New Blood Test Can Tell Fetal Gender at 7 Weeks
A study published online in the Journal of the American Medical Association has shown that a simple blood test–using maternal blood, not fetal blood drawn through an amniocentesis or other invasive procedure–can determine with 95 percent accuracy the gender of a fetus at 7 weeks of gestation. Other methods, the most common being ultrasound, are not considered reliable until around the 20 week mark.
The blood tests are performed at home by the pregnant woman, who simply pricks her finger and collects a drop of blood. She then sends the sample to a lab where it is analyzed for the chromosomal markers that determine whether the woman is carrying a boy or a girl.
The tests have been available online at sites like this for years, but this new study is the first to confirm the tests’ accuracy rate and examine their potential for prenatal care–both positive and negative. On one hand, the tests can allow parents to screen for gender-linked genetic diseases. On the other hand, the test could be used to take what The New York Times calls “the more ethically controversial step of selecting the sex of their children.”
Giving some women pause is the fact that the tests are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration because they are not used for medical purposes, The New York Times reported. Also, the tests are expensive, costing upwards of $250 for lab fees and other processing.
(image via: http://www.topnews.in)
Categories: Must Read, New Research, Parents News Now, Pregnancy | Tags: abortion, gender, genetic testing, Pregnancy
23 Comments
by charity
On August 10, 2011 at 9:55 am
Why? What is the rush? My opinion is we have very few good suprises any more. Why not keep some of the mystery? I had two children and had no idea what their sex was until the moment they were born.
by Bri
On August 10, 2011 at 10:12 am
I would totally do it. I’ve had so many people want to buy things for me as soon as I announced or shortly afterwards.
I was terribly sick, so it would have been nice to know ahead of time to take my time to get things together… and have my baby shower earlier… I wasn’t able to get thru everything in time and she came at 37 weeks gestation…
Had to have my fiance go out and get the remaining stuff for her without me to help confirm that’s what I was needing.
I really didn’t want the netrual yellow/green. I wanted set colors. Pink and Brown is what we settled for. <3
by Jessie
On August 10, 2011 at 10:21 am
I would do it if it was free but I would not pay $250 for a blood test lol. I think it’s nice to know your baby’s gender but at 7 weeks you could still have a miscarriage and I don’t know if that would be harder knowing what you were having and then losing the fetus.
by Klara P.
On August 10, 2011 at 10:32 am
You’ve got nine months to get your stuff together. What’s the rush ? For me the gender of my growing baby wasn’t important at all. It was ok to know at about 19 weeks and that picture was so clear that we gave it 100 % credibility that I was having a boy.
by Rainysmom
On August 10, 2011 at 10:38 am
I’d do it right now if I could afford it. It would be great to know if I can re-use all of my pink baby stuff or if I need to start collecting boy stuff now. that way I can spread the expense over the next several months. Not everyone can afford to just go out and buy things at the drop of a hat.
by Shawna
On August 10, 2011 at 10:54 am
Ugh, I was into this article until the end… The thought of people terminating a pregnancy due to gender just turned my stomach
, how horrifying… I would do this test for fun but I wish I hadn’t read that last part as I find it upsetting 
.
by nicole
On August 10, 2011 at 11:26 am
I’d recommend holding off until 13 weeks. Having miscarried 2 times before then, it would have been that much harder if I knew the sex of the baby. I’d pay $250 if they could say whether there were genetic reasons for the m/c.
by Katie
On August 10, 2011 at 11:44 am
I actually had a blood test to determine gender at 8 weeks and it was accurate. I was part of a study to improve the accuracy of prenatal testing and as part of it, I had to give blood once a month. An added perk was that they told me the gender of the baby super early!!
by Crys
On August 10, 2011 at 11:55 am
Perhaps we should examine why gender is such an important fact to know. Arguing that this information is necessary for the purpose of collecting color coordinated loot is shallow and ridiculous. I don’t get how people think it’s normal to dress infants in one of two colors when we have a full spectrum from which to choose.
We found out the gender of our twins at 26 weeks but didn’t tell anyone. At our baby shower, we got pink, blue, yellow, green, white, purple, teal, navy, red, black, brown, and orange things. To this day, our boys like all colors and they aren’t limited to the vacuous notion that pink is for girls and blue is for boys.
We can do better.
by Shannon
On August 10, 2011 at 12:31 pm
It would have been nice for my cousin who was told his wife was having a girl after their ultrasound, so everyone got pink stuff and the nursery was decorated pink with tinkerbell, they found out they had a boy when he was born! Maybe this would have been more accurate!
by Julie
On August 10, 2011 at 12:55 pm
Shanon, that’s exactly what happened to me!!! Maybe some people would call me shallow and ridiculous (refer to previous comments), but I liked knowing so I could decorate my baby’s room ahead of time in a totally adorable cowgirl theme. I liked being able to get non gender neutral stuff.
Of course it all blew up in my face, lol, and I had to get all new stuff (and I couldn’t afford the “cowboy” version of the set I got), which even when going the second hand route can get expensive.
