• Skip to content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Shop ModernMom
  • Become An Insider

ModernMom

The premiere destination for moms

  • Parenting
    • Pregnancy
    • Baby
    • Kids
    • Tweens and Teens
    • ModernMom Monday Videos
  • Cooking
  • Living Healthy
    • Breast Cancer
    • Health & Fitness
    • Body after Baby
    • Beauty
    • Relationships
    • Love
  • Lifestyle
    • Crafts
    • At Home
    • Education
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Decorate
    • Money
    • Brooke Burke
  • Celebrate
    • Holidays
      • Easter
      • Valentine’s Day
      • New Year’s
      • Christmas
      • Hanukah
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
    • Birthdays
    • Parties
  • Must Have
  • Contests
  • Entertainment

How to Tell if You Are Having a Boy or Girl in Pregnancy

May 26, 2010 by ModernMom Staff Leave a Comment

Some parents cannot wait to find out the sex of their baby. Knowing the gender can help you pick a name, decorate the nursery and bond with your baby. There are only two sure methods backed by science that can tell you whether you are having a boy or girl, according to the American Pregnancy Association. But the other methods, some with some research behind them and others pure conjecture, can be fun to test.

Step 1

Get an ultrasound at 20 weeks gestation or later. If baby cooperates, and positions herself or himself for easy viewing, the boy or girls parts can be seen. In an ultrasound, the girl parts will have three parallel glowing lines and the boys look like a turtle. Although ultrasound is usually highly accurate, you should know that mistakes do happen when using ultrasound to determine gender.

Step 2

Ask to have the gender determined if you are having an amniocentesis. This method is the only one that guarantees 100 percent accuracy for gender determination. However, due to the risks associated with the test, amniocenteses are only performed for medical reasons. Knowing the gender just happens to come with the other genetic test results.

Step 3

Compare this pregnancy to previous pregnancies. Subtle differences may clue you in on the sex of the baby. There is some truth to the old wives’ tale that baby girls cause their moms to be sicker than baby boys do. The New York Times reports that several studies found that women with hyperemesis gravidarum, the most severe form of morning sickness, were more likely to deliver a girl. Another study showed that moms pregnant with boys were hungrier than with girls, according to WebMD.

Step 4

Use the old wives’ tales and myths that declare you are having a boy or girl with a sense of humor and for fun. Here are some to test out; carrying low—it’s a boy; craving salty foods—boy, craving sweet foods—girl; and if young boys are more clingy toward you—it’s a girl and vice versa. Also added to this list is the common myth that if the baby has a faster heart rate, then it’s a girl. This one can be true, according to a 1999 study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, but only if the faster heart rate occurs when you are going into labor; before that, it’s just a myth.

Photo Credit

  • precious little feet image by sharon from Fotolia.com

Comments

comments

Filed Under: Pregnancy

About ModernMom Staff

Reader Interactions

Primary Sidebar

Search

Tell a friend

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
ModernMom Boutique

ModernMom TV

Featured

Brooke Burke: My Slim Down Secrets

Everywhere I look, I hear about a new fitness fad, a quick … [Read More...] about Brooke Burke: My Slim Down Secrets

Must Have

STEM-related Toys to Include in Your Child’s Easter Basket This Year 

April has arrived which means it’s time to pull out the food … [Read More...] about STEM-related Toys to Include in Your Child’s Easter Basket This Year 

Did you know?

diabetes in infants

Signs and Symptoms of Diabetes in Infants

When Can a Baby Hear in the Womb

When Can a Baby Hear in the Womb ?

Tips on Exercising While Pregnant

Tips on Exercising While Pregnant

pregnancy & tooth pain

Pregnancy & Tooth Pain

Use Frozen Bananas for Baking

How to Use Frozen Bananas for Baking

Do You Have to Refrigerate Glazed Donuts?

Do You Have to Refrigerate Glazed Donuts?

How to Take Wrinkles Out of Polyester With Steam

Footer

  • About Us
  • Contact ModernMom
  • Advertise With Us
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contributors

Copyright © 2023 Modern Mom. All Rights Reserved.

Reproduction of any portion of this website only at the express permission of Mom, Inc.

The information provided on ModernMom is for educational use only. It should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.