitaka, a paediatrician and senior lecturer at Makerere University College of Health Sciences, says babies begin to show a preference for one hand over the other even before birth. This preference she adds continues to develop throughout childhood. She adds that hand dominance is not only influenced by genetics but also other factors including environmental and cultural influences.

“It is true that as the brain grows, differences in development of the right and left sides of the brain may account for which hand a child becomes more comfortable using,” Dr Sabrina said.

Dr Kitaka is disturbed by how society seems not to care about those who are left-handed. She has two left-handed children who struggle to fit in.

“Just consider all of the right-handed gadgets, the way desks or cars are designed, and cooking tools that fit comfortably only in your right hand. As a result, many parents switch their children so they ably fit into the social life built for right-handed people,” Dr Kitaka adds.

She also says forcing a child to use their right hand would in the long run cause emotional damage with anger out bursts, poor handwriting and being bullied. This might cause ambidexterity.

“I have two left-handed children in my class. I have understood that being left-handed is not a disability. I do not force them to use their right hand but I think they also feel out of place. Seeing their friends using the right hand might influence them to try using their right hand. They would also want to fit,’’ says Tracy Agoa, a teacher at Hill View Nursery and Primary School, Kampala.   

Martha  Abalo, mother of four, says she always prayed to never have left-handed children. She did not want to lose any of her children.

“I was told that if one is left-handed, they die at a young age. They are considered bad luck,’’ Abalo says.

Agnes Wandera a mother of two left-handed boys narrates her part of the story.  Left-handed children, she believes die prematurely. Her attempt to ‘help’ her sons use their right hand has remained a wild goose chase. She was made to believe that left-handed people perform poorly in class, and are not good at anything at all. On the contrary, her sons are excellent performers in their classes.

“It is a common belief, everyone everywhere does not want their children using their left hand. I still fear my children will die young. I have put chilly on their left hands so that they will not eat with it, but they still do other things using their left hand,’’ says Wandera.

Several interviews with different mothers yielded similar concerns.

About the lefties

According to Dr Sabrina Kitaka, ambidexterity is similar to mixed handedness. Only one percent of the world’s population are ambidextrous and researchers are still learning about ambidexterity. Its exact cause is unknown. However, it is thought that many ambidextrous people are left-handed individuals who have learnt to use their right hand. Being ambidextrous may also be associated with some level of hyperactivity disorder but more studies are necessary to understand its cause as well as risks associated with it. She adds that certain genetic variants might also play a role.