All that being said, I’m way too cheap to pay 250$, lol, so I’ll just have to go with the ultra sound again and hope fir the best!!!
by Katie
On August 10, 2011 at 1:36 pm
I don’t get why people have to “argue” about this issue at all. To each his/her own. Some people hate surprises (like ME for example!). Some people love the mystery. Idk if I would spend $250 for only 95% accurate results but I’ve done crazier things (especially when preggo hormones get in the way!). I would DEF consider it if it was a bit cheaper. I’m preggo with #2 right now & dont really care if I have a boy or girl this time, but when u was pregnant with my 1st I was OBSESSED with finding out gender.. I did every hokey test in the book & cried at my 17 wk appt when they almost sent me home cuz it was technically too early to tell & not quite 18 wks. Blame it on impatience, horrible am sickness, hormones, or whatever you want… I don’t like surprises!!! Especially not when it’s coming out of my body! LOL. I don’t see why ppl who are if the opposite thinking should feel offended by that.. Who cares WHY we have a need to know, some ppl like to know some dont…
by Hope
On August 10, 2011 at 2:12 pm
i will not do it cos if i have a particular sex of a baby in my mind and after the test its otherwise i will fill bad
by Tiah
On August 10, 2011 at 9:02 pm
It saddens me that a mother would have an abortion bc she wants the opposite sex of baby:( That being said, I don’t really like surprizes either, just ask my husband. I can’t say I can afford $250, but we live on a tight budget and it would be nice to know if my baby had any health issues I would be needing to pay for. Our first son was in ICU for a week and 1/2, and with our 2nd son we were back home in 2 days.
Sometimes its nice to be able to plan things out. Especially when a newborn baby is involved, it’s something all family members have to adjust to. So if it lowers the stress in the household to know the sex and health of the baby, then what’s wrong with that?
by Lyn
On August 11, 2011 at 7:22 am
I agree with Rainysmom. We are pregnant with #2 and with me as a SAHM, there is only one income in our household. My husband accepted work overseas so we moved with him and I cannot find work because I cannot speak the native language. It would be nice to know the gender early to spread out the expenses for the baby, so it’s not such a worry to get everything in time, and to be able to plan it out.
by raven
On August 11, 2011 at 12:49 pm
i agree w katie 100%, to each their own….i am prego w my first right now and i for one felt wrong callin my chid “it” for so many weeks…its much nicer to know and call yr baby by “he” or “she” or even by their name….i have had my daughters name picked out since i was 16 years old [over 15 years lol] and after my 20 week appt when i found out for sure she was a girl, i feel so much better calling her by her name than “it” lol in addition i have had 6 miscarriages previous to this and honestly i personally dont feel it would have affected the pain of that at all in either a lesser or greater way to know what the sex of those children were…a loss is a loss whether it has male or female sex organs….that doesnt change the pain…again tho this is my personal feelings and they may be entirely different for others….i cannot judge them on that as i would not want to be judged for mine
by sahara
On August 11, 2011 at 2:04 pm
does anybody know if they take medicaid? im 19 and 8 weeks pregnant. i would love to know what im having.
by Melinda
On August 11, 2011 at 7:12 pm
So, if you go to the website, it says that there are limitations on the results.
Basically, if you’ve ever had a boy child, there’s a chance that his DNA might still be floating around in your blood, even YEARS later, and that may sway the results (even if you’re having a girl this time). Also, there are several reasons you can’t do the test – for instance, if you’ve ever had a blood transfusion from a male relative, or a blood transfusion from anyone within the past 18 months.
I had major surgery 12 months ago that required a blood transfusion, so this knocks me out of the running. would be fine for your first kid (assuming that you meet all the other criteria), but i think after that, i’d be concerned that the results would be wrong (if my first kid were a boy).
by Malori
On August 13, 2011 at 8:28 am
I don’t think this is such a great idea. Like someone else said earlier, the chance for miscarriage is still pretty high at seven weeks. Plus there are still the disgusting people out there that think abortion is ok. What stops them from getting this blood test, and if its not the sex they wanted, what’s to stop them from getting the abortion and trying again? Yes people want to know the sex early so they can buy specific colors and theme appropriate items but you find out, if your baby cooporates, around 20-22 weeks. That leaves you about another 20 weeks to buy things. In my opinion that’s still plenty of time. And who’s to say you can’t get the blood test at 20 weeks if baby doesn’t coooporate? I just say there are more risks for disappointment and abortion if people go through with this.
by Jacque
On August 14, 2011 at 4:42 pm
If you want to find out the gender of your baby (sooner or later) I see no harm in taking this blood test. It would save you $250+ to wait past seven weeks though just in case the worse happens. As for women aborting a fetus whose gender is not to their fancy they have issues.
by Mommyweeklynews
On September 1, 2011 at 6:52 pm
I would definitely do this. With my first I couldn’t even wait a day to know what I was having. I found out at 20 weeks. How exciting would it be to find out at 7 weeks!
http://www.mommyweeklynews.com
by Gregg
On September 25, 2011 at 4:19 pm
This is more scientific proof that a fetus is a real human baby that should not be killed through abortion.
by Robyn
On September 27, 2011 at 10:41 am
I have had 2 miscarriages and for me knowing that my first was a son and being able to name him and call him by name on the anniversay of his death and when I was due with him was a blessing for me. Not knowing what my second child would have been has been a whole lot harder on me. I would do this test so I can know and be able to remember what might have been. Just because they are gone doesn’t mean I don’t think about them.