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  5. What the Old Wives' Tales Say About Whether You'll Have a Boy or a Girl

What the Old Wives' Tales Say About Whether You'll Have a Boy or a Girl

By Jenny Saltiel with Lexi Walters
June 28, 2009
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Are you having a boy or a girl? These old wives' tales are a fun (but not scientific!) way to guess the sex of your baby.
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Old Wives' Tales

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Old wives' tales are little more than super-circulated rumors. Never proven to be true, they're sayings and adages that generations of women have passed down to one another regarding family health ("Eating carrots improves your vision"), safe parenting ("Wait an hour after eating before swimming"), and -- most popularly -- pregnancy. Whether you're trying to guess your own baby's gender or looking for shower games for a friend, read on for the top ways women have guessed: boy or girl?

  • Try Our Gender Predictor
  • Shop for maternity clothes

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Sleep Position

Pay attention to which way you lay down in bed tonight. If you prefer sleeping on your left side, you'll have a boy. Right side? Your pregnant with a girl.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Upset Stomach

Little girls aren't always sweet. Extreme nausea means you are having a daughter.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor

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Pregnancy Myths: What Should You Believe?

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Boy or Girl: How Genetics Determine Your Baby's Gender

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Soft or dry hands

If your hands are dry during pregnancy, you are having a boy; soft -- expect a girl.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Food Cravings

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Your favorite pregnancy foods may tell you what sex the baby is. If you're craving citrus while pregnant, you're having a girl.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor

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Adult Acne

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If altering hormones makes your skin break out, expect a girl.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Graceful or Clumsy Pregnancy

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If you feel as though you're gliding through they day, you'll have a girl. Stumbling? It's a boy.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor

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Face Weight Gain

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If your face gets fuller, it means you're having a girl.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Sugar and Spice Food Cravings

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Craving salt during pregnancy? Potato chips, pretzels, and popcorn means a boy is on the way. Need a little something sweet? Ice cream, chocolate, and candy means you're having a girl.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor

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Mood Changes

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If you're experiencing pregnant mood-swings, expect a baby girl to arrive soon.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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High or Low Pregnant Belly

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If you're carrying the baby low on your stomach, expect a boy. If it's high, you're having a girl.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor
  • Shop for maternity dresses now

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Baby Weight

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If you're carrying baby in front, it's a boy. Is the baby weight spaced all around your middle? It's a girl.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Pendulum Test

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Dangle a chain with a charm over your palm. If it swings back and forth: boy. In a circle: girl.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor

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Model Your Hands

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"Show me your hands." If you would hold your hands palms up it's a girl. Down? You're having a boy.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Toddler Advice

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Get baby advice from a nephew or friend's little boy. If a toddler boy shows interest in your belly, you'll have a girl. If he ignores you, it's a boy.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor

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Eat Garlic

Guess the baby's sex by eating garlic. If the smell seeps out of your pores it's a boy. If there's no scent it's a little girl.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Key to Pregnancy

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If you pick up a key by the round end, you're having a boy. If it's by the long end? A girl.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor

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Even and Odd Numbers

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If your age and year of conception are both even or odd, it's girl. One even, one odd means a boy.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Baby's Heartbeat

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If the baby's heart beats more than 150 times per minute, you're pregnant with a girl. Less than 150, it's a boy.

  • Try Our Gender Predictor

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Stress Test

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A child tends to be of the same sex as the parent who is less stressed at the time of conception.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Dream Meanings

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If you dream about having a girl while pregnant, you will wind up having a boy and vice versa.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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Breast Size

Credit: Kaysh Shinn

If your right breast is larger than the left while pregnant, you are having a girl. If the left is larger, it's a baby boy.

Copyright &copy 2009 Meredith Corporation.

  • Boy or Girl? Find out now.

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1 of 24 Old Wives' Tales
2 of 24 Sleep Position
3 of 24 Upset Stomach
4 of 24 Pregnancy Myths: What Should You Believe?
5 of 24 Boy or Girl: How Genetics Determine Your Baby's Gender
6 of 24 Soft or dry hands
7 of 24 Food Cravings
8 of 24 Adult Acne
9 of 24 Graceful or Clumsy Pregnancy
10 of 24 Face Weight Gain
11 of 24 Sugar and Spice Food Cravings
12 of 24 Mood Changes
13 of 24 High or Low Pregnant Belly
14 of 24 Baby Weight
15 of 24 Pendulum Test
16 of 24 Model Your Hands
17 of 24 Toddler Advice
18 of 24 Eat Garlic
19 of 24 Key to Pregnancy
20 of 24 Even and Odd Numbers
21 of 24 Baby's Heartbeat
22 of 24 Stress Test
23 of 24 Dream Meanings
24 of 24 Breast Size

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