The thrill surrounding being pregnant usually results in a plethora of outdated wives’ tales and myths, particularly in terms of predicting the gender of the infant. Whereas these tales have been handed down by generations, it is essential to separate reality from fiction. Calling these outdated wives’ tales a steady ‘bakwas,’ the Hindi phrase for nonsense, Dr Surabhi Siddhartha, Guide Obstetrician and Gynecologist, Motherhood Hospital, Kharghar, spoke to the workforce of OnlyMyHealth to debunk six frequent myths related to predicting the gender of the infant.
#1 Cravings
Fantasy: In case you’re craving sweets, it is a lady; if it is salty or savoury, it is a boy.
Truth: “Craving in itself is a fable, started Dr Siddhartha, saying that these alleged cravings are nothing greater than starvation pangs, and haven’t any relation to the gender of the infant.
“Throughout being pregnant, if the mom’s blood strain could be very low, often they won’t capable of digest salty meals. Particularly within the first trimester when the ladies discover it tough to eat regular meals, consuming sweets can present extra glucose to the mind, and assist to stimulate it,” she added.
When this digestive situation is suppressed, desirous to eat savoury meals is regular, because it additionally stimulates the mind and offers the sensation of satiety, serving to girls fulfil their starvation pangs, shared Dr Siddhartha.
#2 Linea Nigra
Fantasy: Linea nigra is a darkish line that seems on the stomach. If it begins beneath the stomach button then it’s a woman, in any other case, it’s a boy.
Truth: The linea nigra varieties on account of a hormone known as melanin that’s secreted throughout the being pregnant by the placenta, knowledgeable Dr Siddhartha. Melanin causes extra melatonin to be secreted which causes these pores and skin modifications. “That is nothing greater than a results of hormonal modifications on account of being pregnant, and never associated to the infant’s intercourse in any means,”
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#3 Place of Child Bump
Fantasy: Carrying excessive means it is a lady whereas carrying low signifies a boy.
Truth: Once more, Dr Siddhartha stated that the place of the infant bump is just not an indicator of the infant’s gender. “The uterus begins rising across the twentieth week of being pregnant. It turns into evident by the twenty fourth week, after which regularly it will increase. So, if the infant’s head is in a selected place and is proportionate to the pelvic bone, that creates the traditional form of the infant bump,” she stated.
Nonetheless, she added, “Typically the pelvic bone of the mom is just not proportionate to the infant’s head, which means that the infant’s head is in comparison with the pelvic bone. On this case, the top is all the time floating inflicting a bulge, which seems like a drooping tummy.”
She concluded that this relation between the infant’s head and the pelvic bone determines the form of the bump and never the intercourse of the fetus.
#4 Being pregnant Mind
Fantasy: Forgetfulness or ‘being pregnant mind’ is an indication of carrying a boy. However in case you are alert and targeted, then it’s a woman.
Truth: Dr Siddhartha stated, “There isn’t any time period known as being pregnant mind within the medical subject.” She stated, as an alternative what medical doctors witness are hormonal modifications throughout being pregnant, that make girls really feel extra anxious, emotional, and a bit misplaced. “Nonetheless, these aren’t associated to the intercourse of the infant,” she added. S
#5 Being pregnant Glow
Fantasy: A radiant complexion throughout being pregnant signifies a boy, whereas boring pores and skin suggests a woman.
Truth: That is one other fable, confirmed Dr Siddhartha, as she defined “In some girls the male sample hormone, or testosterone, is launched in the next quantity throughout being pregnant, inflicting a little bit of dullness of their look. Nonetheless, in girls the place this doesn’t occur, they seem fairer or it looks like they’re glowing.”
She additionally attributed sebaceous gland secretion to being pregnant glow. “These secretions make the pores and skin oily, and can even trigger zits, discoloured patches, and rashes on the physique,” she stated.
Dr Siddhartha concluded that these modifications are brought on by the placental tissues secreting all kinds of hormones, and aren’t a deciding issue for the infant’s intercourse.
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Predicting The Intercourse Of The Fetus
Whereas these outdated wives’ tales can add a component of enjoyable to the anticipation of a child’s arrival, it is important to method them with a dose of scepticism.
“Be it a child boy or a woman, deal with all of the genders equally. As a result of a wholesome child is the one which we wish,” instructed Dr Siddhartha. She added, “The newer era is extra educated. They need to not fall into the lure of their mother and father or the uneducated folks to base their expectations of a selected gender.”
The gender of the infant is decided by genetic components, and no quantity of cravings, pores and skin modifications, or bump positions can reliably predict it. For a rustic like India, the place feminine foeticide remains to be rampant, these outdated wives’ tales may cause actual injury. “Folks have to know that there are nonetheless quite a lot of locations, like smaller cities and distant areas, the place all this stuff are occurring. That’s the reason we want higher training, entry to healthcare, coverage and legislation interventions, safety, and actual equality for all genders to fight this drawback,” stated Dr Siddhartha.
So, embrace the thriller of not understanding the intercourse of your child till the massive reveal, and benefit from the journey of being pregnant with out counting on these myths for gender predictions. In spite of everything, the enjoyment of welcoming a wholesome child into the world is what really issues.
