How do you know if he is a boy or a girl? 8 tests you can use

Some people prefer not to know until birth whether their offspring will be a boy or a girl. But for all those parents who do want to know, there are several fairly reliable methods to know the sex of the pregnant woman. Some are rituals or homemade methods and others are those that doctors use for this purpose.

Although homemade alternatives are imprecise, there are many people who continue to turn to them. The truth is that it is very fun and exciting, so in addition to the studies and analyzes that the doctor orders, it never hurts to try these tests.

However, the validity of some of these non-medical tests is quite questionable, so do not rely too much on their results. In any case, on the day of delivery the whole family will have doubts.

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Know the tests that exist to know if it is a boy or a girl

Pregnancy is full of magical moments. Once the euphoria over the news of the baby's upcoming arrival has passed, parents begin to wonder how to know if it is a boy or a girl. Why not wait until the new baby is born?

Whether it is to prepare the necessary purchases, for a very understandable curiosity, or simply not to wait until the day of the birth, the reasons of the parents are diverse. That is why here is a list with the tests, in addition to the ultrasound, to know if it is a boy or a girl.

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1. Ultrasound

Ultrasound is the most used method to find out the sex of the baby. An ultrasound is done so that the baby's anatomy can be seen and reviewed. This also allows to visualize the genitalia of the fetus and in this way to know if it is a boy or a girl, with a fairly high degree of reliability, especially if the pregnant woman is in advanced stages of the gestation.

For this to be possible, the pregnancy needs to be beyond week 20. Before this, it will be even more difficult to observe and determine exactly whether it is a boy or a girl. On the other hand, it is possible that the position of the baby in the womb is not adequate to be able to visualize the genitals. So ultrasound is not always effective.

Currently, ultrasound technology has advanced a lot, so the level of detail of the intrauterine image is quite high, as can be seen in the following image.

2. Blood test

Through a blood test it can be determined if the unborn baby is a boy or a girl. It is a simple method that can also be done from week 7, so it is one of the earliest ways for parents who wonder how to know if it is a boy or a girl.

It only requires drawing a blood sample from the mother. With this sample you can have DNA from the baby, and with this it is enough to know if it is a boy or a girl. Although it is an efficient and fast test, it is not widely used because in some countries the cost is higher, especially compared to other tests.

3. Ramzi method

An early ultrasound can tell if the baby is a boy or a girl. If the ultrasound is performed before week 20, there is the possibility of determining the sex of the baby by means of the well-known Ramzi method.

Although it is an easy way to discover the unknown, the Ramzi method is not widely used. It consists of analyzing the position of the placenta with respect to the fetus, this allows to know if the baby is a boy or girl even though it is the first ultrasounds that are performed even in the first months of the pregnancy.

4. Amniocentesis

An amniocentesis is a test used to detect congenital problems in the baby. If you suspect a congenital disorder, such as Down syndrome, your doctor will probably recommend this test.

However, in addition to meeting this objective, it is a test to know if it is a boy or a girl. But since it is a very invasive test, it is not common for it to be recommended if it is not for the suspicion of a congenital alteration. It can be carried out from week 15 and consists of the extraction of the direct amniotic fluid in the belly with the help of a needle.

5. The Chinese table

The Chinese table is one of the most used traditional methods to know if the baby is a boy or a girl. Before the necessary technology existed to resolve the parents' doubt about the sex of the pregnant woman, there were methods that tried to determine it.

It is said to be 90% effective and very easy to consult. It is a table that contains the ages of 18 to 45 years and the 12 months of the year. You simply have to locate the age of the mother and the possible month of birth. The table contains by default, the boxes of boy or girl. By crossing the data, information about the sex of the baby can be obtained. Although it is used and there are those who claim its effectiveness, there are no rigorous scientific studies that support this theory.

6. The heartbeat

The baby's heartbeat may be the answer to how to know what sex she is. An ultrasound scan can be used to listen to the heartbeat. Although there are other methods that allow you to hear it clearly.

Before technology made it possible to know the sex of the baby, midwives and midwives suggested that by means of the pulsations of the fetus it could be known if it was a boy or a girl. It is said that if it beats more than 140 times per minute, it is about a future girl, on the other hand, if she does it less times, it will be about a boy. It is possible that there is a correlation between the sex of the pregnant woman and her heart rate, but it is another technique that is far from reliable.

7. Symptoms and changes in the mother

It is believed that depending on the sex of the baby there are physiological changes in the mother. When it comes to a girl, the nipples do not darken too much, the shape of the tummy is very rounded, and the growth of body hair is maintained at the usual rate of before pregnancy.

On the other hand, it is said that if a child is expected, the nipples darken noticeably, the belly has a more pointed shape and there is a more accelerated growth of body hair. This is believed to be due to a higher testosterone load, causing this unusual growth. Although the medical arguments make some sense, it is also true that these symptoms or signs are difficult to corroborate, so we are dealing with another technique with little validity.

8. The Ring Test

The ring test has no scientific basis, but it's fun to do. It is even a very popular game in the baby shower parties. The ring test is a way for grandmothers to try to guess the sex of the baby.

To carry it out, the woman must be lying down. You have to tie a ring, preferably one that is special or significant for the mother, and place it on top of the belly and leave it completely static. When released, the ring will begin to move. If it swings like a pendulum, it is a boy, if it forms circles, then it is a girl.

Bibliographic references

• Cunningham, et al., (2010). Williams Textbook of Obstetrics, chapter 8.
• Williams, Z. (2012). Inducing tolerance to pregnancy. The New England Journal of Medicine. 367 (12).