Old wive’s
tales are oral traditions passed down through generations, offering advice
about experiences we all share. Some
have basis in fact, but many have been proven false by modern science and
medicine. Pregnancy has no shortage of
these old wives’ tales, often passed from grandmother to mother to daughter.
The baby’s heart rate will tell you the gender of your
baby.
The baby’s
heart rate changes during different stages of pregnancy, with no discernable
difference until labor. The heartbeat at
eight to 10 weeks is 170-200 beats per minute, and mid-pregnancy is about
120-160. If the baby moves the heart
rate goes up just as ours does when we move around. During labor the female baby’s heart rate is
significantly faster than the male’s, but by that point if you haven’t already
been told the sex of your baby after an ultrasound, you are more concerned
about getting through the delivery than what sex your little bundle of joy will
be!
If you reach above your head the umbilical cord will
wrap around your baby’s neck.
The cord is
wrapped around the baby’s neck on about one-third of all births. It is the movement of the baby during the
early part of pregnancy that results in the cord being wrapped around the neck,
arm, or leg, or creates knots in the cord.
The movement of your arms has no physical effect on the position of the
umbilical cord withing the amniotic sac.
This old wives’ tale can have some benefit for the mother, however. If the people around you believe it, you may
be relieved of some heavy work!
Pregnant women shouldn’t take baths.
This tale
arises from the mistaken belief that germs may travel up the birth canal and
infect the baby. This is not possible
since the baby is protected by a mucous plug and amniotic sac. An expectant mother whose water has broken
should not take a bath, however. Warm
baths can be a wonderful way to relieve some of the pressure on her back, soak
away aches and pains, and just relax.
The pregnant woman should avoid hot tubs and hot baths (over 100 degrees
F) that may cause neurological problems for the developing baby, especially
during the first trimester.
If you have heartburn during pregnancy, your baby will
be born with a full head of hair.
Heartburn
during pregnancy is extremely common as the baby grows and pushes against the
stomach, no matter how much (or little) hair he/she has!
You must drink eight glasses of water a day or the
baby will get “dirty.”
Staying
well-hydrated during pregnancy is important, but the baby won’t get dirty if
you don’t get your eight glasses a day.
The amniotic fluid refreshed itself every three hours, giving baby a
clean environment to float in.
Many of the
tales tell you how to determine the sex of your baby either before conception or
while still carrying him/her. With
ultrasound technology, we don’t have to resort to old wives’ tales anymore, but
these tales are still entertaining.
The mother-to-be can tell the gender of her baby by
mixing a little Drano with her urine.
The tales goes
that the color change in the solution determines whether the baby is a boy or
girl. The truth is that there is nothing
in Drano or urine that can determine the sex of an unborn baby. Many women who have used this method swear
that it works, but the evidence is coincidental and has no basis in fact. Drano has toxic fumes and mixing the two may
cause an explosion!
Carrying the baby high means it’s a girl, and carrying
the baby low means it’s a boy.
Women who are
having their first pregnancy will usually carry the baby higher, with
subsequent pregnancies carried a bit lower because the muscle have become more
elastic. And results that support this
one are purely coincidental.
If you can’t tell the woman is pregnant from behind,
it is a girl.
A woman with
along torso has more room for the baby, and her belly won’t bulge out as
much. A woman with a short torso will
grow out, and a wide belly may just mean the baby is laying sideways.
A pregnant woman with a round, rosy face is carrying a
girl.
Every woman
experiences pregnancy differently, and each pregnancy she has is different, including weight gain and skin
changes.
Sleeping on your back may hurt your baby.
Pregnant women may sleep however they are
comfortable, but in the last stages of pregnancy and during labor, this old
wives’ tale does have some merit. The
vena cava (a major blood vessel underlying the uterus) may be compressed if the
mother-to-be lies on her back for an extended period of time or during labor. Many midwives will advise the mother to sleep
slightly on one side, propped by a pillow, and to sit or walk during labor.
A husband who refuses to satisfy his wife’s cravings
for a particular food will get a sty in his eye.
Not true, but
some other harm might come to him for his lack of compliance!
There are many
other old wives’ tales that are supposed to determine the sex of your
baby. Many women offer anecdotal
evidence that they work, but none have any real basis in scientific fact. They make fun games at baby showers, though,
and if you want to try a few out, here are some safe (but not foolproof) old
wives’ tales:
Have the
other-to-be pick up a single key. If she
picks it up by the wide end she’s having a girl. If she picks it up by the narrow end she’s
having a boy.
Take a poll
among five-year-old children.
Tie a ring on a
string and hold it over the pregnant woman’s body. If it swings side-to-side it’s a girl and if
it swings around in a circle it’s a boy.
The mother’s
previous child determines the gender of the next baby. If the child’s first word was “mama” it will
be a girl, and if the child’s first word was “dada” the next one will be a boy.
If a toddler
boy shows interest in a pregnant woman she is carrying a girl. If he ignores the woman, she is carrying a
boy.
Ask the
mother-to-be to show you her hands. If
she shows them to you palms up she’s having a girl, and if she shows them to
you palms down she is having a boy.