You are pregnant. Normally, this means that you are undeniably privy to hearing all the old wives tales, myths, and secrets to pregnancy that range from revealing the sex of your baby to how much hair your baby will have upon delivery. So really, what is true and what is not? 1. Does carrying low mean I am carrying a boy? Older women will rub your belly and say, “Wow, you’re carrying low, so you must be having a boy.” Or vice versa. The truth is that every woman carries her baby differently and will carry one baby differently than she does a second or third. The way your tummy looks has more to do with how the baby is positioned in your uterus than the sex of the baby. It is also based on your height, weight, and how far along you are, as well as some predetermined genetics. In fact, there are plenty of myths specific to gender. The raw truth is that just because the needles hung over your belly at your shower seemed to sway in one direction or another doesn’t necessarily mean you will have a boy or a girl. Most of the people who believe in that sort of stuff only do because it worked for them. Yet, I have had 4 children and it wasn’t right in any case. If you want to know the sex, ask the ultrasound tech to tell you. (Although it’s more fun to guess.) 2. Fast heartbeat means a female Wrong again! Most fetuses start out with extremely high heart rates that seem to settle around the 150 mark prior to delivery. This myth has been born out of the fact that woman have higher heart rates than men. However, when it comes to your baby in utero – this isn’t a good predictor. 3. Will raising my arms cause my babies cord to become entangled and lead to miscarriage? Okay, my mother in law was constantly after me when I was pregnant about raising my arms. If she saw me putting away a dish on the top shelf she would gasp and say, “Honey – don’t raise your arms above your head – it will tangle the umbilical cord!” Since the thought scared me to death, I asked my doctor and here’s the real scoop: Umbilical cords tangle because of fetal movement – NOT maternal movement. It is also more common for babies with really long cords to be born with it around their legs, arms, torso, etc. There is nothing that you can do about it. Luckily, doctors can monitor you for this through ultrasound and fetal wellness tests. So while you shouldn’t be lifting heavy objects above your head or over exerting yourself, raising your arms to stretch or do some prenatal yoga isn’t going to threaten your pregnancy. 4. Sex while pregnant will hurt the baby Nope! Not true. Here’s the thing. First of all – no offense to your man – but he would have to have an EXTREMELY large penis in order to penetrate the uterine cavity where the baby is hidden. By extremely, I mean horse like. Secondly, sex is safe as long as you aren’t experiencing any difficulties. Some women don’t feel like sex when they are pregnant, and others feel more amorous due to the hormonal surges and heightened sensations in their pubic area. Many women admit to having an orgasm for the first time while pregnant. So go for it as long as your doctor hasn’t advised you otherwise. 5. Heartburn means a hairy newborn Just recently the New York Times did a study that seemed to prove this fact. However, there were only 28 participants in the study which isn’t even close to an adequate control group. Yet, many people believe that if you have heartburn while you are pregnant, you will birth a baby with a head full of air. 71% of all women experience heartburn while pregnant due to hormonal releases that relax the sphincter muscle. And many of these women have babies with little to no hair. Your odds on this are about 50-50 and increase if you are of black, Hispanic, or Asian descent. 6. One baby one tooth This myth began decades ago when women did not have proper pre-natal care. What used to happen is that women were deficient in iron and calcium. These two minerals are actually stored throughout life. While pregnant, a maternal deficiency meant that the stores would go first to the growing fetus leaving mom deficient, which could cause tooth decay or even loss. Today, this is normally not the case and deficiencies can be avoided by taking pre-natal vitamins. There are plenty more where these came from. The trick is to have fun with all the myths, secrets, and tales of pregnancy. If you find any that cause you fear then check with your doctor and get the facts. Sure, there is some merit in the medical know-how’s of yesterday, but there is much more merit in the medical knowledge of today.