When do you find out the sex of the baby?
Are you a pregnant planner like me? Can’t wait to decorate the baby’s room in either blue or pink? So you want to find out right now what you’re having! Or are you waiting for the perfect gender reveal party time to send out the invites? While various factors can help you predict the gender of your baby such as the Chinese conception calendar that we will go into a lot of detail, some old wives tales about having a boy versus a girl, but only a doctor can reliably find out the sex of your baby thru one of the these 4 medically proven ways. Don't have time to read all about it, just listen here for the pregnancy podcast version.
How Soon Can You Find Out The Sex of Your Baby?
There are various tests that can help doctors find out the sex of your baby. But there is no single test that applies to every expectant woman. So your doctor can do a certain test depending on the stage of your pregnancy. While some tests can determine the sex of your baby earlier in pregnancy, results are more accurate when your baby is about 18 to 20 weeks along.
It is important to know that these tests are not suitable for everyone, although they are reliable. Gender determination is not the main indication for carrying out these tests. So finding out the gender of your baby is a benefit you get when the test is done for other reasons.
How Can You Find Out The Sex Of Your Baby?
Here are possible ways means of knowing the gender of your baby.
- Sex selection during in vitro fertilization
As the name suggests, in vitro fertilization (IVF) is an assisted reproduction technology where a mature egg (ovum), is combined with a sperm outside of the body. As a result, an embryo is created outside your womb which is then implanted into your uterus. While the process is being carried out, you can ask the doctor to identify the sex of the embryo before it gets implanted into your womb. Once identification is done, the embryo of your desired sex is transferred.
Sex selection with IVF gives the best chance to choose the sex of the baby even before you get pregnant. It is accuracy is estimated to be 99%.
It is important to note that IVF has pitfalls as well. The chances of multiple births are very high, especially when more than one embryo s transferred.
- Non-invasive prenatal test
This test is done to screen for possible chromosomal disorders such as Downy syndrome. Further testing is done when the NIPT result is abnormal to diagnose Down syndrome. The test is done if you are at a high risk of giving birth to a baby with a chromosomal abnormality. Your doctor might recommend this test if you previously gave birth to a child with a chromosomal abnormality when you will be above 35 years at the time of giving birth.
This test is non-invasive meaning it does not pose any risk to your growing baby. It is done the fetus is 10 weeks or more. Your doctor will ask you to provide a blood sample. The sample is sent to the lab to find out whether there is fetal DNA linked to a chromosomal abnormality. The sex of your baby can also be accurately determined during the process.
Be sure to let the doctor know if you don’t want to find out the sex of the baby before testing is done.
- Ultrasound
This is one of the routine prenatal tests that is done to check for the wellbeing of the growing baby. You will be asked to lie on a table and expose your stomach to be scanned. The ultrasound machine transmits sound waves through your belly to help create an image of your baby. As it does so the sex of your baby can be also be identified. Learn more about how an sonogram works to see the baby and the difference between a sonogram .
While the sex of your baby can be revealed by ultrasound as early as 14 weeks, the result is more accurate at around 18 to 21 weeks of pregnancy.
The position your baby takes at the time of ultrasound will determine the result. You may not find out the sex of your baby if it is facing your back, curled up, or facing the wrong way because it’ll be difficult to observe the genitalia.
- Chorionic villus sampling
Like NIPT, chronic villus sampling (CVS) is a genetic test done to test for Down syndrome. This test is done when you are 10th or 12th weeks pregnant. And you should also be over 35 years or have a positive family history of chromosome abnormality. The sample you’ll provide is the chorionic villus – a placental tissue. The test can also be used to accurately determine the sex of your baby. During the test, you may bleed, have cramps, leaking amniotic fluid, go into labor (preterm labor) or experience a miscarriage.
How to figure out if you’ve made a boy or girl?
The 10th day after your first day of your period starts your fertility window. If you have a 28 day cycle, consider day 9 thru 15 your most fertile days. Or they sell ovulation tests that can tell you when your ovulating.
The way it works is that it detects your levels of LH (leutinizing hormone). Your 4 most fertile days show surges of setrone-3-glucuronide E3G. You also have the highest chances of making a boy because those 4 days are when you’re eggs are fresh off the tubal train, and as stated before the boy sperm are better swimmers and can get to the egg faster. They also have a Leutinizing Hormone spit test now available so if you are looking into getting pregnant or interested in how it works then check out Pregnancy Pukeology Podcast Episode 14: Pregnancy Myths which tells you all about how to make a boy or girl and even ways your husband can help out too.
Chinese Gender Chart
Chinese conception chart was used to track the age of mothers and month they conceived in to determine if they were having a boy or girl. Zhou Enlai, leader of the communist Chinese government was laid to rest in 1976 but was accredited with a countrywide health care reform starting in the 1940s. Fun Fact, you can find his picture on the front of Time Magazine in 1951. His goal was to determine the relationship between the new born gender and the characters of the parents. Of the 3 million new babies born, he found a significant relationship among the babies gender, the mother’s age, and the lunar month the baby was conceived in. The correlation rate is even more accurate in moms ages 18-27 and found that the chances of having a girl were even higher in women ages 28 to 34. This was a reason for the Chinese encouraging young women to get pregnant. It also found that the paternal age had no correlation. Do you believe in the Chinese Birth Gender Chart? Well this chart is becoming very popular in our western world. Regardless if you believe in it or not there’s some science behind it.
When do you get morning sickness?
Morning sickness usually occurs during your first trimester as early as 6 weeks, and sometimes never stops. Most women in their second trimester start to feel a little better. Have you ever heard people tell you that if you have morning sickness you’re having a (fill in the blank boy or girl)?
Although morning sickness is not the ultimate determinate of sex, some have studied morning sickness of different times of the day associated with greater chances of one sex or the other. And thanks to NoMo Nausea Band, a pregnancy wristband clinically proven to stop morning sickness and vomiting in seconds, you no longer have to be sick and can enjoy your first two trimesters.
A Scandinavian Study found that girls in utero excrete 9% more oestrogen, thus leading to more nausea during the first trimester. Testosterone secretion steadily increases throughout the pregnancy with no major spikes unlike girl embryos. It has also been proven the majority of hyperemesis gravidarum, extreme morning sickness that usually requires hospitalization, patients are carrying girls versus boys. Do you feel like your puking all day every day? Learn more about HG in Pregnancy Pukeology Podcast Episode 6, severe morning sickness.
Other than the science behind how to actually have a boy, here’s some real ideas to help you have a baby of a certain sex…
How to get pregnant with a boy?
- Does your husband wear Tighty whitey’s or boxers?
Men who wear tighter underwear keep their sac warmer and tend to have more girls, so if you want a boy throw on some boxers on your husband and give your balls some natural flowing AC.
- What’s your favorite sex position?
Deep penetration will give boy sperm a head start, so if you want a boy try doggy style, standing up, or straddling.
- Do you orgasm before or after your hubby?
I’m going to leave you with this little teaser that ladies you need to cum before your man to make a baby boy. Find out more in Episode 14 Pregnancy Myths were I tell you all about it.
