Old Wives Tales

  There's a lot of fun things that come along with being pregnant. You get to feel your baby grow, hear (and sometimes disregard) everyone's advice, and most exciting of all — find out your baby's gender. Typically, you can't do this until around the 20th week, so in the meantime, there's a bunch of interesting ways to hedge a bet on whether you're having a boy or girl. After all, you're dreaming of throwing that gender reveal party and gathering your friends and family for a joyous celebration. 

  Throughout your pregnancy, you're bound to encounter at least one old wives' tale. What's an old wives tale, you ask? It's a belief usually passed down through generations without scientific backing, so they're often inaccurate, but that doesn't mean you can't have a little fun with them. 

1. Are You Carrying High or Low?

  Believe it or not, many people believe that the way you're carrying is indicative of whether you're having a boy or girl. Every woman carries differently, and it's dependent on several things, but namely a woman's natural body shape. However, other factors such as the position of the baby, abdominal muscle strength as well as the shape and size of your uterus, play into where the weight's centered. 

  However, this is one old wives' tale gender prediction that refuses to die. The theory is that if you're carrying higher, you're having a girl. If your belly is lower, it's a boy. 

  Don't put too much stock into this one, after all, you could carry high with a boy and low with a girl. What really matters is that your little one is safely developing inside. 

2. Is Your Partner Gaining Weight Too?

  There's another weight theory when it comes to pregnancy. Many look to the woman's partner for answers, but not in the way you'd think. Supposedly, if your partner's gaining weight along with you — think sympathetic pregnancy gain — it means you're going to have a boy. No weight gain for your partner means its a girl. 

  Some of the weight gain, however, is more due to empathy. You're eating more (rightfully so, because you're eating for two now!) and your partner may absently start noshing more as well. 

  Typically, it's not pertinent to worry about weight gain during pregnancy. Your doctor will tell you if you're gaining too much or too little, so indulge as you like and make sure your partner keeps the house stocked with your current cravings. 

3. How Fast Does the Baby's Heart Beat?

  One of the best parts of your prenatal visit is without a doubt the chance to hear your little one's heartbeat. Most times, your doctor will put a monitor on your belly and listen to the heart rate to determine two things: 

1. The baby's heart is beating; and
2. It's beating at a healthy rate

  If this is your first pregnancy, you're likely to be astounded at just how fast the heartbeat is. Don't freak out! It's perfectly normal to sound like a herd of horses stampeding. Your doctor will note the heart rate and compare it to past visits and it'll be a note to look back on at future visits. 

  When you're finished, don't be surprised if your loved ones or coworkers ask you what the baby's heart rate was. Why? Because there's an old wives' tale that this can determine whether you need to start buying blue or pink booties and clothes. 

  Interested in what determines the sex — allegedly? Here it is: 

  If the baby's heart rate exceeds 140 beats per minute (bpm), it's a girl. If it's under 140 bpm, it's a boy. Believe it or not, this was the way people actually guessed if they were having a boy or girl for decades. A scientific study, however, found that there's very little difference in heart rate when comparing genders, and so… it was debunked. 

  Nevertheless, you can still have fun with this. Keep a record of these at your visits and determine for yourself, once you discover the gender, whether it was true or not in your case. 

4. Are You Battling Acne Like a Teen Again?

  You'd think that when you said goodbye to your teens, you also said goodbye to those pesky dots on your face that seemed to show up with little warning. Ahhh, the joys of pregnancy. Hormones can wreak havoc on your body and cause many undesired symptoms — one of them being spontaneous acne. 

  Even if it's been years since you've had a pimple or a zit that dubs you Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, pregnancy has a way of making that happen again. The good news? It's temporary. The bad news… well, it's acne!

  Some people are blessed and never see a single whitehead or irritation, while others are not so fortunate and have to break out the pimple cream again. But, some people believe that if you do break out, it's because you're having a girl. 

  What's the theory behind this? There's a saying that girls steal their mothers' beauty, thus the arrival of untimely red dots. 

  Science has proven that this is simply related to hormones, but those who believe will continue to do so and pass this old wives' tale down to their children and grandchildren, too.

5. How Severe is Your Morning Sickness?

  If you don't have any at all, count your blessings! Many women battle this pesky symptom and it can range from mild nausea to severe bouts. Rarely, a condition called hyperemesis gravidarum — no, it's not a Harry Potter spell — occurs, and requires hospitalization or medication. 

  But putting that aside, it's a perfectly normal reaction thanks to the increased hCG in the body. 

  According to old wives' tales baby gender predictions, however, if you're one of the unfortunate ones to be sick morning, noon and night — because let's face it, morning sickness is a misnomer — you're likely to be carrying a girl. 

  Science doesn't outright debunk this one, though, it's more of a maybe. You can definitely have morning sickness with a boy, too. 

6. What's Your Age and Date of Conception?

  One old wives' tale pregnancy theory is that when you conceive, the month of conception compared with your age is enough to determine whether you're having a boy or girl. As a matter of fact, the Chinese Gender Calendar actually spells it out for you. 

  Basically, it looks at your lunar age at conception and the month that you conceived. From there, it predicts whether it's a boy or girl, simply based on those two factors. No fancy math or equations that you end up scratching your head over. 

  According to old wives' tales, this method is estimated to be about 90% accurate. It works by incorporating lunar cycles to help with the prediction. According to the Chinese calendar, at birth, you're already one lunar year. So you have to add a year to your actual age to use the calendar the way it's intended. 

  In actuality, the calendar has a 50-50 chance of being right. If it is, then you have a 100% success rate right out the bat. If not, it's just another element of fun that you've added to your pregnancy. 

7. Put a Ring Above It?

  You've heard the expression put a ring on it, but have you heard put a ring above it? If not, this is a fun old wives' tale to put to the test. It's easy to execute, too. All you need is a ring and some string, and you'll be creating poetry, too. 

  Lay down on the ground with the baby bump pointing to the sky (or ceiling if you're doing this inside like most people). Have your partner, friend or child hold the ring on a string (flows right off the tongue doesn't it?) above your belly without moving it. Then, watch the natural motions the ring takes. 

  Does it simply rock back and forth, or does it move in a pretty circular motion? If it executes a back-and-forth movement, guess what? According to the myth, you're having a boy. Similarly, if it makes a circular motion, you can expect a giggling baby girl. 

  What's the science behind this? Something to do with magnetic waves, surely. Actually — nope! There's no science that proves it, so it's completely debunked, but you can certainly wait and see for yourself whether your ring was special and held some iota of truth within its structure. 

  Did you learn something new? How did these old wives' tales pan out for you, did you find that some surprised you with their accuracy, or did they fall flat on their collective faces?

  Remember, there's no foolproof way to determine what you're having. A sonogram certainly holds the highest probability of truth, and in most cases, they're right. But, some folks have had the shock of their lives after being told to expect one gender, but giving birth to another. 

  The thing is these are really just for fun, but that's the entire purpose of trying them out, right? To engage in some excitement while waiting to hear what the gender is so you can start planning that perfect gender reveal party!