Are you in your first trimester and excited about the gender of your baby? While there are some parents who choose to keep the surprise until the baby pops out, there are many others who are eager to know about the sex of their little one. Planning what to buy, choosing the names, decorating the nursery – all these make up the excitement of wanting to know if it will be a little prince charming or sweet princess who’s on the way.

Let’s take a look at some of the old wives’ tales and legendary beliefs in predicting the sex of the baby. True or not? We leave it up to you.

• High vs Low

It is thought where you are carrying your baby will tell whether it’s a boy or girl. If you are carrying your baby high, it’s a girl and if it’s low, it will be a boy. This belief also applies to the shape of your belly. If you carry in front, you’ve got yourself a little boy, and if you expand horizontally, it’s a girl. The idea is that when you are pregnant with a girl, you hold your extra baby weight on your bump and hips (because “those areas are where women usually stack on the weight”). However, if you’re pregnant with a boy, all the extra baby weight will be at the front on your belly. 

• No Beauty

So, they say if “you’re having a little girl, she’ll steal your beauty”. Therefore, check out those zits. If your skin has lost its lustre and glow, you are bound to have a little princess.

• Baby’s Heart Rate

Your baby’s heart rate might be an indicator of its gender. If your little one’s heart rate is under 140 beats per minute, you’re having a boy. If it’s higher than that, it will be a girl.

• Sweet or Sour

Craving for sweets? According to some, that means you’re going to have a little girl. While salty and sour cravings indicate a little master is making his way.

• Ring It

Tie your wedding ring to a string. Hang it over your belly. If it swings in a circle, you will be having a boy. If it goes back and forth, you’ve got a girl.

• Chinese Birth Charts

Chinese birth charts use your age at conception and the month you conceived to determine the sex of your baby. Those who have tried this method vouch for its accuracy.

• The Morning Sickness

Apparently, morning sickness is meant to be worse when you are expecting a girl. The reason being; when you are pregnant with a girl, your body is “flooded with extra girl hormones” which make you feel extra sick as your body adjusts to them.

• Toddler Boy

If a toddler boy expresses interest in a pregnant woman, she is having a girl. If he doesn’t, she’s having a boy.

• The Weight Gain – for Both Mommy & Daddy

If dad’s putting on the extra kilos, it will be a baby girl. If he maintains his weight, it will be a boy.

According to studies done by endocrinologist Kristen J.Navara of the University of Georgia, “expectant mothers who tend to put on more weight are more likely to be carrying a boy because male embryos need a higher caloric intake during gestation to survive… while women who gain less weight during pregnancy tend to have girls”. Now, that’s confusing!

• Dream On!

Whatever you dream about your baby’s gender, it would be a total contrast. So, if you dreamt about your little girl last night, your unborn baby will be a boy! The more you’re hoping and wishing to have a baby girl, the more you will have a boy instead and vice versa.

• The Baking Soda Test

Add two or three tablespoons of baking soda into a cup that already has your urine in it. Watch the reaction. If the mixture fizzes up, then it’s a boy. If nothing happens, it will be a baby girl.

Putting aside these myths and beliefs of gender prediction, in medical practice, ultrasounds are commonly used to predict the sex of the baby. Ultrasounds conducted between weeks 18 and 26 are the most accurate at foreseeing the sex of your baby; and there’s also science that explains what makes a baby boy or girl. Scientists say the gender of your baby is determined by whether the fertilizing sperm has an X or a Y chromosome. An X chromosome will lead to a girl, a Y to a boy.

Now, whether it will be a boy or girl, we believe that most (or in fact, ALL) parents agree that the most important thing is to have a healthy child. Parents must not be taken in by any publicity campaigns or social thoughts that portray “a perfect family can only be complete and happy with the existence of two kids, i.e. one boy and a girl”. The focus here is to have any expectant mother to eat a nutritious diet so that she’s able to nourish her baby regardless of the gender.

Written by Noreen Yek Boussetta