They say who will be born next can be predicted by the hairline of the elder, by the shape of the abdomen, by the face of mommy, and God knows how else.
Now this question can be easily answered with the help of an ultrasound scan and a competent specialist. But such an opportunity appeared quite recently, some 30-40 years ago. Before that, for many millennia, mankind was forced to wait for a “surprise”, but resisted it in every possible way. Tatyana Butskaya, a pediatrician and a popular medical blogger, told the readers of healthy-food-near-me.com in all details about the ways to predict the sex of the future baby.
In different eras, in different countries, know-how was developed, which was supposed to shed light on the secret of the sex of the child long before his birth. Many methods now seem, to put it mildly, strange, but one of them, according to the results of a scientific experiment, was recognized as quite accurate. Read on and try to guess which one.
• In ancient China, women were prescribed in early pregnancy cook rice… If it turned out to be crumbly, the expectant mother was congratulated on the conception of the boy, if the rice stuck together, she was predicted the birth of a girl.
• In ancient Rome, the sex of the child was determined by the appearance in the household first lamb in 9 months. After the lamb, the family tuned in to wait for the son, after the lamb, it was waiting for the daughter.
• In Ancient Egypt, forecasts were made using sacks of barley and wheat… The pregnant woman had to urinate on them. If barley germinated first, it was believed that she was expecting a boy, and if wheat – a girl.
• Russian women, while expecting a child, were guided by Crop… If there is a lot of grain, a boy will be born, if not enough – a girl. To finally support their assumptions, the women folded the rods in half. If the rod straightened, expectant mothers believed that soon there would be one more man in the family, if not, they waited for the birth of a little helper. If the gender of the child was important for the couple (and in those days, preference was given to boys), the parents resorted to various tricks before conceiving. So that after 9 months a boy was born, men brought an ax to the family bed, and women, if they dreamed of a daughter-needlewoman, put needles with a thimble at the head of the bed.
• The French believed that the sex of the child can be found out with salt… The man poured a little salt on the hair of his sleeping wife, and when she woke up, he caught her every word. If the first wife called the male name, the couple was preparing for the birth of a son, if the female – for the appearance of a daughter.
• The Greeks used as a “folk ultrasound” ring… It was strung on the hair of a pregnant woman and hung over the belly. If the ring began to spin, it was assumed that a girl would be born, if it swayed from side to side, a boy.
And now about the most reliable of the listed methods of sex determination. In the last century, scientists decided to resort to testing the ancient Egyptian method: they poured barley and wheat with urine of pregnant women. Surprisingly, in 7 out of 10 cases, the result coincided with the ultrasound data.
Despite the fact that the sex of the baby can be determined using ultrasound, alternative methods remain popular. They are remembered in the early stages of pregnancy or in cases when the child “hides” from the all-seeing eye of ultrasound. I must say that now the methods for determining the sex of a child have reached a different level: they do not sprinkle salt on the head, and do not break the rods.
Parents-to-be pay attention to the woman’s taste preferences (sweet – to a girl, salty – to a boy), the shape of the abdomen (round – to a girl, “cucumber” – to a boy), the date of conception and personal data of the parents.
Method for determining the sex of the child for blood renewal practiced relatively recently. The bottom line is to calculate which parent has the “stronger” blood. It is believed that female blood is renewed every three years and male blood every four. If father’s blood is “fresh”, a boy will be born, if mother’s – a girl.
Gender prediction on the table came to us from Ancient China. About 700 years ago, scientists found an ancient table, according to which gender depends on the age of the mother and the month of conception of the baby. To understand who will be born, it is enough to study the intersections of these injections.
There is a theory that the sex of the child depends on mother’s diet… If at the planning stage a woman ate dairy products, nuts, beets, carrots, peas and denied herself potatoes, citrus fruits and bananas, you can safely buy a pink dowry. If the diet of the expectant mother was dominated by meat and potato dishes, as well as oranges, peaches, cherries, then a blue wardrobe is more relevant.
No matter how popular these methods may seem, they will only cause a smile among specialists. Hitting the target can only be explained by the fact that the chances of guessing are quite high and amount to at least 50%. It is more likely (without ultrasound) to predict gender if the couple knows the time of ovulation and the date of conception. If sexual intercourse occurred during the release of the egg from the ovary, most likely, the sperm carrying the Y chromosome were the first to reach it, and then a boy grows in the belly of the expectant mother. If sex happened 2-3 days before ovulation, it can be assumed that the egg was fertilized by a sperm with an X chromosome and a girl will be born. But here, too, no one can give guarantees.