Most of us can’t wait for that moment when your gynae announces if you’re having a little mister or missus. Unfortunately, your gynae will only have the verdict around the 16th-20th week of your pregnancy, and even then only if the baby cooperates during the ultrasound scan. So what’s an anxious parent to do in the meantime?

Until that day of revelation comes, here are some interesting and wacky ways to predict your baby’s sex. Most of them are old wives’ tales and have no scientific evidence to back up their claims, however – so don’t go all out and paint the room pink or blue just yet!

• Tummy time

Take a look at yourself in the mirror. if you’re carrying a baby higher on your tummy, she’s a girl. If your bump is low, you’re probably carrying a boy. There’s also the belief that “carrying wide” indicates a girl, and “carrying narrow” means it’s a boy.

• Counting beats

During your next appointment, when the gynae uses the Doppler to listen to the baby’s heartbeat, ask her to tell you what the heart rate is. Some believe that having a heart rate of more than 140 beats per minute indicates a girl. Below 140, it’s a boy.

• Sweet and Sour

Having an unusually sweet tooth could mean you are carrying a girl (Remember sugar and spice and all things nice?). If salty or sour stuff is what you’re hankering after, then it could be a boy.

• Chinese gender predictor

The ancient Chinese believe that you can know the gender of your baby based on the mother’s age at conception and the month in which baby was conceived.

• Blue or Green

Another old wives’ tale asks you to pee in a glass cup, add a tablespoon of Drano (drain cleaner) to the cup in a well-ventilated space, and watch to see if it changes color. Green means it’s a girl; blue means it’s a boy.

• Key tricks

Get a friend to place a key in front of you unannounced, and ask you to pick it up immediately. If you automatically grab it by the narrow part, you might be having a girl. If you chose the round or wider part, you’re having a boy.

• Beauty no more

In our Asian culture, many women believe that baby girls steal their mother’s beauty, so watch out for more breakouts than usual, especially on your face! Conversely, if you have random strangers coming up to you and commenting you are positively ‘glowing’ with good health and flawless skin, you might be having a boy.

• Put a ring on it

One of the oldest tricks in the book – tie your wedding band to a string, and dangle it over your belly. If it swings in a circle, you’re going to have a little man. If it goes back and forth, you’re having a little lady.

• Sick or not

It’s commonly thought that having little or no morning sickness during the first trimester means you’re having a boy. Heaving over the toilet bowl every morning for those first twelve weeks? You’re probably having a little girl.

• The honest truth

Unfortunately, none of the methods recommended above are medically proven or can accurately reveal if you’re expecting a prince or princess. Still, they’ll keep you and your friends thoroughly entertained, and make the process of waiting for the Big Reveal all the more interesting!

By Dorothea Chow.

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