For thousands of years, pregnant women have been on the receiving end of a number of fallacies disguised as timeworn truths. From food cravings to identifying the baby’s gender by position, these “truths” has proven questionable at best and laughable at worst. With this in mind, we’ll provide a list of five pregnancy myths that persist to this day despite ample evidence debunking their accuracy.

The Effects Of Food

Food has long been the source of pregnancy-related folklore. Even today, some claim that the foods you consume before conception influence the gender of your baby (eat dairy for a girl and meat for a boy). Others claim that certain foodstuffs can increase the volume of hair on your little one’s head.

As you might expect, there’s seldom more than anecdotal evidence supporting these wives’ tales. Diet is, of course, critical and you should consult your obstetrician to make sure yours is appropriate for you and your baby.

The Dangers Of Preparing For Your Baby’s Arrival

It’s natural – recommended even – to prepare as much as possible for the arrival of your little one. This includes buying a stroller, crib, changing table, and other items. Yet some people claim that doing so tempts fate because it presumes everything will turn out as planned.

While it’s easy to scoff at such notions, many people are actually influenced by them. They may not completely believe such nonsense, but hedge their bets in spite of themselves. Our recommendation? Tempt fate and prepare as much as possible. When your baby arrives, you’ll be thankful you did.

Guessing Your Baby’s Gender

A surprising number of people believe they have a foolproof system for guessing the gender of unborn babies. Some suggest a high carrying position means a boy while a low position means a girl. Others claim a fast heartbeat all but guarantees a girl while a normal heartbeat means you’re having a boy.

There are many theories about guessing a baby’s gender and all are fallible. If you’d like to evaluate them, use ultrasound as the litmus test.

Avoid Baths

There’s actually a small bit of truth to this one, but it begs clarification. First, baths are fine. They’re even recommended for lowering the likelihood of premature contractions and reducing swelling in your extremities. They’re also invaluable for decreasing your stress levels and helping you relax.

That said, hot baths can be dangerous. The heat can prove harmful to your baby and thus, should be avoided.

Sudden Weird Food Cravings

This is perhaps the most common myth surrounding pregnancy: moms-to-be will experience sudden, near-uncontrollable urges for strange food combinations. A classic combo is pickles and ice cream.

Here too, there is some truth in the matter. Pregnant women do indeed experience odd food cravings, though the triggers behind the cravings are often misunderstood. Experts suggest the desire for odd foods represents specific deficiencies in the body. For example, the longing for a pickle may actually be due to a need for salt and sodium. Likewise, a sudden urge for rice might be traced to a desire to generate serotonin, a neurotransmitter linked to mood.

There are dozens of other wives’ tales surrounding pregnancy and we’ll explore a few of them in the future. You may be surprised by how prevalent some of them are among people who should know better.

The important thing to remember is that your pregnancy is a special experience that is entirely unique to you. Enjoy it. You’ll look back on this period in your life with a longing smile and a hint of nostalgia. Regardless of the wives’ tales and debunked fallacies you hear, the arrival of your little one makes them all irrelevant.

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Category: Womens Interest
Keywords: pregnancy tales, old wives tales, food cravings, bathing while pregnant, finding out gender