![]() ![]() "Carrying high or low is a function of the mother's abdominal wall muscle tone and the baby's position," Carr said. To fill the void, people may turn to some of the following six old wives' tales to predict whether the fetus is a boy or girl.īaby bump: One popular belief is that if a woman is carrying the baby high, she is supposedly having a girl, while carrying the baby low means it's a boy. (Image credit: IAN HOOTON via Getty Images)įor some people, waiting until the 18th week of pregnancy to find out the sex of a baby can feel like an eternity. There is no evidence that cravings during pregnancy indicate the baby's sex. Old wives' tales are fun but generally not reliable for predicting sex There are now at-home NIPT kits, such as SneakPeek, which use a small blood sample – taken from the fingertip – to identify the presence of Y chromosomes (only found in males). A simple blood test from the mother is able to collect the DNA required to carry out NIPT.Īlong with detecting genetic conditions, the NIPT test can reveal the sex of the fetus after only the 7th gestational week, according to the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. The test examines a fragment of DNA that’s released from the mother’s placenta into the bloodstream and contains the genetic information of the fetus. (Image credit: Getty Images)Ī type of screening called Non-invasive Prenatal Testing (NIPT) is used by doctors during pregnancy to screen for genetic conditions such as Down Syndrome and Edwards Syndrome (syndromes whereby children are born with 3 copies of a chromosome instead of 2), according to the NHS. (Women may be asked to drink several glasses of water before an ultrasound because a filled bladder helps give clearer images.) How accurate is gender prediction using ultrasound?Īn illustration of the movement of fetal DNA into the mother's bloodstream, which can be used to identify the baby's sex. And the only risks to the mother may come from lying flat on her back, which might make her feel dizzy, along with the discomfort of having a full bladder, he said. There is no harm to the baby during the procedure, Carr said. This transmits sound waves that can produce images of the fetus as it develops inside the mother's womb. Next, a gel that can help transmit sound waves is placed on the skin of the abdomen, and a probe called a transducer is moved over the gel. It uses sound energy and not radiation, such as X-rays, to generate images of the fetus.ĭuring a transabdominal ultrasound, a pregnant woman lies on her back while a clear gel is spread on her belly, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. ![]() Ultrasound is a safe prenatal test, according to research published in the journal Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology. (Image credit: John Fedele via Getty Images) Is ultrasound a safe way to predict gender?Īn ultrasound uses energy to generate an image of a fetus. ![]() In addition, ultrasound can identify certain birth defects, such as Down syndrome and spinal abnormalities, and investigate pregnancy complications, including miscarriage, according to the Mayo Clinic. The scan is also done to see if a woman is having more than one baby, as well as to determine the location of the placenta and umbilical cord. It's typically during the second ultrasound that parents can learn the sex of the baby. This early ultrasound is often done to confirm a pregnancy, detect the fetal heartbeat and determine the due date, according to the Mayo Clinic.Ī second ultrasound is usually done between the 18th and 22nd weeks of pregnancy to make sure that the baby is growing and developing properly. But the common prenatal scan wasn't intended as an exam to find out the baby's gender it was meant to image the developing fetus for other medical reasons, he said.Īlthough the test can be done at any point during pregnancy, women typically get their first one during the first trimester. hospitals have used ultrasound since the late 1970s and early '80s, Carr said. Pregnancy diet & nutrition: What to eat, what not to eat Mood swings & mommy brain: The emotional challenges of pregnancy ![]() Having a baby: Stages of pregnancy by trimester ![]()
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