Three mums-to-be put old wives’ tales to the test to see if they can really help you guess your unborn child’s sex
GENDER reveal parties, where couples declare to loved ones whether they are having a boy or a girl, might be all the rage – but guessing has always been part of the fun.
We have all heard the old wives’ tales supposed to determine the sex of a baby – and even This Morning presenter Holly Willoughby has got in on the act.
The mum of three thinks she can tell the gender of an unborn baby just by analysing the angle of a mum-to-be’s hands when resting on her bump.
So just how accurate is this and other gender tests?
NIKKI WATKINS asks three pregnant readers – who already know the sex of their baby – to put the predictions to the test.
They rate how many worked for them.
‘Rocked by ring test. Something felt very spiritual’
CYNICAL Clementine Salmon, 34, does not believe old wives’ tales can predict the gender of unborn babies. At 37 weeks pregnant, the sales account manager who discovered she is expecting her third little girl at her routine 20-week scan, will only trust science-based predictions.
Clementine, from Abbey Wood, South East London, who has daughters Maya, three, and Sky, two, with company director husband Joseph, 35, says:
“I definitely came to these tests with a sceptical mind and I thought Holly’s prediction game looked a little silly.
I don’t usually believe in old wives’ tales at all. I believe in science and like all things to be backed up by scientific fact.
Things like the cravings test I think are a load of rubbish – with both previous pregnancies I craved sweet Nutella, but with this one it is just cheese.
The other tests that sounded completely nuts were the ones where you grabbed a key from a certain part, and the cutlery under the chair.
A lot of the tests were accurate, but it was probably just pot luck.
The one thing I firmly believe in is the “nub” test. As this is my third pregnancy I compared all three 12-week scans and all had the nub at the same angle.
I must admit my cynicism was rocked by the ring test. It was amazing to see my wedding ring go from being stationary on the thread to spinning in a circle, and I have to admit there was something about it that felt very spiritual – plus it was accurate for me.
Personally I needed to know the sex of my child, I couldn’t bear to wait nine months.
The birth will be enough of a surprise, so I don’t need any more.”
Rating: 6/10
‘I suspected a boy due to low bump… and scan confirmed it’
HEAVILY pregnant Megan Ferguson, 26, has known about the gender of her baby boy for 14 weeks – but was excited to see what the tales predicted. She paid privately for the gender scan after convincing herself she was having a boy and wanting to feel a deeper connection to the baby.
Single Megan, from Banstead, Surrey, who works in marketing and is 30 weeks pregnant, says:
“I do believe in old wives’ tales and really enjoyed reading them when I didn’t know the sex of my baby. Most of those I’ve read do apply to me.
I just couldn’t wait for my 20-week scan so I paid £50 to find out the sex at 16 weeks.
This baby was a huge surprise as I was on the contraceptive pill and after years of polycystic ovary syndrome doctors assumed my body was incapable of a full-term pregnancy.
Finding out the sex was important to me as it made this much-wanted pregnancy feel more real.
It was an old wives’ tale which convinced me I was expecting a boy before the scan confirmed it – my bump is quite low.
All the tests are interesting, but I find the Mayan birth dates and the ring test particularity exciting as they seem more mystical.
I’m not surprised the birth dates test was accurate for me, it is ancient and this makes it seem genuinely reliable.
The ring test wasn’t actually accurate for me, but I love the idea of it.
The ring I wear is actually made from my beloved dad’s ashes, so it was great to feel he was taking part.”
Rating: 6/10
MOST READ IN FABULOUS
‘The Mayan numbers can’t be luck – it’s remarkably accurate’
PERSONAL shopper Ludovica Rivaroli, 27, is 30 weeks pregnant with her first child and is interested in old wives’ tales. Married Ludovica found out she was having a little boy at her 20-week scan and was very excited to take part and see how accurate the tests were.
“Old wives’ tales predicting the sex of babies are interesting to me, as before my pregnancy I had no idea they even existed.
The shape of my own bump and its impact on the sex of my child had never crossed my mind, but it was accurate for me, which is cool.
I absolutely loved the ring test, because it started to swing from side to side after being completely still.
It makes you wonder if it is picking up on energies from the baby.
It was very accurate, very quickly for me.
When I did the Mayan numbers with the girls at the shoot it was remarkable how accurate it was. There must be something in that one. It can’t be luck.
The silly ones like the key test and cutlery under the chairs is a bit of fun, but not something I’d put stock by.
Personally I could never just rely on these tests, as fun as they are, to tell me the sex of my child.
I was too eager to find out if it was a little girl or boy I was talking to inside my tummy.
When sonographers couldn’t be sure the first time, I went back to the hospital for another scan so they could tell me for certain.”
Rating: 7/10
The 10 tests
- MAYAN BIRTH DATE TEST – Note how old you were when you got pregnant and month of conception. If both numbers are either odd or even, it’s a girl. If one is odd and the other even, it’s a boy.
Result: 3/3 - FORK OR SPOON UNDER CHAIR – Someone secretly tapes a spoon under one chair and a fork under another. If you sit on the chair with the spoon, you’re having a girl. The fork? It’s a boy.
Result: 2/3 - HOLLY WILLOUGHBY’S HAND TEST –
Result: 2/3 - THE NUB TEST – At between 11 and 13 weeks, all babies are said to have a “nub” between their legs called the genital tubercle, and according to this theory the angle of the nub will indicate whether it’s a boy or girl. If the nub is angled more than 30 degrees to the spine, it is likely male. If it is pointing straight out, under 30 degrees, or down, it is likely a female.
Result: 3/3 - WEIGHT GAIN – If you put on weight all over it means a girl, but if it is contained in the bump it is a boy.
Result: 2/3 - KEY TEST – If a mum-to-be picks up a key by the round end, she is expecting a boy, if it is by the narrow end it is a girl.
Result: 0/3 - RING TEST – Slide a special ring on to a length of cotton and have a friend dangle it over your bump. If it swings from side to side it is a boy, if in a circle it is a girl.
Result: 2/3 - CRAVINGS – Salty or protein-based snacking means a baby boy is on the way, sweet things mean a girl.
Result: 1/3 - MORNING SICKNESS – Feeling queasy? Then a girl is on the way.
Result: 1/3 - HOW YOU ARE CARRYING THE BABY – A high bump indicates a girl, while boys are lower.
Result: 3/3
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