It costs a lot of money to raise kids, but who knew having them might actually help keep money in your wallet?

A new study has found that people who find wallets with baby pictures inside them are more likely to return them than they are wallets without pictures of any cute lil' buggers. (We know, we know – who carries pictures in their wallet anymore? That's what cell phones are for.)

Researchers in Scotland conducted a test using 240 wallets they left in different areas, all with a mailing address where people who stumbled on the wallets could mail them. Wallets came with either photos of a baby, a puppy, a smiling family, a happy-looking older couple or no photo at all. There were also some wallets with documentation proving the owner had just donated money to charity.

The results?

Eighty-eight percent of the wallets with photos of the baby were mailed back, far ahead of any of the other ones:

  • 53% of wallets with the puppy photo were returned
  • 48% of wallets with the family photo were returned
  • 28% of wallets with the elderly couple were returned
  • 20% of wallets with the charity information were returned
  • 15% of wallets with no photos were returned

So, what does this mean? Well, for starters, it’s time to update your wallet by getting rid of that old and musty Blockbuster Video card. Second, you may want to think about adding some photos of kids -- even if they’re not yours. It could save you some serious money.

More From KSEN AM 1150